A new startup company called Leap Motion has plans to release a new motion control system called Leap 3D. The system is said to be able to track 0.01mm accurate—which is approximately 100 times more accurate than the Microsoft Kinect.
Instead of requiring a hall's worth of space to function properly, Leap creates a personal workspace of four cubic feet, which is roughly the amount of space you have as you sit in front of your desktop PC or Mac. In addition to requiring very little space, the Leap uses a small USB device that works on any Windows or Mac OS X computer.
In the demo they showed to the press, Leap can be used to play videogames, including Half-Life 2 and any number of other PC or Mac titles. It may be possible to control games like Diablo III merely through gestures.
Bearing the fact that Leap is a startup, there is a significant chance that a company like Sony could license the technology for use on the PlayStation 4 to rival the Kinect. As the technology behind it is different, there's absolutely no infringement on Leap's end.
Additionally, the Leap could exist as a viable alternative to touchscreens, which means Minority Report-style GUIs could become a reality.
Leap will be released next year for a low price of $69.99 and will be compatible with both the PC and Mac.
