Sony’s Move faceman, Anton Mikhailov, has been chatting to Videogamer.com about all things Move and Kinect related and has stated in no uncertain terms that he isn’t a massive fan of Kinect.
This can be expected since he is one of the men responsible for the Kinect’s biggest competitor but at the same time he isn’t really giving an opinion he is stating technological facts which can’t just be ignored.
He starts off with
“the PlayStation Eye camera runs at 60 frames per second so it can track you very quickly whereas the Kinect and other depth camera are only 30 frames per second. So they are more suited for slower motions.â€
He does then say that Kinect is acceptable for dancing games and is perfect for yoga games but then heads back into the fray with
“Marketing-wise they’re minor tech problems, technologically-wise they’re quite bigâ€
“The fact that it runs at 30 frames per second instead of 60, that’s a common problem with all those cameras. It’s actually hard to fix because you have a lot of data to transport. Sort of working with that image is expensive computationally-wise. I think they quoted something like 10-15 per cent of the Xbox resources, plus like 50 megs of memory or something like that. The Move takes less than 1%, and like 1 megabyte.â€
And it’s not only the frame rate that he has an issue with
“Another issue is resolution; it’s a 320×240 camera as far as I’ve heard and the out-to is 640×480 so neither of those are particularly hot resolutions but you can take what you can get. I mean, a lot of webcams now are 720p, etc. but the reality is those cameras are much more expensive and they’re running again at lower frame-rates. So when you do a bunch of this maths, like, the resolution I think is too low, I think the frame-rate is too low, and I think some materials are still a problem.â€
Wait what? Apparently he also has a problem with what you are wearing at times while playing Kinect
“so for example you’re wearing a black shirt so the camera when it looks at you it sees black because no light is being reflected back at it. So infra-red is just another band of light and there are objects that are black in the infra-red spectrum. They’re not the same objects that are black right now but for example, like, leather tends to have I think – it’s newer or older leather – one of those in infra-red black and some denim jeans are infra-red black. I think those really shiny ones? And some are reflective so either you get things that are just missing from the image or you get things that are shining brightly and are hard to understand.â€
So it’s not like he doesn’t think Kinect is good but the frame rate is to low, the resolution isn’t up to scratch and you can’t wear whatever you want because of the infrared camera. But apart from that he thinks the Kinect isn’t that bad, but the PlayStation Eye can do everything it does and more.
Check the full interview through the link below.
Source: Videogamer
Last Updated: November 30, 2010
hayted
November 30, 2010 at 09:35
Sony continue to slate the Kinect. How many Moves have shipped?
Fox1
November 30, 2010 at 09:35
Pffft…PS3 can’t hold 60fps at GT5 :angel:
I was at quite a few major stores this weekend and I can tell you that Kinect displays are leaving Move stands with tumbleweed :heart: :za:
Mitas
November 30, 2010 at 10:51
nah …. rather hit it up with move than , kinect , i dont want any milo exp , i want to be kratos swinging my arms killing gods ! they must relase a patch for god of war for move!!!
Sounds like Desperation
November 30, 2010 at 11:19
Lol I take it Kinect is selling far better than Sonys Move, would this person of said any of this had Kinect not sold ? I doubt it very much.
Intresting to see the latest news that Kinect has gone well past the 2.5 million in sales already.
When will Sony confirm their numbers SOLD NOT SHIPPED and when will they confirm how they are counted?, is it Move bundle with camera only that counts as a sale or is it as some people are saying that if the Move bundle is also sold with an extra controller then they are counting that as 2 Move sales,some are even saying that they count every Move controller as another Move sold !!! maybe the Sony engineer could confirm which one or ones of them it actually is?.
al360
November 30, 2010 at 11:24
i kinda njoy both they both have their flaws and both have their positives pity sony didnt’ just re-develope the eyecam and have a kinnect move solution hehehehehe :biggrin: then we all happy and they sell kajillions!!!
Marc
November 30, 2010 at 11:43
Have to agree with “Fox1” how can they talk about 60fps when GT5 keeps dropping out of it faster than you can say “Wii Ripoff”
GT5 is being trounced in the Metascore ratings by a year old game called Forza 3 (which holds a constant 60fps)…
So let’s have no more talk of 60fps Mr Sony engineer.
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
November 30, 2010 at 11:52
This is exactly what Sony shouldn’t be doing. Just advertise PS move, highlight the technology and show the sheep what it can do. Leave Kinect alone, it has it’s own advertisement budget.
Sigh Sony!
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
November 30, 2010 at 11:55
Lol, must be a Durban thing, here in Cape Town (southern and northern suburbs), it’s only the occasional bergie (homeless person) that finds himself mesmerised by Kinect, but then those guys are already high on methamphetamine (tik), and probably thinks it’s part of their trip.
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
November 30, 2010 at 12:02
lol, dude, if you actually played GT5 you wouldn’t be making such IGNorant comments. #justsaying
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
November 30, 2010 at 12:03
You realise Microsoft’s numbers are always shipped? They actually use the terms shipped and sold interchangeably, but it all means the same thing, shipped to retailers.
Ndibu
November 30, 2010 at 12:43
Now you listen here buddy! Who the hell are you and what did you do with Bobby!!
Rez
November 30, 2010 at 14:05
No matter the product I always think when a company has to slate their competitor’s product to promote their own product, they are probably not able to convince people to buy their product on the products own merits.
They can say how they thought about controller less gaming but saw the advantages of controllers but the fact is Kinect is selling. I think it is because people are use to Wii so the Move is not revolutionary. If people wanted a gaming experience with wii-like controllers they probably own a Wii. Kinect on the other hand is something new (yes you can argue the eye toy was there first but I don’t recall it making the same impact as the kinect) and exciting and people will initially buy it because of that factor. Sales will then depend on the quality of the titles produce and there is where the battle for dominance is.
However the Kinect is ahead in getting their foot through the door and that is at least a start for them.
RossiRsa
November 30, 2010 at 17:56
Dude the move sold/shipped 4.1 mil that’s a frikken success.
“would this person of said any of this had Kinect not sold ?”
The article is a highlight of an interview in which they asked “Q: What are the problems with Kinect?”
Surprise surprise, he told him what the issues he felt were.
x dvd
November 30, 2010 at 19:50
I agree with you Rez, but also remember that Sony started the whole slating thing first with their comparison chart of the move and the kinect, highlighting how superior the move is and Microsoft didn’t respond just like they won’t respond to this latest comparison by a Sony engineer as they have no need to (the kinect has sold 2.5 million units after all). @Bobby Kotick – I live in Cape Town and there is plenty of interest in the Kinect as demonstrated at the kinect demo units all over Cape Town – Musica Cavendish Connect, Look and Listen Canal walk, Makro Ottery, so it’s defnitely not a Durban thing so stop your trolling please. Also, I wouldn’t go around calling Capetonian kinect adopters bergies if I was you.