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Microsoft Has Stopped Manufacturing The Kinect

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Re: Microsoft Has Stopped Manufacturing The Kinect

#131

Post by derefr »

squarefoot wrote: post #118
Bjorkbat wrote: post #67

This is a shame. I mean, yeah, it was a pretty awkward gaming accessory, but outside the context of gaming people were doing some pretty fun things with it. A powerful sensor at a ridiculously cheap cost that you could use to create amazing things, provided of course your imagination wasn't weighed down by the latest dumb tech trend. That last statement is just as true now as it was when the Kinect originally came ou…

"A powerful sensor at a ridiculously cheap cost that you could use to create amazing things, provided of course your imagination wasn't weighed down by the latest dumb tech trend" This. And thanks to software/hardware patents, the technology will die with the product, or remain dormant until the owner will either decide to make something else with it or (not holding my breath) release it under a FOSS license. In the…

There already is something else “like” it: the front-facing camera in the iPhone X.

On one hand, you could see this as fooling around with Kinect tech now requiring a $1000 investment in an iPhone. (Or buying a Kinect used; there are still plenty on the market.)

On the other hand, you could believe in the inevitability of Shenzhen to take the probably $3 part Apple has designed, stick it into a little housing with a micro controller, and commoditize “Kinect Minis” within the year. :)

Re: Microsoft Has Stopped Manufacturing The Kinect

#132

Post by ballenf »

endorphone wrote: post #28
sotojuan wrote: post #3

Reliance on Kinect and always online killed the Xbox One. Sure, they backpedaled but it was too late. They really messed up.

Positioning at introduction is what hobbled the Xbox One -- we mostly forget it now, but while the PS4 was introduced as a gaming device -- all about the games and for gamers -- the Xbox One was introduced as a cable pass-thru device with augmented TV watching, a smart livingroom, an NFL experience, etc. The gaming seemed almost ancillary, and of course classic television was dying (especially among the target market…

The misstep for a non-hardcore gamer like me was that they didn't really deliver on the home entertainment hub either. It was a device halfway to nowhere.

The extra $1 it would have cost to include a digital broadcast tuner (vs. a $75 add on; down to $50 these days) would have been a big draw to cord cutters.

Second, the removal of the windows media tools that the 360 had made it less usable as a streaming device.

Felt like design by disjointed committee. I bought it as a media hub (and for the Forza series), but ended up being somewhat abandoned by MS as the focus shifted, understandably, to hardcore gamers.

Re: Microsoft Has Stopped Manufacturing The Kinect

#133

Post by christotty »

derefr wrote: post #131
squarefoot wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"A powerful sensor at a ridiculously cheap cost that you could use to create amazing things, provided of course your imagination wasn't weighed down by the latest dumb tech trend" This. And thanks to software/hardware patents, the technology will die with the product, or remain dormant until the owner will either decide to make something else with it or (not holding my breath) release it under a FOSS license. In the…

There already is something else “like” it: the front-facing camera in the iPhone X. On one hand, you could see this as fooling around with Kinect tech now requiring a $1000 investment in an iPhone. (Or buying a Kinect used; there are still plenty on the market.) On the other hand, you could believe in the inevitability of Shenzhen to take the probably $3 part Apple has designed, stick it into a little housing with a…

It is being disputed by Apple, but Bloomberg claims that "$3 part" is what is keeping iPhone X output low.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-apple-iphone/apple-disput...

Re: Microsoft Has Stopped Manufacturing The Kinect

#134

Post by nightski »

derefr wrote: post #131
squarefoot wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"A powerful sensor at a ridiculously cheap cost that you could use to create amazing things, provided of course your imagination wasn't weighed down by the latest dumb tech trend" This. And thanks to software/hardware patents, the technology will die with the product, or remain dormant until the owner will either decide to make something else with it or (not holding my breath) release it under a FOSS license. In the…

There already is something else “like” it: the front-facing camera in the iPhone X. On one hand, you could see this as fooling around with Kinect tech now requiring a $1000 investment in an iPhone. (Or buying a Kinect used; there are still plenty on the market.) On the other hand, you could believe in the inevitability of Shenzhen to take the probably $3 part Apple has designed, stick it into a little housing with a…

Not really even close. While two cameras is nice, is definitely not the same as the structured light approach in the Kinect.

