Baidu today released its "Cloud Phone" virtual mobile phone service, which allows users to remotely control the virtual device in real time, and run Android Apps on the cloud.

Cloud Phone is a virtual mobile phone with all the applications running on the cloud. It is based on the ARM server and ARM virtualization technology independently developed by Baidu, and can provide a clustered management and control platform for virtual mobile phones in the cloud.

Users can remotely control the Cloud Phone in real time and run an Android app on the cloud. Essentially, users can "add" a new set of Android programs that run on the cloud and control tham through their normal phone's screen.

Baidu said that in cloud gaming scenarios, Baidu Cloud Phone can allow users to bypass possible hardware performance limitations of their smartphones, TVs or smartwatches. Since all apps including games run in the cloud, users' gaming devices do not need to be equipped with any high-end processors and graphics cards. Instead, they only need to have basic video decompression capabilities.

In addition, Baidu Cloud Phone supports "cloud VR" running on a cloud server. Both display and audio encoded in real time at the cloud and are streamed to the users' devices. This means that VR games would not require a special VR headset. User's device should just have internet connectivity, video decoding and human-computer interaction capabilities.

Currently, Baidu Cloud Phone supports 4K resolution at a 60fps. It is compatible with 32-bit and 64-bit systems, supports native Android OS and GPU hardware acceleration.