Topic: XboxOne ~News/Rumor/Speculation~ Biggest Console Released This Gen!!

[Louieturkey]

The extra RAM will mean nothing for games.  The only reason they want the extra ram is so they can have the console play a game, a movie and a Skype call all at the same time without lag.  Of course, the extra power in the Orbis will mean nothing because companies will want to make the cheapest cross platform games possible so they will go with lowest common denominators which means the lower ram and the lower power.

[shingi_70]

http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/10/3859830/microsoft-aquires-r2-studios-blake-krikorian

Pretty Sure I didn't post this but last week Microsoft purchased R2 Studios a home Automation company founded by the creator of the Sling box. The group will be joining the Xbox division and the founder Blake Krikorian will become the corporate vice president of Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business division. Apparently Google and Apple were also bidding for the company.

 

[tendoboy1984]

The extra RAM will mean nothing for games.  The only reason they want the extra ram is so they can have the console play a game, a movie and a Skype call all at the same time without lag.  Of course, the extra power in the Orbis will mean nothing because companies will want to make the cheapest cross platform games possible so they will go with lowest common denominators which means the lower ram and the lower power.

That really worked with the Wii didn't it?

Many (Western) developers are obsessed with specs, especially Epic Games and Id Software.

[NWR_insanolord]

Really, I think it's mostly those two. Companies like EA or Activision or Ubisoft would be fine with a relatively minor jump.

[shingi_70]

Isn't it more of a thing of future proofing the console. Also the article said something about 3GB being used for the OS and 5GB for games.,

[NWR_insanolord]

Designing a console to be bleeding edge powerful on the chance that at some point it may be even remotely viable to use that power with anything resembling a sane budget is a terrible business decision, but one I wouldn't put past Microsoft or Sony.

[shingi_70]

Two minor updates

The NHL Game center app launched today

Today, NHL GameCenter will launch on Xbox LIVE* around the globe, giving Gold subscribers access to their favorite NHL hockey action right from their Xbox and just in time for the 2013 season to take center ice.

NHL GameCenter for Xbox 360 brings you live games, replays, classic games, and videos from NHL VideoCenter, plus controller-free entertainment with the power of Kinect for Xbox 360.

NHL GameCenter on Xbox LIVE offers the following features:

Follow the Action from the 2013 NHL Season ā€“ Get real-time game scores, player stats and team standings. All Xbox LIVE Gold Members can also follow the action on and off the ice from the NHL VideoCenterTM. Watch the best goals, saves and hits from around the league this season.
Live Games and Replays with NHL Game Center LIVE ā€“ With your NHL GameCenter LIVEā„¢ subscription ($49.99 USD for the 2012-13 season), watch live, out-of-market games from the NHL regular season. Miss a game? Watch full-length archived games or condensed replays from this season and last.
Every game with an HD-Quality Picture ā€“ NHL GameCenter delivers every game in a beautiful, HD-quality picture, and each broadcast gives every fan the option of the Home or Away audio feed. With NHL GameCenter on Xbox 360, you will feel like your team is the home team.
Keep Up With Your Favorite Teams ā€“ NHL GameCenter on Xbox 360 lets you personalize the experience to get to the information you care about most. Select up to five teams to follow so you can be sure not to miss a beat on your favorite teams and players. Get the scores, player stats, schedule and live games, right at your fingertips.
Season Central ā€“ A quick calendar view of the league schedule or just your favorite teams is a click away. Season Central is the best way to find out what games are on today, this week, or next month.
Mini Guide ā€“ The Mini Guide gives you a quick preview of all of todayā€™s action right at the bottom of your screen, and makes it easier than ever to switch between games.
Split Screen ā€“ Keep an eye on the rest of the league while cheering on your home team! With Split Screen, you can watch two games at once and do just that. Watch live games on both screens or a live game on one while you catch up with a game recap on the other. You can control both screens independently, pausing and rewinding each separately so you never miss a second of the action.
Classic Games from NHL Vaultā„¢ ā€“Relive your favorite moments in NHL history with on-demand access to over 800 classic games from NHL Vaultā„¢. Watch some of the best Original Six battles from the 1960s or re-watch the best games from the Stanley CupĀ® Playoffs through the years. You now have the best way to watch these games on your big screen with Xbox 360.
Voice and Gesture Control with Kinect for Xbox 360 ā€“ Focus on the puck instead of looking for the remote. Navigate through Season Central, or play, pause, and rewind that behind-the-back goal, all with the power of Kinect for Xbox 360.

