How to set up Google Daydream View with Pixel or Pixel XL smartphones

From today (10 November), owners of the Google Pixel or Pixel XL can pick up the Android giant's latest effort to corner the mobile virtual reality market – the Google Daydream View.

In the UK, the Daydream View is currently available from high-street smartphone retailers Carphone Warehouse and EE, as well as Google's online store. Details of other worldwide pricing and retailers can be found here.

For our full thoughts on Google's Daydream VR headset and its new mobile VR ecosystem, check out our review.

If you are already a proud Daydream View owner and possess a Pixel, then below we will walk you through how to set up your fabric-covered headset, then you can log into the Play Store in VR and download the best VR apps, games and experiences Daydream has to offer.

How to set up Google Daydream View with the Google Pixel / Google Pixel XL

• Unpackage the Daydream View and controller and unfold the front flap by lifting the elasticated strap.
• Fit the felt strap to the Daydream View controller – you may need a needle to fetch the loop through as it is quite a tight fit.
• Unlock your Google Pixel.
• Download the Daydream app from the Google Play Store (if not already pre-installed).
• Tap the app and when instructed place the phone in the front compartment with the screen facing in toward the lenses and the volume and power keys facing up.
• Put the Daydream View on your head and adjust the head-strap and headset position until you can't see any blur.
• Play through the Welcome experience and continue to Daydream Home.

Daydream Home can be accessed via your phone screen in the Daydream app or Google Play Store when not using the View headset, or from within the VR experience.

Some apps are free and some are paid for, with prices currently sitting around the £5.99 mark, although this could change as more in-depth apps become available. You can both purchase and download apps while using Daydream View, while pre-installed apps will show automatically in Daydream Home.

To navigate the menus in VR while in Daydream Home or the Play Store, use the pointer to hover over the icons and select them by lightly clicking the track pad. To scroll through horizontal menus, swipe left or right along the track pad.

You can move around the full 360 degree environments by turning around while wearing the headset, but be aware of your surroundings before doing so. Google recommends sitting in a swivel chair, which we found works brilliantly.

To exit back to Daydream Home at any point you simply need to press the inset button on the controller. Holding the same button down will reset the position of the screen and the controller's pointer.

A volume rocker is also located on the right side of the controller, with sound emanating from the Pixel's speakers as standard. You can, however, plug a pair of headphones into the exposed 3.5mm jack to fully immerse yourself in the virtual world (and to not annoy non VR-dwelling people).