Dev update #33 - CPU optimizations and NOLO tweaks

We're deploying few tweaks and fixes. They are already available in Gear VR beta channel and should be available for all other Android devices later today.

Latest beta versions are:

• Gear VR: VRidge for Gear VR 1.5.0
• Android: VRidge 1.5.3 

This is mobile side update only. You don't need to update desktop clients.

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Tracking update rate fixed

In version 1.4 we introduced a new networking protocol but the implementation wasn't optimized too well. It resulted in many tracking frame drops every second (up to 20). If you are used to 60+ FPS gaming it probably felt terrible because the tracking update rate was hovering around 40 updates per second.

CPU optimizations

We're also changing synchronization model to put lower load on CPU. It should greatly reduce heat generation and battery drain compared to v1.4. On average, your CPU load should be reduced by ~50% compared to v1.4. In case of Pixel XL or Galaxy S6, VRidge CPU load should now stay below 20-30% (measured with Android Studio + ADB).

NOLO wireless changes

• We're following an advice from NOLO and we're changing default tracking mode so the phone sensors are used for rotational tracking. You can still switch to NOLO IMU in mobile app settings but generally we found that phone sensors have lower tracking latency.
• We weren't aware that NOLO hardware has recenter built-in at the firmware level. See calibration paragraph below for details.
• We're removing nolo flip-around hotkey. It might come back in the future if many people request but currently it was causing too many problems with mixed tracking mode.

NOLO wireless calibration

1. Put your headset on, turn on controllers and spin them around for 10-15 seconds. It can take up to 10-15 seconds for the magnetometer to become stable. It will be probably in wrong rotation when it stops drifting.
2. Double tap system (bottom) button on both controllers. Re-center is per controller so you can recenter them individually. VRidge will also register this hotkey as "recenter" so it won't go out of sync.
3. [Optional] Press system button on any of your NOLO controllers and go to settings in SteamVR VR dashboard. Hit "reset position in there" to make sure you are at the center of playing field.

If you feel that your height is wrong or controllers are out of sync with your head rotation, run SteamVR room setup by right-clicking on SteamVR floating window and selecting "room setup" in there. You may need to run room setup again if your relative position to the base station changes.

NOLO wireless + VRidge for Gear VR 2017

Galaxy phones plugged into Gear VR 2017 can host both Gear VR and NOLO devices which enables fully wireless experience in this scenario.

1. Install VRidge for Gear VR 1.5 Beta (if you have installation problems, please see this article).
2. Plug in your NOLO into Gear VR with Micro USB - USB-C cable. You need to have it connected before you start VRidge.
3. Start VRidge for Gear VR app so it's on "Please insert your phone into Gear VR" screen.
4. Insert your phone into Gear VR.
5. [Just once if you select "always use this app"] You will be asked which app do you want to use with NOLO. Select VRidge for Gear VR by looking at it in VR and tapping your GVR touch pad. You can select "always use this app" to skip this step in the future. You can always reset this "always use this app" by long pressing VRidge icon to access Android app info and then clearing defaults in "set as default" subscreen. If your VRidge (Cardboard) is always launching first without an option to select GVR edition, you might need to clear its defaults in the same way.
6. Start SteamVR as usual in desktop app.

Things that are missing

We want to finish NOLO integration by implementing following things:

1. Vibrations.
2. Top-down tracking mode, or at least trying to do it with mobile SDK.
3. Throwing things. Currently controllers don't provide their acceleration / velocity in mobile SDK so throwing motion doesn't work properly in some games.

We need to work with NOLO devs to code 3&4 properly so we don't know which of these will come first. They are quite busy with their driver too so it sometimes takes a bit to get all the answers and changes we need. We can sort of do 3&4 on our own but we don't want to release it as a temporary hack without future-proofing it by working with NOLO devs directly. We want to be sure that our hacks are not broken by some future firmware update

In the meantime we're still working on a lot of things that are not related to NOLO, we should have more news in upcoming weeks.

Construct VR shutting down

Yesterday Construct VR announced that it's shutting down its platform. We are looking at other solutions to host VRidge for GearVR app but we don't have replacement ready yet.

We're very surprised to see this announcement. Construct VR team and platform was a pleasure to work with and we're really sad that their journey ends here. We wish them luck in their future endeavours. Your contribution to VR world will be remembered!