UPDATED MARCH 2023
Body Tracking for desktop & mobile?
Kinect is an exceptional depth sensor to work with. However, Microsoft has repeatedly been discontinuing the devices. If you want a super-accurate Body Tracking SDK that works with all cameras, desktop computers, and mobile devices, check LightBuzz AI. LightBuzz is the result of five years of R&D, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy it very much.
BREAKING NEWS! Microsoft has officially killed the Kinect.
Today, Alex Kipman (creator of the Kinect) and Matthew Lapsen (XBOX Marketing) announced that Microsoft will stop manufacturing the Kinect sensor. Source: Co.Design
Kinect devices will be available in stores until they run out of stock. Amazon has dropped the price of the sensor to $49. The Kinect SDK and drivers will remain compatible with Windows 10.
As a Microsoft MVP, I have been professionally involved with Kinect since 2010. Actually, I was the first to provide a comprehensive guide about installing the legacy Kinect OpenNI SDK. So, today’s news has touched a chord…
What about your existing customers?
Stopping the production of the sensor means that Kinect will be alive for at least one year. If you have already developed Kinect applications, your customers will be able to use them as-is without any compatibility issues. In terms of software, no changes are required.
In the meantime, you have a year to transition to a different device and adjust your existing applications accordingly.
Should you dump your current Kinect projects?
No! Kinect for XBOX ONE is not going to end right away. Hardware does not just disappear. Even Kinect for XBOX 360 is still available, 4 years after it was replaced by Kinect v2 and 1 year after it was discontinued.
There are tons of different Kinect projects in a variety of industries:
- Healthcare
- Fitness
- Retail
- Advertising
- Gaming
Standalone applications that run on booths, exhibitions or other types of installations (such as the Madame Tussauds New York museum) do not need an update. Customers will be able to use them just like they did.
On the other hand, games and consumer-centric apps will definitely need to transition to a new sensor. So, if your business relies on your customer acquiring a new device, then you seriously need to consider an update.
The transition does not need to be painful, though. My team of experts will help you choose the device that fits your needs. Contact us to get a low-cost consultation, save money, and take your business to the next level.
Kinect alternatives
Thankfully, the developer community is very active. New companies have emerged and we already have a lot of alternatives to the Kinect. Today, I’m going to present my top choices. Keep in mind that I am only presenting the sensors I have used professionally. If you have another suggestion, feel free to write it in the comments below!
VicoVR
VicoVR is a sensor targeting mobile Virtual Reality and mobile gaming. VicoVR has a very decent body-tracking SDK that will make you forget about Kinect. Using the Vico sensor, you can transmit Depth and Body data from the device to your Android or iOS smartphone! This opens a world of opportunities, especially considering that most of the upcoming flagship smartphones will meet the hardware specs for VR.
As a downside, VicoVR transmits data over Bluetooth, which is slow for some scenarios. The firmware is also lacking support for various Android models. I expect a wider smartphone/tablet/PC coverage in the future.
- VicoVR website
- Price: $399
Orbbec
Orbbec Astra Pro
Orbbec Persee
Orbbec has been around for 4 years and provides 2 different kinds of depth sensors: Orbbec Astra and Orbbec Persee.
Orbbec Astra is a Kinect-like device that brings depth sensing to the connected computer. Orbbec is preparing a body-tracking SDK for Astra with Unity support. This is going to be the natural successor of Kinect.
Orbbec Persee is a standalone sensor with an integrated Operating System. Orbbec Persee already includes a body-tracking SDK. All of the heavy-lifting is done on the device itself. It’s a great option for many types of portable applications, considering that it’s an Android/Linux device. Chances are you’ll need to rewrite most of your code, though.
The broad feature support makes Orbbec the most mature option right now.
Moreover, Orbbec and 3DiVi (the company behind VicoVR) have created a joint venture to merge both devices on Android platform. Orbbec will provide the hardware and 3DiVi will provide its Body and Face tracking SDK.
- Orbbec website
- Astra Pro price: $149.99
- Persee price: $239.99
Stereolabs ZED
ZED is a state-of-the-art 2K camera. Unlike Kinect and Orbbec, ZED is not using an infrared sensor to measure depth. Instead, it’s mimicking the way the human eyes work: it features 2 super-high-resolution sensors that estimate the perception of depth.
Regardless of its impressive specs, the ZED camera has no body-tracking SDK. Consider purchasing it if you have been using only the RGB and Depth streams of the Kinect.
- Stereolabs website
- Price: $449
OpenPose
OK, this is HUGE. OpenPose is not, actually, a device. OpenPose uses any plain webcam to track the human body, face, and fingers with great accuracy.
OpenPose was developed by the Perception Computing Lab of Carnegie Mellon University. It’s open-source software hosted on GitHub.
Right now, OpenPose is not market-ready, though. OpenPose requires a beast-level PC to run, and it’s quite tricky to setup. It lacks support for popular platforms, and its commercial license is $25,000/year (and cannot be used for sports applications). Consider using OpenPose for non-commercial applications or R&D projects only.
- OpenPose website
- Price: free for personal use, $25,000/year for commercial use
My choice: LightBuzz
When Microsoft killed the Kinect, I was already consulting dozens of customers whose businesses depended on markerless skeleton tracking. So, my team and I decided to take action.
Building on our Machine Learning background and years of industry experience, we developed a novel 3D Body Tracking solution for desktop and mobile devices. We achieved remarkable accuracy at incredible speeds (30 – 90 FPS). Oh, and we also support iOS, Android, Windows, Mac, and Linux.
