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Leap Motion reveals first footage of Windows 8 gesture control

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Leap Motion revealed a new video today showing off the device’s gesture control capabilities with Windows 7 and 8. When plugged into a Windows OS device, the Leap Motion will support full multitouch gestures out of the box, allowing users to click, drag, scroll, swipe and rotate screens entirely with gestural input. Leap Motion’s previous demos focused on native apps and building out the device’s Airspace app store, but the latest news confirms that the device will also be useful for OS-level navigation. The company will enter its recently announced beta testing round next month, before the product’s final release on July 22nd.

Zippity Zap!: Lightning Strike In Ultra Slow Motion

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Author: Jon Mitchell

This is a video from National Geographic of a lightning strike filmed at 11,000-frames / second so 1-second of real-time footage takes 3-minutes to enjoy. Outstanding, however you know exactly what would have been even cooler? If they filmed it so 1-second took 5 YEARS to enjoy. I do not desire to miss anything.

Hit the jump for the video featuring 2 dudes made stoked about slow-motion lightning.

Mad Genius’ Motion Capture System brings Sony’s break-apart controller idea to life, and then some

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Author: Stacey Cook

Remember that break-apart DualShock 3 idea for motion control Sony had five years ago? A new company named Mad Genius Controllers has surfaced with a working prototype that shows such a contraption working in spades. The setup uses a splittable controller and a processing unit to enable seamless motion control and spacial tracking on any title and system. Because Mad Genius doesn’t use any accelerometers or cameras like the current consoles, its creator notes that accuracy of up to 1/100th of an inch is possible

In a video demo with an Xbox 360 version of Skyrim and a modified Xbox gamepad, certain gestures and movements even automate menu selections like a macro. One instance shows the controller being split and held like bow and arrow, highlighting that both sides are tracked in relation to each other — not to mention that the in-game character’s weapon automatically changes without any menu-digging by the user. The current version is merely a wired proof-of-concept, but Mad Genius plans to eventually make it wireless and hit Kickstarter for funding. In the meantime, you can build up anticipation for yourself by checking out the nearly 10-minute long video demo after the break. All that’s left is the inevitable Oculus Rift tie-in (like we’ve just done with this post).

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

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Source: Mad Genius Controllers (YouTube)

Shaolin Warriors Kicking Imaginary Ass In Slow Motion

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Author: Angela Chin

This is a video of a group of Shaolin Warriors doing all sorts of kicks and punches and flips, all filmed in slow motion. Plus one of them breaks a metal bar over his head at the end. I’d hate to pull the short straw for that stunt. Honestly, I’d hate to pull the short straw on any stunt that involves my head. You only get one, and I’m already disappointed with the shape of it when I shave my hair short. You know how some people say ‘God broke the mold when he made you’? Well my mom says he was probably just low on clay when he made me.

Hit the jump for the video.

Teensy: Stop Motion Made Using Single Atoms As Pixels

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Author: Brian McKinnell

This is a short stop motion video from IBM that they produced using SINGLE ATOMS as individual pixels. Do you understand how small an atom is? No? Well think of a bouncy ball. Now think of a SUPER F \*\*\* ING TEENY bouncy ball. That’s how small an atom is provided you imagined a bouncy ball small enough. The atoms in the video have actually been multiplied 100-million times. The pubic hair I plucked and looked at under a microscope in 10th grade biology course? I think that was 50x. My laboratory partner informed on me too which is exactly why she got SHOCK DISSECTED FROG COMPONENTS in her knapsack the following semester. Do not tinker science, Stephanie!

Arrived the jump for the short in addition to a making-of video if you’re really into science and not simply fabricating it due to the fact that science is supposed to be so cool right now. You know who you are.

Leap Motion Controller Ship Date Delayed Until July 22, Due To A Need For A Larger, Longer Beta Test

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Author: Nancy Kennedy

Leap Motion has just announced that its 3D gesture controller hardware ship date will be delayed, from May 13 for pre-orders and May 19 for general retail availability to July 27. The delay was caused by a need for more testing from the Leap Motion beta testing community, and an expansion of that group with additional members, according to Leap Motion CEO Michael Buckwald, who held a press conference today to discuss the missed dates.

This is not good new for a company that has spent a lot of time promoting its product and securing high-level partnerships (with Asus, HP and Best Buy) up until now. The hype that Leap Motion has been able to build only means that users will be more disappointed by any delays in its launch window, and the effect on public perception is certainly one the hardware startup would like to have avoided. Still, some 12,000 developers have received units and already used them to do impressive things, so Leap Motion is hardly in danger of being branded ‘vaporware’ as of yet.

Leap Motion says it wants to make sure that the product they deliver is the best they can offer, and says that there is “nothing catastrophically wrong” with the hardware as of yet. The company believes that it could have shipped by the original date if it had really pushed things, but wanted to make sure that things were ready for prime time. The new July 22 ship date is firmly set, according to Buckwald, and this is “the first and only delay there will be.”

