Microsoft's Downgraded Kinects

[crait]

A while back, I saw a news post on Engadget talking about how they found a patent for sign-language detection on the 360's Kinect. I was kinda excited because I know a few people that know ASL pretty well on one that used to teach it. Well, today, I saw this: http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/11/micr ... graded-ca/ Apparently, Microsoft stated that it won't be able to detect sign language. Why? Well, it's because of the downgraded cameras! I understand that the Kinect is supposed to be able to tell your body orientation and know what you're doing, but how is it going to be able to do that with the precision that we've seen in the demonstrations if Microsoft downgraded the cameras within the unit to a point where it cannot distinguish simple gestures like signing?
Let's discuss.

thats freakin stupid. good job MS, way to fail AGAIN.

[ace]

One more reason the Kinect is garbage. How do you expect a motion sensing device using solely a camera to be successful when it can't detect hand gestures...

[crait]

I'm sure the EyeToy can do that for the PS2.

[ace]

The eyetoy was a beast, and so much cheaper.

[crait]

Lol. That's what I'm saying! They better not try to keep this thing the same price throughout its lifetime because the EyeToy got really cheap but was fun so a lot of people got it.

the MOVE wiil rape. teh end.

[brentbizzle]

Think you guys are making too big of deal out of this. The camera just won't have a high enough resolution to accurately make out finger positions and such. You'd probably need a decent camera to tell the difference between just some of the alphabet, let alone some of the more complicated signs. You don't need that kind of precision for body point positions.

[crait]

Well, a 2 megapixel camera can do that easily with augmented reality. If we are standing at close range, it should be able to do read it especially easily. I'm sure it won't have a problem with reading body positions, but hand positions it should still be able to be read. Microsoft keeps showing videos of people doing hand gestures for the Kinect, but it looks like that ability is going to be limited.

[brentbizzle]

sign language isn't all gestures, there's finger positioning as well. Just think of the letters A and S; T, M, N... gestures don't need the same detail that reading specific fingers do.