Microsoft halts Kinect for Windows production
Hardware being phased out in favor of $50 adapter that lets Xbox One version of camera connect to PCs and tablets
Microsoft has ceased production of the Kinect for Windows v2 sensor. In a post on the Kinect for Windows Blog, Michael Fry said the company has stopped production of the PC-specific hardware in order "to consolidate the Kinect for Windows experience around a single sensor."
Going forward, the Xbox One Kinect sensor will be the only one Microsoft sells. However, the company has begun offering a Kinect Adapter to allow developers to use the console peripheral in the same way they would a Kinect for Windows v2 sensor. The adapter sells for $50, while the Xbox One Kinect sensor sells for $150.
"Microsoft remains committed to Kinect as a development platform on both Xbox and Windows," Fry said. "So while we are no longer producing the Kinect for Windows v2 sensor, we want to assure developers who are currently using it that our support for the Kinect for Windows v2 sensor remains unchanged and that they can continue to use their sensor."