Microsoft has done yet another 180 (does that make 360?) with the Xbox One console today, announcing that the Kinect 2.0 sensor will no longer have to be connected to the console at all times, thus revoking Microsoft’s original statement regarding the new Kinect sensor which suggested that the accessory must be connected at all times.
When the Xbox One was announced many users were questioning the privacy aspect, with a camera connected and powered on in your living room at all times with the Kinect system. This added to the Xbox One’s ‘always online’ feature – another thing that has since been rescinded – put users off the console with some snooping allegations.
Microsoft since confirmed that users would need to have the Kinect camera connected at all time for the console to work. However, Xbox One Chief Platform Architect Marc Whitten has taken part in an Xbox One Q&A on IGN.com where he has revealed that you will, in fact, be allowed to unplug the Kinect sensor without your Xbox One throwing a tantrum and refusing to work.
Whitten was asked if the console would still work if the previously mandatory Kinect sensor were to fall onto a hardwood floor and break, to which Whitten responded: “like online, the console will still function if Kinect isn’t plugged in, although you won’t be able to use any feature or experience that explicitly used the sensor.”
He then explained how gamers would be able to turn the sensor completely off in the Xbox One’s settings; “When in this mode, the sensor is not collecting any information,” which will satiate some potential users’ privacy issues, however the Kinect sensor will still be in use for IR blasting in this configuration.
Users would then need to enable the sensor whenever they wanted to use a Kinect 2.0 related features such as motion control or voice control, which Microsoft is making a big deal of in numerous aspects of the console.
This is great news for fans that have been concerned about having a CCTV-like camera set up in their living space that could possibly record and feedback just what you are doing. It’s the third and final issue that Microsoft fans have been arguing against on the Xbox One since its announcement that Microsoft has done a u-turn on.
So folks, that’s DRM on used games, always online connectivity and the constant Kinect attachment all now flipped since the original announcement on the Xbox One. Now if only we can get the price down a bit and we will have a real tooth and nail console battle on our hands.