BEST PRACTICES
VERSION 3.0 - DECEMBER 2020
Google Cardboard
Best Practices
Introduction
This document describes the best practices and lessons for manufacturing your own viewer. It
includes guidelines for mechanical viewer components, instructions for generating software
viewer profiles to ensure that all apps work well on your viewer, common pitfalls and things to
avoid, and so on. This document is accompanied by a set of specifications for manufacturing
the Google Cardboard (I/O 2015 edition). These specifications can be found in the
manufacturing template collection (gc_manufacturers_kit.zip).
Viewer guidelines
The following sections describe the guidelines for individual components of a typical viewer.
Figure 1. Typical components of a Google Cardboard viewer: (1) - input, (2) - enclosure, (3) -
lenses.
Input
● Your viewer should contain exactly one input. If your viewer has affordances for a direct
screen touch, ensure that there is at most one dedicated area for touching the screen.
● Your viewer can use different types of inputs, from a simple smartphone screen touch,
conductive and capacitive inputs, to Bluetooth-based buttons, and so on.
BEST PRACTICES
VERSION 3.0 - DECEMBER 2020
● If you’re using a conductive input which passes user’s body charge onto the smartphone
screen, ensure that the input is not touching the screen in a “non-pressed” state.
Viewer enclosure
● You can use various materials for the viewer enclosure: cardboard, plastic, foam,
aluminum and so on.
● An enclosure which fully blocks ambient/stray light is not mandatory. Lightweight forms
of VR viewers with partial enclosures which do not necessarily block all ambient light
may still work with Google Cardboard software ecosystem.
● If you’re using cardboard for the enclosure, use the corrugated E-flute cardboard sheets.
Flute thickness should not be less than 0.06” (1.5mm), otherwise the viewer itself will
become unstable. This typically manifests in bending when opening/closing the top flap
or side flaps.
● Similarly if you’re using cardboard for the lens plate, apply food grade varnish or stickers
to the cardboard to minimize unattractive staining on it, since it will be in frequent contact
with skin.
Lenses
● If your viewer is using custom lenses, it may still be fully compatible with the Google
Cardboard ecosystem. Just make sure to create a viewer profile to correct for lens barrel
or pincushion distortion using the Viewer Profile Generator as described in “Viewer
profile” section below.
● If you’re designing custom lenses from scratch, aim for wide eyebox and avoid a
mechanical inter-lens/IPD adjustment.
● If you’re facing a trade-off between the FOV and the eyebox size, err on the side on the
more forgiving eyebox.
● Google Cardboard (I/O 2015 edition) uses 34 mm diameter aspherical singlet lenses.
You can find the exact specification and technical drawings of these lenses in gc_
manufacturers_kit.zip template collection.
Parts to avoid
Do not include a head strap with your viewer. When the user holds the Cardboard with their
hands against the face, their head rotation speed is limited by the torso rotational speed (which
is much slower than the neck rotational speed). This reduces the chance of “VR sickness”
caused by rendering/IMU latency and increases the immersiveness in VR.
Magnet Input: We no longer recommend magnet-based inputs as they tend to work less reliably
than conductive or capacitive inputs due to magnetometer variance within smartphones.
Miscellaneous parts (hook and loop fastener, stickers, rubber
band
BEST PRACTICES
VERSION 3.0 - DECEMBER 2020
● If your viewer is using stripes of adhesive-backed hook and loop fastener for flaps, make
sure that the adhesive is sufficiently strong not to loosen from the viewer over time, as
the strips will be getting a lot of use.
● Ensure that the phone cannot easily slide out from the viewer. For example, you can use
the rubber band or rubber dots to increase the friction between the phone and the
viewer.
● If your viewer is made out of cardboard and has print assembly instructions on both
sides, avoid designs that require perfect alignment on both sides. Also leave sufficient
margins (1/4” - 1/8”) between the print patterns and the die-cut lines.
Viewer profile
To ensure that all apps in the Google Cardboard app ecosystem work great on your viewer,
create a QR viewer profile for your device using the Viewer Profile Generator.
Figure 2. Typical output of this tool
Users will be prompted to scan this profile upon installing Google Cardboard apps for Android
and iOS, so make sure that this QR profile is clearly placed. The recommended place for the
profile is on the viewer itself, but you should also include it on the viewer’s packaging, and/or on
its website. You can find the detailed guidelines for sizing, spacing and other details of the
generated QR profile in the Viewer Profile and Badge Guidelines document.
Usage Guidelines
Audience
● Refrain from promoting and recommending Cardboard-like viewers to kids without
conducting additional testing.
● If you include magnets, retain the messaging that the viewer contains magnets that may
affect pacemakers.
● If your viewer is made out of cardboard, make sure that your audiences understand the
limitations of the material e.g. not water-resistant
BEST PRACTICES
VERSION 3.0 - DECEMBER 2020
Brand Use
Naming
● Do not use “Google Cardboard” or any similar name for your products, your domain
name, your website, social media handles, or business, that makes your product look
like an official Google product.
● Do not file trademark applications or otherwise claim trademark rights in any marks that
are confusingly similar to Google’s trademarks, including GOOGLE and GOOGLE
CARDBOARD
● Do not use any Google or Google Cardboard graphical assets (logos, product icons, etc)
on your website, your physical products or in packaging without express, written
authorization from Google.
Referring to Google Cardboard
● You are allowed to use any of the following approved text on your website or printed
materials to refer to Google Cardboard:
- This [XYZ VR headset] was inspired by Google Cardboard.
- Inspired by Google Cardboard
● If you use any of the above approved text to refer to Google or Google Cardboard, you
must include an attribution statement on your website that states “Google Cardboard is a
trademark of Google LLC.
Other communications, media, and press
Do not overstate your relationship with Google: do not state or imply that you are an exclusive
partner with Google. Do not suggest or imply that you have an exclusive or privileged
arrangement with Google that differs from any other manufacturer. Do not speak on behalf of
Google, its representatives or products. You are welcome to conduct your own interviews and
provide statements about your organization’s specific product. However, please do not speak on
behalf of Google or speculate about any Google initiatives. We’re happy to take any questions
from the press that are about Google as a company, Google’s strategy, or the ins and outs of a
Google product. Simply direct inquiries to press@[Link].
Disclaimer
Google provides these guidelines in an effort to help manufacturers provide a quality VR user
experience. Google, however, does not make any warrants or representations, does not accept
any liability, and will not indemnify any manufacturers for these designs or for third party viewers
generally
BEST PRACTICES
VERSION 3.0 - DECEMBER 2020
Change Log
Version Date Change Description
3.0 12/02/2020 Updated to address the
Cardboard open source
project. Removed WWGC
program content.
2.1 02/20/2016 Updated WWGC program
criteria; products with
magnet-based inputs will no
longer be approved for
certification.
2.0 09/1/2015 Updated to incorporate the
new Google Cardboard (I/O
2015 edition) specifications.
1.2 04/16/2015 Added information about the
“Works with Google
Cardboard” Program.
1.0 12/10/2014 Initial manufacturing
guidelines for Google
Cardboard v1.1
