Android OpenGL ES 2.0: Do I need to check if VBOs are supported before using?

Question

I want my code to perform well in all devices supporting Es 2.0. In my code, I am using VBOs, reading documentation reveals that it requires the implementation of extension "GL_ARB_vertex_buffer_object".

However, glGetString(GL_EXTENSIONS) does not list the above mentioned extension string for the device I am using (Samsung Tab) though it supports it.

Answer 1

In OpenGLES2 you do not have to check for VBO extension.

In OpenGLES2 you do have to check for vertex_array_object if you want to use VAO as well.

Here is a database of extensions from various devices.

Answer 2

In all my Android apps I use OpenGL ES 2.0 with VBO without any additional checks. And VBOs work on Galaxy Tab.

Answer 3

To my knowledge, the VBO extension is only meant for OpenGLES 1.1. OpenGLES 2.0 supports this by default. This tutorial, which I consider one of the best, makes no consideration to test the device before running the VBOs.