PrimeSense was a fascinating company; a pioneer in 3D sensor technology that helped Microsoft design the Kinect, and has been used in things like iRobot's autonomous robots. Two years ago, this Israeli company was bought by Apple for $350 million (one of its most expensive purchases), leading to fervent speculation ever since about what exactly Apple plans to do with its acquisition. Some people thought the it had something to do with Apple TV. With a range of 3.5 metres, PrimeSense would be perfect for the living room, perhaps in some kind of video-game context similar to the Kinect. Or maybe it's to do with with Apple's purchase of augmented reality company Metaio in May this year. Augmented reality is a cool little technology that superimposes digital images on real spaces when you look at them on your phone screen, but it's always been hampered by its limitations in sensing 3D space - which is precisely what PrimeSense is designed to do! You see the connection? It in all probability means that Apple is working on some awesome 3D-sensing AR technology for your TV, or even for your phone and tablet. You could, for example, take a 3D photo of yourself, turn it into a digital model, then use it to try on clothes you spot online. It could also take living room gaming to the next level, mapping 3D spaces with unprecedented accuracy and filling them with digital. Or maybe these acquisitions could add up to something different altogether...
Gamer, Researcher of strange things.
I'm a writer-editor hybrid whose writings on video games, technology and movies can be found across the internet. I've even ventured into the realm of current affairs on occasion but, unable to face reality, have retreated into expatiating on things on screens instead.
