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Microsoft ceases production of the Kinect
Microsoft has been slowly chipping away at the Kinect's usefulness and features across its platforms, yet today's news still comes as something of a shock. The company announced today to Co.Design that manufacturing for the motion sensor input device has been shut down.
Next iPhone might have depth-sensing front camera
It's that time of year, folks. Rumors of what the next iPhone will be like are coming in hot and heavy. Last week, well-connected Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo noted that the new handsets would nix the home button for a touch-friendly "function area." Now there's another bit of info. In a KGI Securities report detailed by 9to5Mac, the analyst explains that the upcoming OLED iPhone will feature a "revolutionary" front camera that's capable of sensing 3D space via infrared.
Switched On: Banishing Bing
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology. Much like George Orwell's classic 1984, wars continue in the technology industry without seeming regard for who the enemy is or who it once was. Take, for example, Nokia's embrace of Windows Phone and Microsoft's subsequent embrace of Nokia. The once global smartphone leader initially championed Symbian as a countermeasure to the threat of phone domination by Microsoft. However, Nokia ultimately joined Microsoft in a bid to prevent the same from happening with Android.
Apple buys developer of original Kinect tech
Apple of iProduct fame has acquired PrimeSense, the Israeli firm behind the 3D sensing tech in the original Kinect for Xbox 360. No official price tag was put on the purchase, but rumors of the acquisition last week speculate a cost of $345 million. "Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans," said Apple to the BBC. PrimeSense noted the acquisition to Engadget in a brief statement, "We can confirm the deal with Apple. Further than that, we cannot comment at this stage." The current Kinect bundled with Xbox One does not use PrimeSense's tech and was developed in-house at Microsoft.
Apple confirms rumored acquisition of Kinect maker PrimeSense
Apple has confirmed that it has indeed acquired the Israeli 3D sensor maker PrimeSense, reports AllThingsD: Apple spokeswoman Kristin Huguet confirmed the PrimeSense deal with the boilerplate comment the company typically provides when news of one of its acquisitions leaks: "Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans." PrimeSense was the company that developed the first Kinect accessory for the Xbox 360 gaming platform, before Microsoft decided to move to house-developed sensing tech for the Xbox One. Since the original Microsoft deal, PrimeSense has drastically reduced the physical size of its 3D motion sensors, which are now able to fit into smaller, mobile products. Its new Capri chip is aimed at the mobile universe, as explained to Engadget's Nicole Lee in a great profile of founder Aviad Maizels. Of course, speculation is in full force now that Apple has confirmed the acquisition, but be wary. Though 3D motion sensing is a hot area right now, it's possible PrimeSense technology could never make it into an Apple product as acquisitions can be as much about talent and patents as the tech itself. If Apple were to include PrimeSense tech in the near future, however, the rumored Apple television set or a next-generation Apple TV with a heavy games focus would be an ideal fit. One relatively recent Apple hardware company acquisition bore rapid fruit: Authentec, which Apple snapped up in July 2012, saw its fingerprint sensing tech make it to iPhone customers as this year's Touch ID home button in the iPhone 5S. Apple's footprint in the burgeoning Israeli tech scene was substantial before this buyout; the company already owns flash memory R&D firm Anobit and operates three research centers in the country.
Apple confirms PrimeSense buyout, paves way for motion-controlled future (updated)
At last, the will-it-or-won't-it drama surrounding Apple's rumored acquisition of PrimeSense is over. The iPhone maker has confirmed the deal with AllThingsD, issuing its now familiar statement that it buys smaller companies "from time to time." The company isn't discussing its plans or the terms of the deal, but ATD's sources claim that PrimeSense sold for about $360 million, or more than the $345 million that Calcalist reported a week ago. Whatever the value, it's clear that motion control will play a role in Apple's future -- the crew in Cupertino now has access to 3D sensor technology that works in everything from living room devices to smartphones. Update: PrimeSense has confirmed the acquisition to us, stating "We can confirm the deal with Apple. Further than that, we cannot comment at this stage."
