Final Week: Pinć VR Nears Crowdfunding Goal for Smartphone Case That Transforms into a VR Headset

Scott Hayden

On Jan 16, 2015

Categories: Android VRCrowdfundingIndiegogoMobile VRNewsVirtual Reality

There’s only a week remaining in Pinć VR’s crowdfunded drive to take mobile VR out of backpacks and makeshift carry cases and put it straight in your pocket, and with the recently addition of support for selected Android devices, the IndieGogo campaign could be searching to put their device in a lot more pockets than initially planned.

Cordon Media, a Toronto based digital agency, aims to redefine the form factor of smartphone-centric VR headsets with their unique system that promises to deliver a lot more functionality than your run-of-the-mill Google Cardboard variant. It’s called Pinć VR, a bundled system that packages a pair of 35mm fresnel lenses and head strap into a plastic smartphone case. Included in the system is also a pair of unique ‘Pincher Gesture Controllers’ that act as LED markers for the case’s integrated wide angle lens, which tracks the controllers via app-integrated computer vision. The ‘pinchers’ are used to swipe and pinch your way through a host of commercially focused apps that are represented in 3D on a ‘virtual desktop’, along with the possibility to use a virtual keyboard for data input.

Pinć VR on Indiegogo

Milan Baic presents a prototype on BNN’s Segment ‘Capitalize’

Milan Baic, president and founder of Cordon Media, told BNN’s Paul Bagnell in an interview that Pinć VR is for “everyday computing, commerce, anything you can imagine that you can do on your phone or your computer [that] can be taken to the next level with virtual reality.” Baic also stated back in early December that the platform was originally only meant to accommodate iPhone 6 and 6 Plus smartphones, which was based on a strategy to consolidate resources into one operating system and a smaller number of handset form factors, but with a recent addition of support for Android devices, the projected release of the device will also include the transforming smartphone case for Samsung Galaxy Note 4, Samsung Galaxy Note 3, Nexus 5, Nexus 6, LG G3, HTC One M8, Samsung Galaxy S5, Samsung Galaxy S4, Motorola Moto X, Sony Xperia Z3, Sony Xperia Z2, Sony Xperia Z Ultra, of course at the same $99 CAD ($83 USD) early backer special price as the iPhone ‘Discovery Edition’ cases. Pinć VR will also be launching an SDK for any potential developers wanting to develop apps for the multi-platform device. The IndieGogo campaign is set to end on January 22nd, 2015 with a total flex-funding goal of $50,000 CAD ($42,000 USD). (all prices shown in Canadian Dollars) $1 – A Warm Thank You