(Pocket-lint) – Google has updated its augmented reality SDK to help phones with dual camera setups capture depth information and produce AR content more effectively.
First spotted by Android Police, a recent update to the Google Play Services for AR app, which is the portal for experiences that utilise the company’s ARCore SDK, states that “Dual camera stereo depth on supported devices” is now live.
For the time being, it appears as though this support will only extend to Google’s Pixel 4 And Pixel 4 XL, both released back in 2019. In the Google Developer listing, it’s stated that this update will be rolling out to the devices in the coming weeks, but we expect plenty more Android phones to receive the upgrade in time.
Of course, this means that Google’s Pixel 5 and 4a 5G phones won’t be receiving the upgrade just yet, despite being newer.
It’s not entirely clear why this is, or indeed when the tweak will affect the newer models. However, it’s likely that it’s related to the differences these phones have in their dual-camera setups – both feature secondary cameras that are ultrawide snappers, rather than the telephoto lenses that are in the Pixel 4 and 4 XL.
Either way, this is an update that is long overdue, and should see more devices eventually be able to take advantage of ARCore.
Previously, the SDK could only leverage one camera from an array that now often includes multiple. By doubling this, we should not only see more phones be able to experience the Google Play Services for AR app, but also see an improvement in how the content works.
Writing by Conor Allison.
