HTC and Google Cancel Standalone Daydream Headset in US, Lenovo Still on Board

The launch of a standalone HTC VR headset for Google’s Daydream platform is no longer happening in the US, according to TechCrunch and now confirmed by Clay Bavor, Google’s VR boss.

The HTC-made headset was announced at Google I/O in May and expected to launch before the end of the year alongside another similar headset from Lenovo. The HTC part of that is obviously no longer happening, but Bavor did insist that Lenovo is still working on their product. In fact, he said on Twitter last night that he’s been using a pre-release Lenovo headset and will have more to announce on that front soon.

So why is HTC ditching the US? They didn’t say other than that they are instead focusing on releasing a standalone VR headset powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 835 processor that will be released in China. That unit is called HTC Vive Focus and was officially unveiled today. You can read more on that here.

Sad to learn this news? Were you looking forward to HTC’s headset or are you fine with Lenovo still being on board?

// TechCrunch