That looks awesome. I'm considering ordering one for the kids. This paragraph is pretty hilarious though: "Osmo is crafted for kid‑durability and always ready to go: no batteries, or Wi-Fi required." Well, yeah.. Except for the actual iPad.
That's a pretty big deal considering that I only have one Android tablet and no iPads.
Osmo
91–100 of 111 posts
Re: Osmo
#92It's a neat concept - a nice, polished AR kit. The actual tangram concept is a bit disappointing though - dragging simple objects around on a flat surface is already something the iPad excels at. In this case it feels like it's somewhat obsoleted by modern touch-screens. Obviously there are cases where touch-screens fail, but simple tangram puzzles work just fine with them. I'd be interested in seeing this expanded t…
I disagree, on the tangram aspect. Most games have an almost auto snap feature that if you drag the piece close enough it just snaps into place. I like the fact that it takes more of hand eye coordination and understanding of physical space for the physical objects to create the shapes on screen.
Re: Osmo
#93The company introduces Osmo, an iPad suite of games for children which uses the iPad's camera to use physical tiles on a traditional tabletop as input. The demonstrated games include tangram, a tile based word guessing game, and a physics-engine based game in which players must draw a path for falling objects to hit targets. While the product describes itself as using "reflective artificial intelligence, a groundbrea…
Re: Osmo
#94I don't understand all the hate in this thread. This is a clever and creative use of technology that combines a favorite toy (iPad) with the one thing it lacks: physical interaction with real world objects. From what I understand (I'm a new dad so I'm still reading and learning), this sort of thing is very important for a developing mind.
I'm with you. People citing their absence of research and their certainty that this will be discarded in a day is amusing. What those academic papers lack is an actual product and customers deciding to buy and use that product of their own free will. When someone releases an app to "connect people" or make some day-to-day taks easier, nobody seems to want academic papers to back their claims. I also feel like it goes…
Most people are qualified to evaluate whether an app is allowing them to connect with others. On the other hand, they are not qualified to evaluate whether a product is educating their child. Education claims are widespread and difficult to disprove, but rarely come with any proof. It is completely rational to expect some.
Re: Osmo
#95Something about that particular game is an experience I haven't had with either physical or digital games before, whereas most physical/digital hybrids I've seem could just as easily be done purely in one or both realms.
The tangram seemed like a bit of a dud for that reason, for example. It is nice to be able to get hints while playing physical tangrams (it can show you just the outline but tell you if you have a piece in the right spot), but that isn't really that much of an improvement over just having the pieces or just an iPad game.
The physics game where you draw on the pad is a strange demo to me. You can just do it as a drawing game without the paper, which is a bit less social, but again, this isn't much of an improvement. What is really cool, though, is the interactive outline of your hand or any object you put in front of it. But it doesn't really encourage that in any way, it just feels like a tech demo.
All that said, this product does excite me just because the word game gave me a feeling I haven't gotten in either a purely physical or purely digital space.
Re: Osmo
#96I don't know why there are people in this thread talking about school and education. This is a toy. A toy should not be designed to educate. Kids play videogames the whole day these days. Osmo could bring them out of the videogame, make them interact with objects, not to learn, but to play, only. This should not be confined to small kids games, but also to all kinds of games, and other uses as well.
Re: Osmo
#97Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's not understandable without the video. (I'm not taking sides here on what should or shouldn't be expected on a website.)
People are saying that, but I'm skeptical. Language is pretty versatile. If Wikipedia can explain the concept of an ergosphere to me without video, surely it can be done for somebody's iPad game.
I believe the product is, platonically, understandable without a video.
PS: I like misusing the word platonically
Re: Osmo
#98Earlier quoted context omitted.
Here's a free "magic" iPad app that I'm developing, which doesn't require any gadgets! http://pantomimecorp.com/ https://search.itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZContentLink.woa...
Hey Don! I was about to post a link to your new gig when I spotted that you had beaten me to it!
We'll appreciate your vote for "Best Augmented World Video" in the Augmented World Expo competition, please -- your vote will really help, because we're currently in second place!
http://augmentedworldexpo.com/auggie-category/auggies-best-a...
Click on the "Pantomime Corporation" entry to see our video of the new multi player version, which just won the Launch: Silicon Valley World Cup Tech Challenge in the Digital Media Mobile group.
http://www.heraldonline.com/2014/05/21/5986165/svforum-annou...
Re: Osmo
#99Earlier quoted context omitted.
People are saying that, but I'm skeptical. Language is pretty versatile. If Wikipedia can explain the concept of an ergosphere to me without video, surely it can be done for somebody's iPad game.
I meant, "the website is not understandable." I believe the product is, platonically, understandable without a video. PS: I like misusing the word platonically
Re: Osmo
#100Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've been teaching for over 10 years now and have weathered the storms of many technology revolutions in the classroom. Interactive white boards It grows very tiresome.
I wish Osmo all the best, and hope it breaks the mold. But I have to agree about schools and tech, and generally about tech and education. Spend more time with your kids, and don't expect an iPad to teach your kids anything, and you'll be in a better place. I say this being a huge lover of technology, having developed ipad apps and video games professionally. The school my kids are in is continually blowing large sum…
So that's why a lot of the donation money goes on interactive whiteboards and iPads, as well as hourly aides/TAs/etc (who might be subject to a limit on their hours...).