A surprise announcement came out of Sony’s Tokyo Game Show press conference today in the form of Anywhere VR – a new “relaxation app” from Sony Music Entertainment that allows you to use your smartphone in VR.
Details on exactly how this works are scarce, but it appears that the PlayStation VR headset allows for some connectivity to your smartphone when using the Anywhere VR app. Using that connectivity, the app can display a replica of your smartphone’s screen as a projection within the VR scene itself, allowing you to navigate your phone’s interface without needing to remove your PlayStation VR headset.
Whether or not this will actually be relaxing isn’t a question Sony seems interested in asking; instead, the company wants to ensure you’ll have access to your “favourite things” at all times. Anywhere VR also appears to be supported by PlayStation Now, allowing you to stream the app from your PC without the need for an actual PS4. However, logically you would still need to plug the headset into an actual PS4 in the first place. Are you relaxed yet? More details can be found in Sony's press conference below:
The HTC Vive also contains similar phone connectivity, allowing you to answer calls or reply to texts while wearing the Vive. That works via an iOS or Android app which is then tethered to the headset via Bluetooth.
