Report: Samsung making VR headset, plans to beat Oculus and Sony to market

The mobile division of technology giant Samsung is working on a virtual reality device that will be announced this year, sources with knowledge of the matter told technology blog Engadget, which also recently revealed the Halo: Master Chief Collection.

The tipsters said that unnamed developers already have prototype versions of the headset, which are reportedly powered by Galaxy devices. The final consumer model, on the other hand, is believed to run on a next-generation Galaxy smartphone and/or tablet.

Samsung's rumored virtual reality device is said to mirror the Oculus Rift or Sony's Project Morpheus in form factor. It's believed to have an OLED screen that is as good or better than the latest Oculus Rift development kit. What's unclear, however, is how the headset will sync up with your phone or tablet, and if it will require a separate camera to track depth, as both the Oculus Rift and Project Morpheus do.

According to the Engadget report, Samsung is not only aiming to beat the Oculus Rift and Project Morpheus headsets to market, but also to sell their device for less than the competition. What's the purpose of Samsung's virtual reality device? According to Engadget's sources, it's being made to support Android games, though a list of titles is not available.

Samsung said: "Samsung doesn't comment on rumor and speculation."

It's worth noting that Oculus Rift for almost a year now has been talking about its ambition to bring virtual reality support to mobile devices, though it remains unclear how this will work. Facebook purchased Oculus VR, maker of Oculus Rift, earlier this year for $2 billion.

Eddie Makuch is a news editor at GameSpot, and you can follow him on Twitter @EddieMakuch
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