Looks fun, check it out…

Partner Site

The Kinect experience in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows™ – Part 1 gives players the ability to get closer to the action than ever before, using physical gestures to cast magic and defeat their deadly opponents.

Game Tutorial Video

In November 2010, Adafruit Industries offered a bounty for an open-source driver for Kinect. Microsoft openly voiced its disapproval of the bounty, stating that it “does not condone the modification of its products” and that it had “built in numerous hardware and software safeguards designed to reduce the chances of product tampering”.[62] On November 10, Adafruit announced Héctor Martín as the winner,[63][64] who had produced a Linux driver that allows the use of both the RGB camera and depth sensitivity functions of the device.[65][66] Microsoft later clarified their position, claiming that while they don’t condone hacking of either the physical device or the console, the USB connection was left open by design.

“ The first thing to talk about is, Kinect was not actually hacked. Hacking would mean that someone got to our algorithms that sit inside of the Xbox and was able to actually use them, which hasn’t happened. Or, it means that you put a device between the sensor and the Xbox for means of cheating, which also has not happened. That’s what we call hacking, and that’s what we have put a ton of work and effort to make sure doesn’t actually occur. What has happened is someone wrote an open-source driver for PCs that essentially opens the USB connection, which we didn’t protect, by design, and reads the inputs from the sensor. The sensor, again, as I talked earlier, has eyes and ears, and that’s a whole bunch of noise that someone needs to take and turn into signal. ”

—Microsoft’s Alex Kipman speaking formally on NPR’s Science Friday[67]

Numerous developers are researching possible applications of Kinect which go beyond the system’s intended purpose of playing games. For example, Philipp Robbel of MIT combined Kinect with the iRobot Create to map a room in 3D and have the robot respond to human gestures,[68] while an MIT Media Lab team is working on a JavaScript extension for Google Chrome called depthJS that allows the user to control the browser with hand gestures.[69] The developers of MRPT have also integrated open source drivers into their libraries and provided examples of live 3D rendering and basic 3D visual SLAM.[70] Another team has shown an application which allows Kinect users to play a virtual piano by tapping their fingers on an empty desk.[71]

Companies So touch and Evoluce have developed presentation software for Kinect which can be controlled by hand gestures. Among its features is a multi-touch zoom mode.[72]

1. Cell Phone Integration
We all agreed one of the most exciting ways Kinect could be utilized in the future is integration in your cell phone. Imagine a built in projector (already available) and kinect technology, both in your phone. You could project your ‘pc’ anywhere and control it with voice or motion controls. Setup your Kinect phone at a party and become a VJ or use it for a business presentation. This would be portable, functional and next-gen. Nanotechnology might make this possible sooner than we think. ‘The Singularity is near…”

2. Picture Frame
We know Bill Gates has had morphing picture frames for the last decade, but imagine if this technology was priced reasonably. It would recognize you and others in the room and change according to movement, voices, heat, and lighting. Picasso in the morning and Da Vinci at night. Whatever your style, this frame could represent the artistic side of life that’s fighting complacency. Enjoy the dream.

3. Integration in your Vehicle
After seeing the most recent BMW commercial, it’s clear car manufacturers are stepping up technology integration in their vehicles. They’ll soon be utilizing the iPod Out feature which will simulate the iPod interface in the BMW dashboard menu. Now imagine a Kinect camera in the center console which could supplement buttons and compliment voice commands. It could interpret forward and backward commands, stop and change channel. Of course voice commands seem like a good solution for replacing buttons, but I dont always want to look like I’m talking to my imaginary friend car.

4. NFL Referee Replacement Compliment
The NFL is already quite advanced with their videography, why not add the AI element of Kinect. This could track the players more accurately since cameras would be covering the entire field. With human refs, there is always potential errors from not observing penalty’s. Kinect takes out that element of error to really determine who is the best. Seems far out, but you never know!

5. Movie Theatres watch the Audience
It seems a technology similar to this is already in the works, but we thought we’d highlight the idea anyways. Think about how you could add interactive elements if you can watch the audience, determine when they’re laughing, observe if they are paying attention to movie trailers and ensure they are not recording your flick with a cam. The last one doesn’t really interest us, but it’s the main purpose that theaters are pursuing this tech. Studios could gain beneficial information and work to improve the movie goer experience. We think this will be implemented sooner than later, but probably not to the benefit of consumers…

6. Concert lasers, LEDs & Lights –
Similar to the movie theater idea, but an implementation that could be far more fun. Imagine if the crowd at a concert was able to stimulate the lights, lasers and leds by dancing harder or putting their hands in the air. We know bands generally have ‘light guys’, but if a band told the audience, you control this song… think how wild everyone would dance! It already feels like the crowd controls the vibes, why not let them excite the lights during a couple tunes as well! Phish, we’re talking to you!

Check out this Ted Video where John Underkoffler points to the future of UI… What other ideas do you think motion control could be used for?

When we first saw Sonic would be returning on the Xbox Kinect, we were ecstatic! Sonic was part of our livelihood growing up and his new style on the Kinect has us excited again. There was an element of surprise and excitement with Sonic’s old side-scrolling platform and the Kinect brings a new game play style to a retro gaming idol…

This game definitely looks more casual and it seems like it will be a perfect fit for parties. If you want to make Sonic spin, you actually have to jump and do the same. If you want him to duck, you better be close to the floor! This game will make you move and the more agile you are, the more agile Sonic is. We can’t wait to see home recordings from this game… We’re sure they’ll be a riot.

Check out the Sonic Free Rider video and let us know what you think. If you have your own video to share, send us a message on the contact page!

Cheers..
-Xbox Fan

If you thought Xbox Kinect is intended simply for casual gaming, boy are you wrong. Microsoft has a secret weapon here and people are just beginning to see the potential. We thought we would feature several ways Kinect enhances your Xbox Live experience. Not only can you control your TV controller free (finally no more searching for the remote), but Kinect also has voice control to add additional features, like rewind and fast forward. We’re sure we will see even more features come to fruition as the Kinect matures and we can’t wait!!

Check out the video and let us know what you think!

-Xbox Fan

On November 4th 2010, Xbox launched the Kinect Motion-Controller. Fans lined up in Time Square to be the first to take home this revolutionary gaming add-on. We have seen the potential of motion-free computing in movies like Minority Report and now those capabilities are a reality. The Kinect technology is still in it’s infancy, but reviews have been fantastic so far and we think this new addition to the Xbox will be a roaring success!

Let us know what you think on our new Forum!

Peace!

-Xbox Fan

For those of you excited as we are to play the Xbox Kinect, we suggest you take a look at your local Macy’s. Starting July 15th, 13 select Macy’s stores will offer Xbox 360 Kinect Experiences. Shoppers will be able to wait their turn to play Kinect and brand ambassadors will be available to lead the crowds. We noticed a quite a few video’s have already been posted on YouTube and we wanted to show off ‘first reactions’.