When asked if there was a specific cause, Buckwald said it’s more about beta testing everything in general, but that there will definitely be a focus on getting more input on how customers interact with the product. In general, it sounds like there’s some concern about making sure that user experience is pleasant among not only Leap Motion’s more technical users, but also the general public, too. Buckwald says it has addressed most of the technical issues around gesture tracking, and now the emphasis is squarely on usability testing, and those who are already seeded with early hardware will essentially act more as consumer testers.

“If you’d asked me a year ago what was the biggest challenge, I’d have said it would be the hardware side,” Buckwald said, but went on to explain that the software aspect is now what’s holding things up, and the part that needs more refinement. 600,000 units are in inventory in warehouses ready to ship, he said, but those won’t be going out until the software issues are ironed out. When asked about how that affects their funding situation, he explained that the $ 45 million it has raised so far was designed to help it field unexpected hiccups in the process, and it continues to help with that.

A small number of additional users will be invited to the beta test pool beginning in June, Buckwald explained, but Leap Motion will be reaching out to users specifically to choose those, based on their desire for a more varied beta pool. In other words, you probably can’t petition for early access. The full letter Leap Motion is sending out to pre-order customers follows:

Release Date Update

I wanted to reach out to update you on the status of our ship date. After a lot of consideration, we’ve decided to push back the date and will now be shipping units to pre-order customers on July 22nd.

This is not a decision we take lightly. There are hundreds of thousands of people in over 150 countries who have pre-ordered Leap devices, some as long as a year ago. These people are part of our community and there is nothing more important to us than getting them devices as quickly as possible.

We’ve made a lot of progress. When we first started taking orders back in May we were twelve (very tired) people in a basement. Now we are eighty (although still tired and possibly still in a basement). We’ve manufactured over six hundred thousand devices and delivered twelve thousand Leaps to amazing developers who are building applications that let people do things that just wouldn’t have been possible before. These developers have given us great feedback that we’ve used to make huge improvements to the stability and polish of the product. We’re really proud of Leap as both a company and a product.

The reality is we very likely could have hit the original ship date. But it wouldn’t have left time for comprehensive testing. This will come in the form of a beta test that will start in June. We will give the 12k developers who currently have Leap devices access to the feature complete product including OS interaction (today developers only have access to the SDK). We will also invite some people who are not developers to join the beta test.

Ultimately, the only way we felt 100% confident we could deliver a truly magical product that would do justice to this new form of interaction, was to push the date so we would have more time for a larger, more diverse beta test.

I really appreciate your patience. I know it’s been a long wait. Everyone that works at Leap is working tirelessly to make sure that wait is worth it. Thanks so much for your help and support.

David and I will be participating in an open video Q&A using Google Hangout tomorrow. We’ll send along more specific information on that shortly. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact our support team atsupport@leapmotion.com or my personal email (buckwald@leapmotion.com). As always, we will not charge pre-order customer’s credit cards until the devices have actually shipped.

Thanks again. Michael Buckwald

You’ve Got The Whole World In Your Hands As Leap Motion Gains Google Earth Support

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Author: Jamie Colby

Leap Motion’s gesture-based controller launch is less than a month away, but so far we’ve heard relatively little about app support, besides the fact that the company is working hard on filling out its Airspace app store. Now, Leap Motion and Google are announcing support for Google Earth for Leap Motion tech, which will be built-in to the desktop Google Earth app for Windows, Mac and Linux as of version 7.1 (out today).

That’s a good initial user pool for Leap Motion, since Google Earth has been downloaded by over 1 billion people according to Google’s stats. The endorsement by Google is crucial because of the company’s stature, and the fact that it builds a whole lot of software, including the Chrome browser, and because it gives potential Leap Motion owners a very tangible, natural and commonplace app to test out Leap Motion’s utility with.

And we won’t have to wait until mid-May to find out how effective it is – 10,000 developers arleady have access to Leap Motion Controller hardware as it is. Leap motion is looking for devs to try it out and submit their own YouTube videos of the experience, by flagging the posts with #LeapInto. Those will go into a playlist the company will share to show off its tech.

Leap Motion continues to rack up the pre-launch hits, with major retail and OEM partnerships. The HP arrangement that will see its 3D gesture tech built-in to future laptops and other devices in particular is huge news. But all that hype means it will face high expectations at launch, and Google endorsement drives those expectations even higher.

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Google Earth gets Leap Motion support, lets you explore the planet with touch-free control

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Author: Tiffany Shoman

How are you celebrating Earth Day? If you’re one of 10,000 Leap Motion devs with an early device, you might extremely well be exploring Mount Everest or venturing with the Amazon, just by waving your hands. Google’s Earth app, which has actually reportedly been downloaded more than a billion times, simply scored a refresh today– variation 7.1– providing Leap Motion motion control to your desktop computer. Both the cost-free and paid versions now support touch-free navigation with the USB desktop gadget, which is anticipated in shops following month. The update, nonetheless, available for Windows, Mac and Linux, is yours for the taking now.

