Microsoft’s Kinect is some interesting technology that uses infra-red technology for body scanning. It has hundreds, if not thousands of practical uses – but virtually none of them really make games any better. That doesn’t mean that Microsoft isn’t still trying to push the technology – in fact, they want it in everything, including TV’s, notebooks and tablets.
Speaking at TechForum in Seattle this week, Microsoft’s Craig Mundie laid out the company’s plans to integrate Kinect in to just about every future consumer device – though admits there are some technical hurdles involved.
“You want to be as cheap as possible and physically as small as possible. My dream is to get a Kinect into the bezel of something like this [Surface tablet],” Mundie said.
“It’s not gonna happen tomorrow, but we can see a path towards that sort of thing,” he said.
There are a number of challenges involved in making Kinect suitable for on-the-go use.
“It turns out it’s infrared so when you go out in the sunlight the sun is a big infrared source that drowns it out,” Mundie said.
“There’s a whole bunch of problems, not just miniaturisation, in designing the sensors so they actually do what you expect them to do in all of the environments.”
They have an even bigger challenge though; convincing people to care.
Rumour suggests the next Xbox will feature an integrated, improved version of Kinect that might enable that whole Minority Report-styled interface control we all expected when Kinect was first shown off.
Last Updated: March 6, 2013
OVG
March 6, 2013 at 12:54
They can insert the Kinect 2 up their Micro Soft bottoms… not sideways tho.
Sir Rants-a-Lot Llew
March 6, 2013 at 13:22
Didn’t you see they are already doing that? They said integrated. So they want to literally build it in to their microsofty bottoms 🙂
Admiral Chief Erwin
March 6, 2013 at 12:59
*yawn* becomes “ouch ouch my extremeties”
matthurstrsa
March 6, 2013 at 13:03
Why would I want crappy kinect when I could have Leap Motion, which is already miniature and appears to work 1000 times better for half the price?
Sir Captain Rincethis
March 6, 2013 at 13:12
I was going to to say, ‘oh shit, hope OVG doesn’t see this’ but alas, too late! God, please kill the Kinetic, with fire…
Sir Rants-a-Lot Llew
March 6, 2013 at 13:21
So if you cough and your body spazzes out… would that cause your character to cough as well or would the game simply blue-screen and give you the finger?
umar bastra
March 6, 2013 at 13:52
“kinect is awesome”…said no one ever…..actually … said every 12 year old ever
Eetcarr
March 6, 2013 at 15:09
Header image win!
Purple_Dragon
March 6, 2013 at 15:28
I just wonder if companies like Microsoft are overestimating the size of the casual market. It seems like they are plugging something that their core customers don’t want in hopes of attracting more casual customers that aren’t really that interested?
Weanerdog
March 6, 2013 at 15:49
Reminds me of the shii
BeatzByChrisBrown
March 6, 2013 at 15:57
Kinect in tablets -> Now you can look like an idiot while on-the-go.
HvR
March 6, 2013 at 17:08
See it coming with Windows 8 SP1:
O you want to change your background, jump through the imaginary hoop 3 times.
ooooo you want change IP settings, jump the hoop 13 and turn around and bend forward.
Banana Jim
March 6, 2013 at 17:36
That’s awesome news! Kinect is the bestest best best electronic device ever created! It’s the pinnacle of our civilization because after all… It’s better than a controller. In fact, I’ll get Kinectbox 2.0 over the PS4 any day.
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HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAH