Jan 06

Razer refreshes Onza 360 controller with new Tournament and Standard Editions

Posted in: controller, gaming, razer, Today's Chili, xbox, xbox 360, Xbox360

Is your Xbox 360’s bundled controller not loving you quite like it should? Razer’s ready to pick you up on the rebound with its updated Onza controller for Microsoft’s console. The Tournament Edition offers analog sticks with adjustable resistance, an improved D-pad, backlit action buttons, and a pair of added programmable keys. The Standard version eschews the backlight and analog customizability, but keeps the other improvements. Pre-orders for both begin on January 17th, with the Tournament costing $50 / €50 and the Standard asking for $40 / €40.

Continue reading Razer refreshes Onza 360 controller with new Tournament and Standard Editions

Razer refreshes Onza 360 controller with new Tournament and Standard Editions originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Jan 2011 13:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

No Comments | Tags:
Jan 05

8 million Kinect sensors sold in first 60 days

Posted in: kinect, Microsoft, sales, Today's Chili, xbox 360, xbox live, Xbox360, XboxLive

8 million Kinect sensors sold worldwide in first 60 days — that’s 3 million more than Microsoft had planned. Not bad. Microsoft also announced 30 million Xbox Live members and 50 million units sold worldwide with the Xbox 360 outselling all other consoles for the last 6 months in the US. Not bad at all.

8 million Kinect sensors sold in first 60 days originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 22:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

No Comments | Tags: , ,
Jan 05

Avatar Kinect for Xbox 360 is official, smile like you mean it

Posted in: breaking news, BreakingNews, kinect, Microsoft, Today's Chili, xbox, xbox 360, xbox live, Xbox360, XboxLive

Turns out the rumor was true, Avatar Kinect is coming to the Xbox 360 this spring (for Xbox Live Gold members, at least). Details are sparse — a place where you can virtually hang out with your “friends” — but Kinect is shown to now be able to detect facial gestures like eyebrows, smiles, and laughs. Impressive, but after all we’ve seen with the Kinect hacks, can’t say we’re too surprised the camera’s capable of such detection.

Gallery: Xbox Avatar Kinect

Avatar Kinect for Xbox 360 is official, smile like you mean it originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 22:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

No Comments | Tags: , , , ,
Jan 05

Netflix and Hulu Plus with Kinect coming this spring to Xbox 360

Posted in: breaking news, BreakingNews, hulu, Microsoft, netflix, Today's Chili, xbox, xbox 360, xbox live, Xbox360, XboxLive

Good news, Hulu Plus is finally coming to Xbox 360 this spring. Better news, both Hulu Plus and Netflix will be compatible with Kinect. We imagine it’ll be just like Zune Video’s interface, but there really wasn’t much of a demo during Ballmer’s keynote tonight. Excited? We are.

Gallery: Netflix and Hulu Plus for Kinect

Netflix and Hulu Plus with Kinect coming this spring to Xbox 360 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 21:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

No Comments | Tags: , , , ,
Jan 04

Microsoft to announce ‘Avatar Kinect’ at CES?

Posted in: kinect, leak, leaks, Microsoft, rumor, rumors, Today's Chili, xbox, xbox 360, Xbox360

There isn’t much to go on here, but a supposed snapshot from Microsoft’s CES keynote has surfaced with the name Avatar Kinect displayed front and center. So, what is that, exactly? Chances are it’s not the Avatar Kinect we were dreaming of earlier this week, but if we had to guess from the picture and the name alone, you’ll probably be awkwardly moving your body to see just how well your on-screen representation can mimic the motion. Winrumors goes a step further, claiming (without citing any sources, though) that there’ll be a separate channel for the Avatar coming via an Xbox Live software update. Nothing’s confirmed here, but given Microsoft’s CES keynote is tomorrow, this rumor’s shelf life is thankfully pretty short.

Microsoft to announce ‘Avatar Kinect’ at CES? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Jan 2011 20:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Joystiq  |  sourceGlimpse Dog, Winrumors  | Email this | Comments

No Comments | Tags: , ,
Dec 22

Kinect rumored to have PC support in waiting

Posted in: gaming, kinect, Microsoft, PC, rumor, rumors, sensor, Today's Chili, Windows, windows 7, Windows7, xbox 360, Xbox360

There’s been no shortage whatsoever of PC control schemes using Kinect, but up until now, every bit of it has been without Microsoft’s official blessing. Of course, the company eventually caved to the massive amount of hacking going on and confessed that it didn’t have any hard feelings for those giving it a whirl, but is it really fixing to take things one step further with bona fide PC support? That’s the talk emanating from South Korea, where game developer GamePrix has reported that at least one of its titles (Divine Soul, if you must know) is “scheduled to support Kinect.” Continuing on about the game, the company’s Jason Lim was quoted as saying that “Kinect will soon be available as a new PC controller,” but naturally, we’ve our doubts. For starters, why wouldn’t Microsoft be working with a more major developer if honest-to-goodness PC-Kinect interactions were planned? Secondly, there’s a definite possibility that GamePrix could really be referring to unofficial support, which would make everything seem a lot more sensible. Either way, we’ll definitely be keeping an ear to the ground for more, and with GDC under three months away, we ought to know the truth sooner rather than later.