Submitted under: Peripherals, Google

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Source: Leap Motion (YouTube)

Leap Motion Controller Tech To Be Embedded In, And Bundled With, Future HP Devices

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Author: Jenny Zhao

Leap Motion hasn’t even launched its first product yet (the first devices ship May 13), and already the company is on a roll. Now, it’s announcing a collaboration with HP, to bring its brand of 3D motion control to that company’s devices, first via bundling the Leap Motion Controller with select HP computers, and then later by hardware integration that embeds Leap tech right into HP gadgets themselves.

Embedding is a major step for Leap Motion, since it means users eventually will be able to access all of the company’s 3D motion control features without needing any kind of peripheral. Leap Motion co-founder and CEO Michael Buckwald explained in an interview that the functionality of Leap, whether embedded or standalone, should be exactly the same when it does eventually arrive, although this partnership with HP, the first such arrangement with an OEM PC manufacturer, is still at a very early stage. This first outing of embedding capabilities for Leap is big news for the company, however, even if shipping devices are still a ways off.

“It’s exciting for us on two levels. One, it’s a strong validation of confidence in leap from a technical point of view, as well as validation that it can be embedded in consumer devices,” Buckwald said. “The other is that it means a lot to our developer ecosystem as well. Yes, we’re talking about embedding the motion-sensing part of the technology, but we’re also talking about embedding Airspace, the Leap developer ecosystem.”

HP computers that are Leap Motion-enabled will come with Airspace, Lesp’s application store for Leap Motion-compatible titles, pre-loaded. That’s a huge advantage for Leap and its developers in terms of discoverability, and making sure that customers are exposed to software built for Leap Motion in the first place. Apps for Leap Motion are an integral part of the launch and platform strategy, since without software to use with the unique and impressive hardware, it’s unlikely that anyone will stick with the device long-term.

The company’s ability to impress big name partners early and often is also a very good sign for Leap Motion’s potential sustainability. It has already signed up Asus as a partner, too, and the company will ship some of its computers bundled with Leap Motion controllers. Retail partner Best Buy will also be doing endcap displays, meaning users will be able to try out the new technology for themselves, which is a huge boon in terms of convincing people it’s something worthwhile.

This new HP deal is just the start for Leap in terms of its embedded tech opportunities. Buckwald says that while the final design of a Leap Motion-enabled device hasn’t been defined yet, it could work either with placement above a display like most current webcams are positioned, or below, as it’s placed with the current standalone Leap hardware. He also said that mobile device integration is definitely something else coming down the line.

“Mobile will definitely be a part of our strategy in the future,” Buckwald said. “Tablets and phones are a great example of a use case where there’s a major benefit to the consumer to embed Leap. Anywhere we think we can provide value, we’re interested in eventually embedding in there.”

For Leap, the challenge however is less about identifying ways it could benefit users, and more about staying focused and being diligent in keeping its aspirations within the grasp of its small team of staff, he said. Embedding the tech is a huge step, and one that could position Leap as a new staple tech for inclusion in the computing products of third-party OEMs, so keeping the company’s eyes on that prize is the current priority.

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AirBeats / AirHarp creator demos his forthcoming Leap Motion music apps

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Author: Angela Chin

When it comes to developing music apps, Leap Motion’s naturalistic user interface looks like a piece of cake. Sure it doesn’t provide the sort of tactile feedback you get from an actual instrument, but it definitely beats the heck out of, state, a keyboard and mouse. Adam Somers is amongst the very early designers looking to bring a bit of music magic to the small peripheral, and he gave us a sneak peak of what he’s working on at a Smule event in San Francisco previously today.

The easier of the 2 apps is AirHarp. Still in early designer preview mode, the program is virtually precisely what it seems like: a virtual harp. Hold your hand out and strings brighten– tap down and you can pluck them. Reach in a bit and you can strum with one or several fingers. More excellent is AirBeats, a virtual device with 2 pads and a slew of noises that lets you record tracks. Somers is intending to have at least among the apps out in time for Leap Movement’s upcoming launch. You can inspect out demos after the break.Com mentsSource: Stanford

Posts Tagged ‘motion’

Leap Motion reveals first footage of Windows 8 gesture control

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Zippity Zap!: Lightning Strike In Ultra Slow Motion

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Mad Genius’ Motion Capture System brings Sony’s break-apart controller idea to life, and then some

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Shaolin Warriors Kicking Imaginary Ass In Slow Motion

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Teensy: Stop Motion Made Using Single Atoms As Pixels

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Leap Motion Controller Ship Date Delayed Until July 22, Due To A Need For A Larger, Longer Beta Test

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You’ve Got The Whole World In Your Hands As Leap Motion Gains Google Earth Support

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Google Earth gets Leap Motion support, lets you explore the planet with touch-free control

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Leap Motion Controller Tech To Be Embedded In, And Bundled With, Future HP Devices

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AirBeats / AirHarp creator demos his forthcoming Leap Motion music apps

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