If you enjoyed my Kinect tutorials, you’ll love the LightBuzz Body Tracking AI.
Next up? Hololens R&D will continue mandating that the Kinect sensor gets even better.
Indeed. Kinect’s technology is transferred to HoloLens.
Body and face tracking are also available by other companies now.
With HoloLens does it have a built in IR for body tracking motion or it is separate just like kinect? I thought lenses now can provide IR thus removing the extra parts on a device. Thanks
HoloLens has, indeed, a built-in IR emitter. However, it includes no out-of-the-box software for body tracking.
Not at all impressed that the Kinect was discontinued.
Bring it back next year please when you make a new Xbox system.
Can’t upgrade my system without it cause all I have are Kinect games.
Thanks
Orbbec and 3DiVi Inc (company behind VicoVR) have created a joint venture to merge both devices on Android platform. Orbbec will provide harwdare and 3DiVi will provide its skeletal and face tracking SDK Nuitrack http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb14786943.htm
Thank you for providing this information. I’ve updated the article accordingly.
What do you think about PlayStation Camera?
The PlayStation camera is a great tool. However, it’s not capable of doing body-tracking. It would be interesting to see how things will move forward with Sony.
I think there is still a big market need of Kinect sensor but Microsoft was not tackling and never updated their SDKs or the sensor itself, how can you expect it grow more? They even killed Windows Phone, now Kinect, next Hololens?
Thanks for your very helpful article.
Have you compared the Intel RealSense cameras for body tracking? They have just released two new models. (I have not)
If there is now no Kinect for Xbox, and the Playstation camera doesn’t support body tracking, are there any consoles that allow games to be developed with body tracking?
Is the only route left a PC-based game using one of the devices you have mentioned?
Hi Toni. The new RealSense cameras seem pretty good. Intel does not provide body-tracking software, however, Nuitrack is expected to release skeleton tracking for the Intel cameras. Shipping of the cameras starts this month.
Since Microsoft discontinued Kinect (and its adapter) body-tracking is not available for consoles any longer. We have to go with PC gaming only.
hello Vangos
thanks for this good article
do u think that any of the new devices have better detection when the body is lying down like when doing push-ups or yoga sitting
since kinect has some difficulty to track laying or sitting on the ground positions
or mostly they (new devices) will face the same problem.
thank u
Hello Aisha. All of the available body-tracking SDKs can track standing or sitting people. The accuracy of the Orbbec and Nuitrack SDKs is comparable (if not better) than the Kinect’s. However, it is not possible to accurately track people that are laying on the floor.
Hello,
OpenPose is very impressive but it lacks depth information (with a single camera). It has a module for using multiple cameras to get depth information (https://github.com/CMU-Perceptual-Computing-Lab/openpose/blob/master/doc/3d_reconstruction_demo.md) but it is not easy and required setup can be expensive.
There are also LIPS, ASUS and Intel RealSense.
Thank you for your comment, Ben. Indeed, LIPS, RealSense, and ASUS are currently supported by Nuitrack.
Hello Vangos-
Have you seen any apps for the Orbbec Persee which enable the creation of a a 3D image, to be used in a program like Skanect for further processing?
I got a Persee a few months ago, and all it lets me do is stream RGB to a monitor! (Thus, what good is the SBC?)
Thanks,
TJM
Thank you for your message. Persee let’s you stream color, depth, and skeleton data. Check the Orbbec SDK and the Nuitrack SDK, too.
I am not sure about Scanect-likd capabilities. You should probably ask Scanect’s owners whether they are planning to support other cameras.
muchas gracias la sugerencia nos ayuda a tomar la decisión.
Have you tried Tara – Stereo Camera: https://www.e-consystems.com/3D-USB-stereo-camera.asp
Hi Eric. Thanks for letting me know. I have not tried that yet. Will probably do so in the future, though.
Is the Logitech C922x Pro Stream a good choice for the average gamer for both xbox oneX and ps4 pro?
Hi Frank. That is a great webcam, however, it cannot yet provide us with Kinect’s body/face tracking capabilities.
Hi Frank, Thanks for the enlightening article.
Did you considered the use of the Intel Realsense D415/D435 along with Nuitrack SDK as Kinect replacement?
Hi Amit. I am aware of Nuitrack (covered it in another article). For healthcare/fitness projects, I am now using the LightBuzz SDK, which can analyze more complex movements (such as weight-lifting, basketball, volleyball, and even push-ups). It also works with RealSense (up to 90 fps).
Hi, is possible to use Orbbec Astra in software like Skanect or KScan3D? I tried that, but camera is not detected as a device… I hope it is possible, as Kinect was able to use this way…
Do you have any advice? Thanks in advance….
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Do you think there is a better solution than the orbbec because it is worse than the kinect v2 I think and when I want to buy it it costs around 200 with taxes and shipping
Hi Adam. You can check the latest Kinect for Azure device. Much better IMO.
Dear Vangos Pterneas,
Thank you for this article. I am trying to migrate away from Kinect based applications and was looking at Azure Kinect to develop an interactive body and face tracking prompt generation for people with impairments. At some stage, I also intend to incorporate AI and thus Azure Kinect. However, I am not sure if I can use Azure Kinect has body tracking capability. So these options that you are providing are useful. What do you think is the best option I have for the application I have in mind, The features include:
– body and face tracking
– ability to generate sound and visual prompts.
– Allow people to interact with it through gestures and speech and
– – AI capability in the future
Hello Shital. Azure Kinect could be a replacement for Kinect v2, but it’s out of stock. You could use one of the options listed here or move to premium solutions such as the LightBuzz SDK.