Kinect, Microsoft’s revolutionary motion-control gaming peripheral, is now available for Windows PCs, retailing for an exclusively priced $249.99. When first released for the Xbox 360 in 2010, it became the fastest selling consumer electronic device, pushing 10 million units in 60 days.

Don’t think Microsoft is just repackaging the same Xbox hardware, as they did for 360 controllers. The Xbox Kinect requires a distance of about six feet between the player and the sensor. To make desktop use less distant, Kinect for Windows features a “near mode,” which features an optimal distance of just 19 inches.

Since the device uses a standard USB connection, many homebrew hackers have been playing with the Kinect since its initial release, so Microsoft is offering official support for the idea. Now separated from a game console, Kinect is being used for many applications in business, educational and medical fields. There are a lot of dreams behind the Kinect, and as long as those dreams let me play Minority Report, then it’s all worth it.

Source: BBC