NotiVR is leaving early access and is 10% off for the next 2 weeks! There's so much to cover so here's the headlines:

iPhone users can use NotiVR now, we've improved the Android app too, oh and we added custom icon packs!

iOS Support Now Available

By far the #1 most requested feature is now ready for prime time. You can now pair your iPhone with NotiVR and see your iPhone's notifications directly in your VR headset.

All that's needed is a PC with a Bluetooth connectivity and your iPhone running the new NotiVR iOS app!

Due to Apple's restrictions we cannot offer the same experience as we can with our Android customers. Your notifications will still show up in the NotiVR overlay like you know and love but you will not be able to reply to messages. We are currently looking into ways to support the new EU-only notification system which would allow for this feature.

Android Pairing Update

We can't ship a massive update like this without also shipping a bunch of improvements for our existing Android users. We've completely overhauled the setup process and networking stack for Android

You no longer have to scan a QR code with your camera, this has been the source of the majority of bugs users report.

Now the Android app will discover your PC over the network automatically.

And as a bonus, notification traffic is now end-to-end encrypted, just in case you've brought your VR PC to a coffee shop, we don't judge.

Steam Workshop?

NotiVR now includes Steam Workshop support, for some reason?

We're introducing Packs with this update. A pack is a collection of icons and/or sounds that can be used to customise your NotiVR experience.

When we were developing the iOS integration, we realised there is no way to get app icons from your iPhone, Apple don't provide a mechanism for this. So instead ship a pack that contains some basic icons for use by our iOS users.

We had so much fun with this we made the whole thing workshop compatible, meaning you can make your own custom icon pack for iOS/Android apps and share them with the community.

We've also added global and per-app notification sounds which you can also share on the workshop!

Checkout the NotiVR docs for information how to publish your own packs.

What's next

While this is the end of early access this is not the end of NotiVR. We already have plans for future updates along with many more QoL updates we could make.

Top of the list is getting NotiVR Steam Frame Verified. Thanks to Valve, we've got our hands on a Steam Frame devkit and are hard at work porting NotiVR to a standalone environment. We're expecting to release a full native Steam Frame build in our next release.

On a personal note:

Thanks for the support over these last few years. As you can imagine this is a niche product with a small user base, so its pretty much impossible to sustain myself off of the income from NotiVR. But despite working on this as basically a side project since 2021, I'll keep shipping updates as much as I can as long as people are still using it.

I originally started work on NotiVR because I genuinely needed a solution to this problem and all the other options sucked. It's great to hear from people who've found use in this little tool I've been tinkering with for years.

-J

The full changelog

iOS

• You can now pair your iPhone and receive iOS notifications in VR

• A Bluetooth 4.0+ adapter is required to connect to your iPhone

• Your PC will auto-connect to your iPhone once NotiVR starts up, no need for you to open the NotiVR app on your iPhone

• This even works if you already use Windows Phone Link, no need to unpair your phone

• Due to iOS limitations there is no support for:

  • Replying to messages

  • App icons (see 'Packs' for more info)

Android

• The Android app now uses network pairing to find your NotiVR PC, instead of relying on a QR code

• Network traffic is now end-to-end encrypted between your phone and PC

• QR code based pairing is now deprecated

  • Existing pairings will still work but we recommend walking through the new setup flow for the best long term experience

  • QR code pairing does not support encryption

Packs / Steam Workshop

• App icons and notification sounds for both Android and iOS can be customised using Packs

• NotiVR is preloaded with a 'core' pack containing icons for popular iOS apps

• You can build your own packs to add custom icons and notification sounds

• Custom Packs can be shared via the Steam Workshop

• Read the docs for instructions on creation your own Packs

Sound

• NotiVR will now play a notification sound when a notification is received

• On by default, but can be disabled globally and volume can be adjusted

• You can have a default sound with a specific sound per app

• Customisable with packs, NotiVR ships with a few sounds to get you started

Bug fixes and smaller stuff

• XSOverlay options will be disabled if you do not own XSOverlay

• Similarly, if you have selected XSOverlay options but don't have it installed, a warning will be shown

• Massive performance boost for the desktop window

• Fix inconsistent button style across setup flow

• Nav tweaked slightly to account for new Packs options

• General stability improvements and exception handling across the app