Google’s ARCore is now compatible with Samsung’s Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus flagships some six weeks after the augmented reality platform first debuted on smartphones from the South Korean original equipment manufacturer. While the solution was officially supported by the Galaxy S9 lineup from the moment it launched, owners of the new phablets weren’t able to use it until yesterday when Google started rolling out a new ARCore update which is now available for download from the Play Store on a global level and can be accessed by referring to the banner below. Samsung and Google previously engaged in some finger-pointing when asked who’s at fault for ARCore not being available on the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus from the moment they hit the market in mid-March, though Google appears to be the one who ended up flipping the support switch.
ARCore is Google’s answer to Apple’s ARKit, having been envisioned as a solution for delivering contemporary augmented reality experiences on mobile devices. The software framework and the developer tools it ships with are all meant to standardize AR development in the Android ecosystem, thus accelerating it to a significant degree. Users with compatible handsets are able to start utilizing ARCore by installing it from the Google Play Store, then downloading Android apps that are powered by the platform. While the ARCore app is necessary for any such software to run, it essentially acts like a background service and can’t be launched manually on its own using any conventional means.
Samsung’s Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus became available for purchase nearly two months ago and while the Seoul-based company says it’s pleased with their commercial performance, no sales figures have yet been provided by the tech giant. Samsung was more keen to share sales data of its latest Galaxy S-series models in recent years, particularly in regard to the Galaxy S8 family introduced just over a year ago.