Google Daydream usable on smartphone without compatibility

Robert Sole 14 December, 2016

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They have managed to use Google Daydream with the Google Nexus 5X smartphone, which would not have native compatibility.

Google Daydream augmented reality glasses could only be used on a limited number of smartphones to date, due to the specific features they need to function. This could change, as Reddit user CharaNalaar has gotten the Google Nexus 5X to work in these augmented reality glasses. Perhaps we are facing an open door so that Google glasses can be used with any other smartphone.

What the user in question has achieved is being able to install and run Google's VR functionalities on the aforementioned smartphone. The process, obviously, has not been exactly easy, since the user in question has been forced to modify some values in the Android system files. We do not know for sure what these files are, but most likely they are the ones that contain system information, more specifically, the hardware characteristics. After this modification in the Android system, the rest is to configure Daydream and enjoy it.

Despite this modification, we still need to have a smartphone with Android version 7.0 or higher and logically enable root access, in order to make changes to the system file. The path of the file that we must modify is the following: /system/etc/permissions/handheld_core_hardware.xml. Once we have modified the file and the permissions are activated, the rest is to install the Daydream application and use the Google glasses. You can also install any application compatible with this system that exists in the Play Store.

Making Daydream work on any terminal with Android 7.0 or higher, is not something simple and possibly accessible to everyone. The limitation of Google, seems to be that it is not that it wants us to buy compatible terminals because yes, it would be rather a limitation due to the quality of the service or what is the same, it would not run so well on these 'not compatible' smartphones and only move with smartphone that can really support the software without problems.