Report: Apple in talks to purchase co-creators of original Kinect tech
Apple is currently in talks to purchase PrimeSense, the original suppliers of Microsoft's Kinect motion-sensing technology, according to All Things D. The acquisition was first reported by Isreali publication Calcalist, which indicated that the purchase will amount to $345 million. Founded in 2005, PrimeSense contributed its 3D sensing technology to the Xbox 360 version of Kinect. Microsoft since went with in-house developers for the latest iteration of the Kinect for Xbox One, the company's latest console set to launch this Friday. Apple may be allegedly targeting PrimeSense for the company's Capri technology, a newer form of its 3D sensing tech used in mobile devices such as Google and Samsung's Nexus 10 tablets.
Report: Apple buys PrimeSense, co-creators of the original Kinect
Remember that Apple / PrimeSense deal that was rumored to be going down in July? It may have just gone through: according to Israeli news source Calcalist, Cupertino acquired the motion sensing technology firm for $345 million this weekend. If true, it could hint at future Apple products with natural, motion controlled interfaces, integrating the same kind of technology that PrimeSense used to help Microsoft build the first Kinect. In a statement to the TheNextWeb, PrimeSense refers to the report as a "recycled rumor," saying only that it "does not comment on what any of our partners, customers or potential customers are doing." According to the report, Apple is hounding after the motion sensing tech to improve Apple TV, noting that the original deal was delayed due to legal issues. Hungry for more? Brush up on your Hebrew and check out the source link below - but keep your salt shaker handy.
Unbounded Robotics introduces UBR-1, a one-armed semi-autonomous robot for $35K
Willow Garage is a company of some renown in the world of robotics. While it's known primarily for the bots it builds, the company may one day be more famous for its alumni and the spinoff firms it has spawned. Unbounded Robotics is the latest such company, and its creation is the UBR-1, a sort of smaller, cheaper, one-armed relative of Willow Garage's famed PR2. The UBR-1 has been built to aid both academic researchers and make business automation (think stocking shelves or inspecting products) more affordable. How affordable? It's just $35K, as compared to the $285,000 or $400,000 price tag on the PR2. In industry parlance, the UBR-1 is a mobile manipulation platform, which in plain english means it's a robot that can see where it's going, move itself around and manipulate objects using its arm. Unbounded designed the thing to interact and work with humans, so the company chose a gender neutral color scheme and skinned it with rounded friendly edges -- so as to avoid any untoward associations with the forthcoming robot apocalypse.
Apple 'in talks' to buy motion control specialist (and Kinect maker) PrimeSense (update)
Israeli news source Calcalist has a decent track record when it comes to acquisition gossip, even if the gossip itself sometimes comes to nothing. Bearing that in mind, the latest rumor is that Apple is "in talks" to buy PrimeSense, the company that worked with Microsoft to create the first-generation Kinect (but not Kinect 2.0) and which could potentially help Cupertino with new projects that require natural interfaces. The value of the acquisition is said to "probably" be around $280 million, although the source makes it clear these talks are at a very early stage. Whichever way things go, the immediate effect of a report like this is to add to the impression that PrimeSense has a future beyond the Xbox 360 -- but, frankly, we already believed it did. [Thanks, Ron] Update: We just received a statement from PrimeSense, indicating that they don't comment on rumors: "PrimeSense is growing the company and currently has by far the leading 3D technology in the market, tier one prospects, strong revenues and a healthy cash position. We are focused on building a prosperous company while bringing 3D sensing and Natural Interaction to the mass market in a variety of industries. We can't comment on what any of our partners, customers or potential customers are doing and we are not commenting on rumors."
