Kinect Xbox 360

There’s no denying that Kinect is a fascinating piece of technology that has the potential to help continue the evolution of gaming into new and exciting frontiers. Unfortunately, you cannot write a review based purely on potential, as reviewer Eric Neigher found out the hard way. In his experience, Kinect simply isn’t ready for prime time right out of the box. Perhaps in the near future, we’ll see what it can truly do, but for now, we’re advising a wait-and-see approach to Microsoft’s motion controlled gambit.
The Kinect sensor itself is very glossy, on par with the new Xbox 360 look -- which means dust and fingerprints will settle in on the surface just nicely. The motorized stand tilts the sensor vertically for calibration, and to us felt mighty sturdy. Looking at the front, you'll see a green LED light when powered on, and three cameras. The one in the middle is the "RGB camera," as Microsoft prefers to call it -- asearlier listings have indicated, it's likely 640 x 480, 32-bit color at 30fps. The outer pair are the depth sensors, which according to Microsoft "combine an infrared projector to allow Kinect to see the room in 3D under many lighting conditions." (We were told that darker rooms would work better, and in near pitch-black testings, tracking did improve, at the cost of the RGB camera seeing virtually nothing. There's a common ground.) A quartet of microphones are used to detect what's being said and approximately from where in the room.
f I had to pinpoint Kinect's one major source of problems, it's that the camera's viewing angle is too narrow. Not only does this restrict the play area to a 6-8 foot block in front of the TV but, it can barely hold two wildly gesticulating people on screen without one of the players being cut out and told to step back into frame. In fact, to squeeze a little more viewing angle out of the camera, you're told by some games to place the Kinect on top of your TV. Great idea! Except you have to pay extra for the stand that lets you mount it securely there. And if you come too close to the camera in your excitement, it'll remind you, schoolmarmishly, to back away from the TV. I feel like if it could, Kinect would forcefully shove you back.