Microsoft announces developer programme for new Kinect

Microsoft has announced a special version of the new Kinect camera that will be available for developers at a whopping $399 (Rs 23,700 approx) price tag. Developers will get access to the new Kinect sensor “as soon as possible”. The programme is set to begin in November, according to Ars Technica .

This is bittersweet news for developers. On one hand, some of the best uses of the original Kinect we’ve seen comes from developers hooking it up to their PCs and going wild with it. On the other hand, $399 for a camera peripheral might seem a bit on the steep side.

Developers’ original dreams of using the Xbox One Kinect have come to a halt. Microsoft has revealed to Ars Technica that the Kinect bundled with the Xbox One won’t be compatible with PCs, unlike the original Kinect.

The Xbox One version of the Kinect won’t run on PCs

“The Kinect for Xbox One sensor will not have an adapter that allows it to plug into a computer,” a Microsoft spokesperson told Ars Technica . Instead, “the new generation Kinect for Windows sensor will connect to computers using a standard USB3 port.”

Microsoft has stated that despite many of the features and technologies of the Xbox One’s Kinect and the upcoming PC Kinect being the same, they aren’t the same device.

“The new generation Kinect for Windows sensor will be a fully tested, licensed, and supported Kinect experience on Windows,” the spokesperson said. “Kinect for Xbox One is being built for and tested with the Xbox One.”

To deter hackers from developing their own special adapters that would potentially allow them to plug in an Xbox One Kinect into a PC, Microsoft has stated that the Xbox One’s Kinect “is not licensed for commercial use, supported, or under warranty when used on any other platform, including Windows.”

The Xbox One is set to hit international shores this October, but India won’t be able to see it till late 2014.