Re: Microsoft Has Stopped Manufacturing The Kinect

#135

Post by blt »

Qworg wrote: post #14
mattmattmatt wrote: post #4

Was really hoping to see more non-xbox kinect uses over the years. More art installations, more retail, more whatever. Sad to see it go.

You'll find that Kinects are powering far more exhibits and retail art projects than you'd know.

Not to mention a big chunk of robotics research since the Kinect was released.

Re: Microsoft Has Stopped Manufacturing The Kinect

#136

Post by ansgri »

cbhl wrote: post #129
squarefoot wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"A powerful sensor at a ridiculously cheap cost that you could use to create amazing things, provided of course your imagination wasn't weighed down by the latest dumb tech trend" This. And thanks to software/hardware patents, the technology will die with the product, or remain dormant until the owner will either decide to make something else with it or (not holding my breath) release it under a FOSS license. In the…

Wasn't the Kinect technology acquired by Apple? My impression is the top sensor bar in the iPhone X is essentially a miniaturized Kinect, so we should see more Kinect-like applications now that it fits in your pocket.

AFAIR, it was acquired by ASUS. Original Kinect was developed by an Israel company Xtion, which now lives as a trademark of ASUS game accessories: https://www.asus.com/3D-Sensor/All-Series/

The core technology (structured light in iPhone X and Kinect 1, ToF in Kinect 2) is rather straightforward (for a computer vision researcher, that is...), it's hardware (embedded CPU, cheap sensors and lasers) that enabled its mass adoption.

Re: Microsoft Has Stopped Manufacturing The Kinect

#137

Post by detaro »

nightski wrote: post #134
derefr wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There already is something else “like” it: the front-facing camera in the iPhone X. On one hand, you could see this as fooling around with Kinect tech now requiring a $1000 investment in an iPhone. (Or buying a Kinect used; there are still plenty on the market.) On the other hand, you could believe in the inevitability of Shenzhen to take the probably $3 part Apple has designed, stick it into a little housing with a…

Not really even close. While two cameras is nice, is definitely not the same as the structured light approach in the Kinect.

The iPhone X uses a real depth-sensing system, based on structured light tech from the Kinect, for FaceID.

Re: Microsoft Has Stopped Manufacturing The Kinect

#138

Post by ansgri »

nightski wrote: post #134
derefr wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There already is something else “like” it: the front-facing camera in the iPhone X. On one hand, you could see this as fooling around with Kinect tech now requiring a $1000 investment in an iPhone. (Or buying a Kinect used; there are still plenty on the market.) On the other hand, you could believe in the inevitability of Shenzhen to take the probably $3 part Apple has designed, stick it into a little housing with a…

Not really even close. While two cameras is nice, is definitely not the same as the structured light approach in the Kinect.

FYI, front camera in X uses structural light, while Kinect 2 uses a more modern time-of-flight (ToF) technology, which delivers better depth resolution.

From https://www.apple.com/iphone-x/:

"Face ID is enabled by the TrueDepth camera and is simple to set up. It projects and analyzes more than 30,000 invisible dots to create a precise depth map of your face."

Re: Microsoft Has Stopped Manufacturing The Kinect

#140

Post by brutus1213 »

ansgri wrote: post #136
cbhl wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wasn't the Kinect technology acquired by Apple? My impression is the top sensor bar in the iPhone X is essentially a miniaturized Kinect, so we should see more Kinect-like applications now that it fits in your pocket.

AFAIR, it was acquired by ASUS. Original Kinect was developed by an Israel company Xtion, which now lives as a trademark of ASUS game accessories: https://www.asus.com/3D-Sensor/All-Series/ The core technology (structured light in iPhone X and Kinect 1, ToF in Kinect 2) is rather straightforward (for a computer vision researcher, that is...), it's hardware (embedded CPU, cheap sensors and lasers) that enabled its mas…

How does primesense fit into it? I thought primesense was the company acquired by apple?
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