A small step from Street View to VR
Everybody knows Google Street View as a way to look around a place in 360°. It’s great to see where people live or go to. And as Google is on of the forerunners of VR, it was a small step from Street View to VR. It took them almost a year to bring out the iOS version with VR but on October 2015 they announced:
Finally, to help bring you to more places, you can now explore Google Street View in Cardboard. So, download the updated Google Street View app for Android or iOS, and grab your Cardboard to immerse yourself in destinations around the world.
Google Street View is great to explore world landmarks, discover natural wonders and step inside locations such as museums, arenas, restaurants and small businesses with Street View. And as you can see, they have been at lots of places. You can even contribute your own panoramic images to Google Street View to show the world where you’ve been.
Google Street view, Google Maps and Google Earth???
Google Maps (Launched 2005) is a web mapping service developed by Google. It offers satellite imagery, street maps, 360° panoramic views of streets (Street View), real-time traffic conditions (Google Traffic), and route planning for traveling by foot, car, bicycle (in beta), or public transportation.
Google Earth (Launched 2005) is a virtual globe, map and geographical information program. It maps the Earth by the superimposition of images obtained from satellite imagery, aerial photography and geographic information system (GIS) onto a 3D globe. It also includes visualizations from Mars and the Moon. View Google Earth in VR with the Google Cardboard app also for iOS.
Google Street View (Launched 2007) is a technology featured in Google Maps and Google Earth that provides panoramic views from positions along many streets in the world. Streets with Street View imagery available are shown as blue lines on Google Maps. Google Street View can be viewed in Virtual Reality in the Google Street View app.
Source: Wikipedia
Invite customers in with indoor Street View of your business on Google Search and Google Maps
Google Street View search presence
Your Google business listing is your company’s most visible asset. Improve your presence with Street View content.
Those who view a listing with a virtual tour are twice as likely to be interested in making a reservation there. And among 18-34 year-olds in particular, prospects are 130% more likely to book based on a tour. Source: Google.
Plant your flag in Google Maps
When prospective customers seek you out on Google Maps, they now where you are and when you are open.
Create a virtual tour with business views photographers
Around the world there are many photographers that are Trusted photographers and agencies are certified by Google. Check out the entire listing on the Google Street View website.
Street View virtual tours are great for SEO but jus a glimpse of Virtual Reality
Combine 360° photos, videos and animations
Points of interests for navigation, information and interaction
Embed Virtual Reality tour on your website
Re-use your Streetview photos
VR modus on any device
Get realtime in VR-analytics
On VRapp.co you can turn your Street View photos into a VR tour
As humans we have always felt the need to tell each other stories and exchange experiences. We did this on the walls of our caves and are doing it now on Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. It is our vision that VR, by creating immersive experiences, is the next level in story telling. Imagine you can go anywhere, just using your smartphone.
A structure that is fundamental to experiences on VRapp.co are VR tours. A VR tour makes it possible to navigate in-VR through a collection of VR photos, videos or other VR media, representing different places or situations in the tour. Using Points Of Interest (POIs) a user can take different routes through the VR tour, allowing the user to experience different story lines.
Facebook, Google, HTC, Sony and Samsung have embraced VR to the max, but they are all only bringing VR to their own platform and devices. This leaves many users empty handed as these firms prefer Android, apps and their own VR headsets. VRmaster chooses to enable the distribution and experience of VR using the browser on smartphones, laptops, tablets and VR headsets.
The interaction and navigation choices visitors make in VR tours can be tracked and traced. In this way it can, for instance, be analyzed what the most occurring navigation choices are that people make in VR. Tracking behaviour in VR will provide an unprecedented dataset which brings online training and quantitative and qualitative research to a new level.