Video: Hands flailing wildly with Toshiba Spatial Motion Interface

Given a year to work on its gesture control technology, Toshiba has upgraded from the simple implementation of 2008 to a new 3D interface that rotates and zooms photos and videos with a flick of the arm. Useful? We're not completely sold. Still ridiculous to use, or watch someone else try? Of course, video's after the break.

[Shinigami @ Jan 11th 2009 5:41AM]

If its a free bonus with a TV or DVD/blu-ray player, then its fine.
If its an expensive mega-super feature, then Toshiba can sink together with HD-DVD and ignore the existence of Blu-Ray.

[Adam j @ Jan 11th 2009 6:00AM]

I'd like to know why you're up on at 5 am on a Sunday morning, Mr. Richard.

[eggothewaffle @ Jan 11th 2009 6:30AM]

Lawlzer.

[dcoaster @ Jan 11th 2009 8:49AM]

Aren't some editors on the East Coast?

[BigD @ Jan 11th 2009 6:00AM]

I'm a little bit upset that Rachel Maddow (who doesn't even own a TV & calls computers, "internet machines") had footage of this on her show before Engadget got it up.

[Gavin @ Jan 11th 2009 7:25AM]

i think that this is a great feature to have, specially as an add-on. So those that cant afford it initially can up grade later. and it might also make those times when u cant find the remote a lil less painful.

[Shinigami @ Jan 11th 2009 10:10AM]

And those times you simply wave hands a lot more painful xD

[sua @ Jan 11th 2009 7:57AM]

Screw messing around with this if I want to show someone some pictures... I just want to flip channels and adjust volume from 12 feet away with gestures!

[KilgoreTrout @ Jan 11th 2009 10:10AM]

Kudos to Tosh for having undrstood that k-board and mouse inputs on home apps are obsolete, I'm not 100% sure that gesture (alone) could be the badly needed replacement though. Why not voice commands? Maybe through a little mic to avoid background interference of orders; that's the way humans interact with each other and that is the best way to interact with our machines too.

[Sevenmack @ Jan 11th 2009 10:51AM]

Not necessarily. The problem with voice command, at least at the moment, is that the computers have difficulty a) adapting to one voice, much less a cacophony of voices one can find in the average home and b) actually doing the job you command. The Nuance voice-recognition software on both of my phones does a poor job selecting the right phone number I've asked to dial. Hell, it confuses my fiancee's name with that of one of my pals. Even if you put time to fixing the flaws, voice recognition requires a human-like ability to recognize voices and process aural information that is currently lacking.

One must also remember that we don't just speak with our voices. Hand gestures and facial movements are also involved in communication. Think of the differences in talking to someone in front of you versus a phone conversation. The former allows you to pick up the subtle cues that communicates what one really wants or is saying; the latter requires one to ask more questions in order to get the full sense of what one is trying to communicate.

One has to remember that when we talk about "natural" communication, we must include all its elements. Human vocal communication is imperfect when not combined with sight or touch; it would be even more imperfect for computers, which don't have the full range of processing ability.

Motion interface, however, is easier to develop. After all, what one does with a mouse (point and click) already works well and is very tactile. Touchscreens, though imperfect for those of us who are heavy typers (or heavy-handed, as my laptop keys can attest), also work well. So it makes sense for Toshiba (and Microsoft, with Surface) to develop motion interfaces.

[KilgoreTrout @ Jan 11th 2009 12:34PM]

