Google Cardboard was the 2014 Google project that let users turn a smartphone into a simple virtual-reality viewer using folded cardboard.
Google introduced Cardboard at its I/O developer conference in 2014. The design used a folded cardboard viewer, lenses, magnets or another input method, and a compatible smartphone. Applications split the phone’s display into stereoscopic images so each eye saw a slightly different view.
The project made basic VR experimentation inexpensive and accessible. Google published the design openly, allowing many manufacturers to produce compatible viewers. Users could experience panoramas, games, and educational demonstrations without buying a dedicated computer-connected headset.
Cardboard was not the same as Daydream. Daydream was Google’s later smartphone-based VR platform, supported by selected phones and a dedicated controller. Cardboard was simpler, cheaper, and broadly compatible, although its tracking and comfort were limited compared with full VR headsets.