VRDisplayCapabilities.hasExternalDisplay

This is an experimental technology
Because this technology's specification has not stabilized, check the compatibility table for usage in various browsers. Also note that the syntax and behavior of an experimental technology is subject to change in future versions of browsers as the specification changes.

The hasExternalDisplay read-only property of the VRDisplayCapabilities interface returns a Boolean stating whether the VR display is separate from the device's primary display.

Note: If presenting VR content would obscure other content on the device, this will return false, in which case the application should not attempt to mirror VR content or update non-VR UI because that content will not be visible.

Syntax

var hasAnExternalDisplay = vrDisplayCapabilitiesInstance.hasExternalDisplay;

Value

A Boolean.

Examples

function reportDisplays() {
  navigator.getVRDisplays().then(function(displays) {
    for(var i = 0; i < displays.length; i++) {
      var cap = displays[i].capabilities;
      // cap is a VRDisplayCapabilities object
      var listItem = document.createElement('li');
      listItem.innerHTML = '<strong>Display ' + (i+1) + '</strong>'
                   + '<br>VR Display ID: ' + displays[i].displayId
                   + '<br>VR Display Name: ' + displays[i].displayName
                   + '<br>Display can present content: ' + cap.canPresent
                   + '<br>Display is separate from the computer\'s main display: ' + cap.hasExternalDisplay
                   + '<br>Display can return position info: ' + cap.hasPosition
                   + '<br>Display can return orientation info: ' + cap.hasOrientation
                   + '<br>Display max layers: ' + cap.maxLayers;
      list.appendChild(listItem);
    }
  });
}

Specifications

Specification	Status	Comment
WebVR 1.1 The definition of 'hasExternalDisplay' in that specification.	Editor's Draft	Initial definition

Feature	Chrome	Edge	Firefox (Gecko)	Internet Explorer	Opera	Safari (WebKit)
Basic support	No support^[1]	(Yes)	55 (55)^[2]	No support	No support	No support

Feature	Android	Edge	Firefox Mobile (Gecko)	IE Phone	Opera Mobile	Safari Mobile	Chrome for Android	Samsung Internet for GearVR
Basic support	No support	No support	55.0 (55)	No support	No support	No support	(Yes)^[3]	(Yes)

[1] API Available on all platforms behind a flag, but currently only works on desktop in an experimental version of Chrome (other builds won't return any devices when Navigator.getVRDisplays() is invoked).

[2] Currently only Windows support is enabled by default. Mac support is available in Firefox Nightly.

[3] Currently supported only by Google Daydream.

Syntax

Value

Examples

Specifications

Browser compatibility

See also

Document Tags and Contributors