Leap Motion Releases Super Accurate Kinect-Style Motion Sensing Device
Microsoft’s Kinect motion controller initially for the Xbox 360 and now also the PC, has been very successful and shows how computers can be controlled by gestures rather than just with the traditional keyboard and mouse. This success hasn’t been lost on competitors, who are now starting to make similar products. Enter Leap Motion’s Leap controller, an affordable $69.99 device that the company is starting to take pre-orders for. If you pre-order a unit, you’ll be waiting a bit as they aren’t going to ship until December 2012 or January 2013.
Unlike Microsoft’s Kinect, the Leap tracks finger movements with precision down to a 100th of a millimeter, allowing precise interactions with the computer, on the same order as using a mouse. In fact, the company makes the bold claim that with this device, one can “say goodbye to your mouse and keyboard.” That remains to be seen. The company’s About/FAQ page is here. Note that as of this writing, Leap Motion haven’t revealed the specifications of the device or gone into any significant detail into how it works. The video below demonstrates what the device can do and does look impressive. However, it would probably be wise to wait for a review or two before spending hard cash on a new, unproven product from a new company.
“It was this gap between what’s easy in the real world but very complicated to do digitally, like molding a piece of clay or creating a 3-D model, that inspired us to create the Leap and fundamentally change how people work with their computers,” said Leap Motion CEO and co-founder Michael Buckwald. “In addition to the Leap for computers, our core software is versatile enough to be embedded in a wide range of devices, including smartphones, tablets, cars and refrigerators. One day 3-D motion control will be in just about every device we interact with, and thanks to the Leap, that day is coming sooner than anyone expected.”
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