[Thanks, Rashad]

Kinect rumored to have PC support in waiting originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Dec 2010 17:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink TechSpot  |  sourceIncGamers  | Email this | Comments

No Comments
Dec 21

BBC comedians ridicule tech naming schemes, make us laugh along the way (video)

Posted in: Apple, BlackBerry, Humor, RIM, Today's Chili, uk, united kingdom, UnitedKingdom, video, xbox 360, Xbox360

They say all good comedy has a modicum of truth to it, and there’s no denying that the jargon that’s built up around technology is littered with opportunity for mockery, fun-poking, and general satire. Leave it to two old pros from the UK, then, Harry Enfield and Ronnie Corbett, to summarily dispatch Apple, BlackBerry, Orange, Microsoft and everyone in between in one of the better tech-related sketches we’ve seen. See them do their thing after the break, but be warned: the video contains (a lot) more than your recommended daily allowance of fruit puns.

[Thanks, Thanasis]

Continue reading BBC comedians ridicule tech naming schemes, make us laugh along the way (video)

BBC comedians ridicule tech naming schemes, make us laugh along the way (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 11:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceBBC  | Email this | Comments

No Comments | Tags: ,
Dec 20

Two Kinects join forces to make 3D telepresence, enable virtual light saber battles (video)

Posted in: kinect, Microsoft, Today's Chili, video, xbox, xbox 360, Xbox360

UC Davis’s Oliver Kreylos has been responsible for two of our most impressive Kinect hacks yet. He was one of the first to get proper 3D video out of the thing, following that up by pairing up two of the cameras, one to fill in the gaps of the other. You might have thought he was just playing around but no — oh no. There was a method to the madness and his ulterior motive has been revealed: 3D telepresence. This is what he’s been working on all along and he has an early version operational, using the output from two Kinects in a remote office to beam a 3D representation of another person to his display, which he can navigate around (and through) using a Wiimote. Meanwhile, the viewer can see the position of Oliver in real-time, a virtual camera floating around and enabling them to maintain eye contact despite her not actually looking at either physical camera. That demonstration is embedded after the break along with a somewhat fanciful follow-up in which Kreylos engages in a rather… protracted lightsaber battle against the forces of evil.

Continue reading Two Kinects join forces to make 3D telepresence, enable virtual light saber battles (video)

Two Kinects join forces to make 3D telepresence, enable virtual light saber battles (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 20 Dec 2010 10:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceokreylos (YouTube)  | Email this | Comments

No Comments | Tags:
Dec 19

Microsoft seeking to quadruple Kinect accuracy?

Posted in: firmware, kinect, Microsoft, peripheral, Peripherals, rumor, rumors, Today's Chili, xbox, xbox 360, Xbox360

Hacked your Kinect recently? Then you probably know something most regular Xbox 360 gamers don’t — namely, that the Kinect’s infrared camera is actually capable of higher resolution than the game console itself supports. Though Microsoft originally told us it ran at 320 x 240, you’ll find both color and depth cameras display 640 x 480 images if you hook the peripheral up to a PC, and now an anonymous source tells Eurogamer that Microsoft wants to do the very same in the video game space. Reportedly, Redmond artificially limited the Kinect on console in order to leave room for other USB peripherals to run at the same time, but if the company can find a way around the limitation, it could issue a firmware update that could make the Kinect sensitive enough to detect individual finger motions and inevitably lead to gesture control. One of multiple ways Microsoft intends to make the world of Minority Report a reality, we’re sure.

Microsoft seeking to quadruple Kinect accuracy? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Dec 2010 20:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Joystiq  |  sourceEurogamer  | Email this | Comments

No Comments
Dec 17

Fanatec Porsche 911 GT2 racing wheel steers its way into online availability

Posted in: gaming, peripheral, Today's Chili, xbox 360, Xbox360

For some of you, it wouldn’t be Gran Turismo 5 unless there’s a force-feedback steering wheel at the helm, but which one to choose? If history’s any judge, that depends on how just how badly you want to feel like you’re driving a Porsche. $250 buys you the Fanatec Porsche 911 GT2, another officially-licensed Xbox 360 wireless wheel, which features fourteen hidden buttons, a 900° steering angle, and the exact same soft Alacantra leather you’ll find on the real deal. (R.I.P, Khan.) Like its oh-so-similar predecessors, the controller also plays nice with PS3 and PC via USB cable, and an extra $250 for the Clubsport Edition gets you a stick shift, carbon fiber paddle shifters, and some seriously high-end adjustable aluminum pedals. Read up on all the details at our source link. You’ll want to be prepared for that heart-to-heart with your wallet.

Fanatec Porsche 911 GT2 racing wheel steers its way into online availability originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Dec 2010 13:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceFanatec  | Email this | Comments

No Comments