The Daily Roundup for 06.21.2013
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Life after Kinect: PrimeSense's plans for a post-Microsoft future
When PrimeSense founder Aviad Maizels put a prototype of a 3D sensor on a chip in front of Microsoft in 2006, he had no idea it would lead to the biggest turning point in the Israeli startup's history. Four years later, its partnership with the Redmond giant resulted in Kinect, the motion-sensing camera that made headlines around the world. In 2013, however, Microsoft unveiled an all-new Kinect, the result of years of entirely in-house development -- without PrimeSense's assistance. As fate would have it, the company returned to its chip-making origins a year ago, creating a new product called Capri, a cheaper, lower-power and tinier version of its 3D system-on-a-chip; so tiny, in fact, that it's designed to be embedded inside tablets, laptops, thin displays and smartphones. With 3D use cases that go far beyond Dance Central, the Capri is the latest sign that PrimeSense is ready to break free from its video game roots.
Distro Issue 96: PrimeSense tackles life after Kinect on its quest to make technology disappear
PrimeSense brought the Kinect to life with its 3D sensor tech and a four-year cooperative effort back in 2010. When it comes to the new tracking peripheral, though, Microsoft kept matters in-house and the Israeli startup set out to prove that its ready to break from those gaming roots. In a brand new issue of our weekly, we examine the outfit's post-Microsoft aspirations that include the Capri chip. Eyes-On cleans up with Dyson's latest, Weekly Stat dials in streaming radio numbers and Visualized examines BioRob's feline-esque robot. All of that and much more awaits via those trusty download repositories just down below. Distro Issue 96 PDF Distro in the iTunes App Store Distro in the Google Play Store Distro in the Windows Store Distro APK (for sideloading) Like Distro on Facebook Follow Distro on Twitter
The Daily Roundup for 05.16.2013
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
PrimeSense demonstrates Capri 3D sensor on Nexus 10 (hands-on)
Take the 3D sensor inside the Microsoft Kinect, shrink it down to a tenth of its original size and add a bunch of mobile capabilities, and you have yourself PrimeSense's latest conquest, better known as Capri. The company, which is the brains behind the Kinect, has been openly working on bringing a tiny-yet-advanced 3D experience to tablets, televisions and smartphones for quite some time now. And it's proud enough of its progress so far that it's willing to give some real-life demonstrations to developers attending Google I/O. You may not see Capri embedded on the PCB of your portable gadget anytime soon -- at least, not until PrimeSense winds up wooing the pants off a lucky OEM or two -- so in the meantime, the company has connected the sensor board to the Nexus 10 via micro-USB. Unlike the Kinect, however, PrimeSense doesn't think gestures will play a significant role in how we use Capri to interact with our gadgets. Rather, it seems to be more focused on 3D-based use case scenarios, many of which haven't even been thought up yet. As you'll see in the video below, we were shown an AR game that takes the environment around you -- walls, furniture and other elements -- and uses them as restrictions, just as much as they would be in real life. In another app, Capri snapped a three-dimension shot of an object on the table in front of us, captured its measurements and let us export that image to another device or even a 3D printer. In many respects, PrimeSense appears to be taking the same strategy Google does with Glass: get developers excited about the tech in the hopes they'll come up with clever uses for it. And while the company isn't ready to put Capri in their hands yet, the SDK is up for grabs, and I/O is no doubt an ideal place to build excitement for it. If you're looking for more info, we have a gallery, video and press release below, and you'll find the SDK at the More Coverage link. %Gallery-188372%
China's LeTV debuts 'Super TV' X60, throws in a quad-core S4 Prime chip
