A small device by a start-up company called Leap Motion lets users control their computers using 3D air gestures, meaning the stylish finger flicks and arm waves associated with the futuristic computers in Minority Report and The Avengers are coming soon to a device near you. Here's what you should know about the cool new tech that has the blogosphere hyped:
What is it?
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
How do you use it?
Once the sensor is plugged in and the software is installed, the Leap transforms the 8-cubic feet of air in front of the computer into a "3D interaction space," says Peter Pachal at Mashable. Basically, "it'll track any and all motion within that space, letting you use your hands to do whatever you could do with a mouse."
What can it do?
You can use it to swipe through menus, pinch-to-zoom, or even rotate onscreen objects. (Watch a demo below.) Users can even wield things like pens for added precision. "It really makes you feel connected," Leap Motion's chief technology officer David Holz tells The Wall Street Journal. By contrast, tools like the mouse or the trackpad "don't work like real life."
How much will it cost?
The Leap will be priced at an affordable $69.99, and is set to ship this winter.
Take a look:
Sources: CNET, Mashable, Wall Street Journal
