Samsung's new Gear VR is backwards compatible with older Galaxy phones

Samsung's new Gear VR is backwards compatible with older Galaxy S and Galaxy Note smartphones.

@anthony256

Published Aug 3, 2016 2:37 AM CDT
Updated Nov 3, 2020 11:59 AM CST

45 seconds read time

Samsung unveiled its next-gen Galaxy Note 7 smartphone, impressing people with the upgraded hardware, new S Pen abilities and iris scanner - but there was a new Gear VR announced at the same time, too.

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The new Gear VR headset has a dedicated Home button, a revamped touchpad on the right side, and a blue/black finish that looks awesome. The new Gear VR has a wider field of view, offering 101-degree FOV versus 96-degree FOV on the previous-gen Gear VR headset. We also have USB Type-C connectivity, ready for the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone.

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Samsung includes a dongle in the box that lets you use the new Gear VR with older Galaxy and Galaxy Note smartphones, so you're not forced into plonking down close to $1000 for the new Galaxy Note 7 (for as awesome as it is, however).

Samsung's new Gear VR will go on sale on August 19, the same day that the Galaxy Note 7 hits shelves, and will be priced at $99.

NEWS SOURCE:tomshardware.com

Anthony Garreffa

Anthony joined the TweakTown team in 2010 and has since reviewed 100s of graphics cards. Anthony is a long time PC enthusiast with a passion of hate for games built around consoles. FPS gaming since the pre-Quake days, where you were insulted if you used a mouse to aim, he has been addicted to gaming and hardware ever since. Working in IT retail for 10 years gave him great experience with custom-built PCs. His addiction to GPU tech is unwavering and has recently taken a keen interest in artificial intelligence (AI) hardware.