Quad-core smart TVs? Move over, Samsung and Haier, because another company's now joining the party. At a press event in Beijing yesterday, Chinese video content provider LeTV announced its first TV series dubbed "Super TV." Despite the cheesy name, there are a handful of big names behind it: Kai-Fu Lee's Innovation Works, Qualcomm, Foxconn and Sharp. The last two aren't surprising considering Foxconn's parent company, Hon Hai, is an investor of Sharp as well as LeTV. It's also worth noting, though, that Hon Hai already has a deal with RadioShack to make and sell a 60-inch TV, the RS60-V1, in China since January. The flagship X60 (pictured above at GMIC Beijing) features an aluminum alloy body that encases Sharp's 10th-generation 60-inch 1080p panel -- as featured on the RadioShack TV -- with 120Hz 3D, on top of a 1.7GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Prime MPQ8064 (with 2GB of RAM and Adreno 320 graphics), dual-band WiFi and S/PDIF optical output. You can also add an optional 2.4GHz gyroscopic remote control and a PrimeSense motion sensor just for giggles. But most importantly, LeTV now streams over 2,000 TV apps as well as some 90,000 TV episodes and 5,000 movies for free (LeTV claims to own the rights to 95 percent of the video content). So, the ¥6,999 or $1,140 price tag seems a steal for the X60. There will also be a 39-inch 1080p (likely 2D only), dual-core S40 model priced at ¥1,999 or about $330, and both TVs will be available by the end of June.%Gallery-187824%
PrimeSense reveals Capri, 'world's smallest' 3D sensor
PrimeSense, the folks behind the guts of the Kinect and other motion-sensing tech, has unveiled a cheaper and tinier 3D sensor that could bring motion sensors to a whole different class of products. Dubbed the Capri, the new system-on-a-chip is about ten times smaller than existing sensing devices -- not only can it be embedded in tablets and laptops, it'll likely fit in a mobile phone as well. The company will be showing it off come CES and samples will be available for OEMs starting mid-2013. If this means we can go all Jedi mind trick and wave our hands over our phones to shut it off, then we're definitely looking forward to seeing this in action. Seriously, because there's no picture to be had at the moment. Follow all the latest CES 2013 news at our event hub.
SAMI robot has motion detection from the company behind Kinect's 3D sensors, washboard abs (video)
PrimeSense, the Israeli company whose 3D sensors helped make the Kinect such a massive hit for gamers and hackers alike, has been dipping its feet in the robotic waters a bit as of late. The company offered up its sensors for use in iRobot's telecommunication 'bot, Ava, and now they've made their way into SAMI, a robot platform created by France's CRIIF. PrimeSense sensors are found in the robot's torso (for detecting people) and base (to help it avoid bumping into objects). SAMI's got a pretty broad spectrum of potential applications, including manufacturing and healthcare -- of course, before it goes mainstream in the latter field, we'd recommend a few aesthetic changes to the creepy robot, which took around $100,000 and six people to make. Still we've got to give SAMI some credit for keeping so darn fit. Check out video of the 'bot after the break.
ASUS updates Xtion Pro motion sensor, makes it even more like Kinect
Remember the Xtion Pro and Wavi Xtion motion sensors that ASUS showed off at CES? Well, fast-forward six months and there's already an updated model on the market: the Windows- and Linux-compatible Xtion Pro Live. The new version complements the original's IR and depth sensors with a Kinect-like VGA webcam and a pair of microphones, while also jacking up the bill to a distinctly un-Kinect-like 175 Euros ($300). That price tag won't make us shift our living room furniture around anytime soon, especially since Kinect is already officially heading to the PC. However, that isn't really the point: the Pro Live edition is primarily meant to help developers design better games and apps for the more consumer-focused but as yet unreleased Wavi. Soon as they develop a game that rewards rather than punishes us for dancing like Tina Turner, we'll be right there. [Thanks, TheLostSwede]
ASUS Wavi Xtion motion sensing control system demoed at CES (video)
ASUS may not be anywhere close to ready for its Wavi Xtion to hit retail shelves (we're hearing Q2 of 2012), but that didn't stop our brethren over at Engadget Spanish from stopping by for a hands-on demonstration at CES. We'll spare you the details on how it works, but in practice, we learned that it's quite similar to Kinect. Not shocking considering that PrimeSense is behind both boxes, but the primarily difference seemed to be the reaction time. ASUS' solution wasn't quite as snappy as the Kinect, being slower to recognize and translate motions in testing. Of course, we wouldn't expect a product that's 18 months out from mass production to be completely on top of its game, but feel free to head on past the break to see exactly what we mean.