@ Sevenmak

The voice recognition program in my new cellphones (Samsung Omnia &HTC HD) also do a poor job, but that's because they are bad programs: before these new phones I had a Nokia N95 and its voice recognition prog was truly impressive: it did'nt even require you to record voice tags: somehow it would connect your spoken command to the written name.
Dictating softwares nowadays are also working remarkably well, of course to avoid the cacophony of voices in an average house (as you point out) a dedicated microphone is going to be necessary , but so what?
Also as you point out, you don't talk to a person on the phone as you talk to a person in front of you, but it would be more than sufficient to be able to talk to a computer (or to other electronic gadgedtry) the way you talk to a person on the phone, just like people adapted to talk to a phone we will adapt to talk in the microphone that will interface to our PCs.
I have modded a digiframe (which has become a linux touch screen PC really) to change functions(e-mails, internet, landline speakerphone, VOIP phone , digiframe, calendar, etc. etc.) using a voice recognition software patented by a cell phone firm, and it works perfectly, so much so that the touch screen is nearly redundant.
Anyway if your telephone uses win mobile try to install windows voice commander on it, it isn't perfect , but will probably do a better job than cyberon's Voice Dialler, that is probably the program installed on your phone.

[Electromodo @ Jan 11th 2009 1:33PM]

Of course the voice recognition on your phone worked well. You spoke directly to a microphone! Now try to yell at your TV from 12 feet away with loud music on the background. That's why people communicate with gestures when voice communication is difficult.

Of course, your drunk guests can mess up with gesture control, as well as voice recognition, so old infrared remote would prove handy as an option.

BTW, funny things happen with voice recognition. My Garmin GPS sometimes picks up the pieces of conversation and starts routing home or to other weird places. :))) I can turn the feature off, but it is fun to witness.

[KilgoreTrout @ Jan 11th 2009 6:39PM]

@ Electromodo

I wish that you would read the post you answer to.
I spoke about a microphone to control the interface just because QUITE OBVIOUSLY , otherways the OS would get confused by the cacophony of voices present in any house or even any other human environment.
Just like you tap on the BT headset to activate voice recognition on a cellphone the user needs to tap on a mic to activate the voice UI.
That's the way my modded digiframe works and it works perfectly.
I can give orders to it throug the mic (which is just a modified LG Bluetooth headset) to check morning Gmail, news, etc, even with the TV on in the same room (a kitchen) and with my daughter screaming, that's because the sistem is not active unless you tap on the mic , and even then for no more than 6 seconds.
Obviously you need to tap the mic for every order , but so what? Wanna compare that with k-board and mouse?

[superhobo @ Jan 11th 2009 10:22AM]

I'm getting burned out seeing more and more ways to see the same content.

[754Boy @ Jan 11th 2009 11:54AM]

The interface looked alright to me. The guy seemed to be controlling it with little effort lol, while that chick was just all over the place. Would be a cool feature if it is priced affordably.

[aaljuma @ Jan 11th 2009 12:32PM]

حررررررررررررررررررررررررررررررركة..........!!!!!

[Levi @ Jan 11th 2009 12:23PM]

All we need is to combine this with autostereoscopic 3D displays, which they're already working on... If they can get this and the AS displays integrated into a clear AMOLED screen, we literally have Minority Report. Like, not even anything less. Two techs already develeoped, a tech that's being developed, and combine them all. Minority Report.

Well, then we have to work on the cars that go vertical to scale all of the futuristic skyscrapers, too. And the futuristic drugs that Ethan Hawk--er, Tom Cruise takes.

Mmmmm, futuristic drugs.... *Homer Simpson drool sound*

[Brian @ Jan 11th 2009 4:17PM]

"The Force is strong with him."

[Decoy @ Jan 11th 2009 6:50PM]

Damn, whats that line from Douglas Adams... something about gesture controlled radios that require the listener to remain perfectly still to enjoy the broadcast.

[required @ Jan 11th 2009 8:00PM]

I'm guessing that this does not work at all in the dark or in a dimly lit room. Kind of like http://fluidtunes.com/

[loosely_coupled @ Jan 12th 2009 1:37AM]

Talk about a gimmick... That'd be interesting for about 3 minutes until you realized a remote works much easier and doesn't wear out your delts..

[collide007 @ Jan 12th 2009 12:15PM]

Great idea, terrible implementation. I don't want hand gestures to simulate mouse input, because you then get the same inaccurate dotting about like you get with the Wii, which I hate. No, just volume and playback controls please, that part was awesome. I wouldn't advise getting rid of the remote though, this kind of input in no good for menu navigation.