Razer is making an Intel-powered Kinect for PCs. A 3D-sensing depth camera that uses Intel’s RealSense technology. Why would you want that? Well—Intel says it’ll let anyone put their face into a Twitch game streaming video.
Right now, streaming games is kind of a big deal. Ridiculous numbers of people have decided that watching other people play video games online is fun! And some of the most popular Twitch stars not only show you not only the games they’re playing, but the reactions on their faces while they play them. Intel says that Razer’s new camera will let anyone do the same thing without setting up a pricy camera rig, because the depth sensing camera and software can isolate your face from the background and add it to the video. I saw a quick demo today on the Intel Developer Forum stage in San Francisco.
Plus, Razer sees the depth sensing camera as a possible boon for virtual reality applications, where the company’s currently trying to make inroads with its OSVR initative. There, it can be mounted on the outside of a headset to help map out and visualize elements of real world even when you have a VR headset blocking your view.
Intel and Razer aren’t saying when the camera might be available or how much it might cost, but they swear this is a real, consumer product coming to market—not just a developer kit.
Update: Razer tells us it’s aiming to bring the camera to market by Q1 2016, and that the Twitch functionality—which we saw working at IDF—will be one of the key apps at launch.
[Razer]
Contact the author at sean.hollister@gizmodo.com.