The final Half of Spartan Ops Season 1 starts next Week

Halo 4ā€ Spartan Ops: Season One Returns with All New Episodes Starting Jan. 21

One of the most awarded titles of 2012 kicks off the New Year with five weeks of brand-new Spartan Ops episodes, starting Jan. 21

ā€œHalo 4ā€ launched worldwide in November 2012, quickly becoming the fastest-selling ā€œHaloā€ title ever released on the Xbox 360, and the action will continue in 2013 with brand new content.  Today Microsoft and 343 Industries announced the return of Spartan Ops: Season One, which includes five weeks of brand-new content ā€“ from Jan. 21 through Feb. 24 ā€“ returning players to the episodic adventure that tells the continuing story of the UNSC Infinity.

Reenlist with Fireteam Crimson as they search for Spartan Thorne on planet Requiem and come face-to-face with the threat of Jul ā€˜Mdama and his cult of Covenant separatists. The intensity of Season One builds to its thrilling conclusion in Episodes 6-10 as the battle moves beyond Requiem to a wide variety of locations featuring epic vehicular combat and on-foot encounters with Prometheans and Covenant forces.

Each week in ā€œHalo 4,ā€ experience a new high-quality cinematic episode, and fight alongside friends in five action-packed playable chapters through Feb. 24. Continuing the story following the events of ā€œHalo 4,ā€ access to Spartan Ops is included with ā€œHalo 4ā€ at no additional charge ā€” effectively delivering two campaign experiences in one game.1

The first half of Spartan Ops: Season One (Episodes 1-5) is available for play at any time in ā€œHalo 4ā€ for those beginning their Spartan careers. Get introduced to Captain Lasky, Commander Palmer and Fireteam Majestic as they continue to explore the mysterious of the Forerunner planet of Requiem. For more information on the continuing season of Spartan Ops, including weekly tune-in trailers as well as exclusive content, visit www.halowaypoint.com.

Oxm has a preview
http://www.oxmonline.com/halo-4-spartan-ops-episode-6-hands-preview

[Ceric]

I'm positive they have been sitting on that app and press release for the whole lockout.

[NWR_insanolord]

I'm almost positive NHL GameCenter was on Xbox Live last season and then removed for whatever reason. Either way, I'll be using the PS3 version of the app, because Metro is a terrible interface for a gamepad.

[shingi_70]

The app was slated for last year but then the black put happened.

I'd disagree with the metro being bad with a control but I only use smart glass and voice to control the Xbox at this point,

[shingi_70]

Rumor from VGleaks of the Durango specs


http://www.vgleaks.com/world-exclusive-durango-unveiled/

As we promised during the weekend in the next weeks we will unveil Durango and Orbis. All the technical info you want to know about the next generation machines from Sony and Microsoft.

The first one is Durango. In this article we present the system overview with the general components and some technical details about them.

How are durango components connected?

Here you can see the Durango system block diagram:

Durango Arquitecture



Letā€™s check whatā€™s inside the box:

CPU:

- x64 Architecture

- 8 CPU cores running at 1.6 gigahertz (GHz)

- each CPU thread has its own 32 KB L1 instruction cache and 32 KB L1 data cache

- each module of four CPU cores has a 2 MB L2 cache resulting in a total of 4 MB of L2 cache

- each core has one fully independent hardware thread with no shared execution resources

- each hardware thread can issue two instructions per clock

GPU:

- custom D3D11.1 class 800-MHz graphics processor

- 12 shader cores providing a total of 768 threads

- each thread can perform one scalar multiplication and addition operation (MADD) per clock cycle

- at peak performance, the GPU can effectively issue 1.2 trillion floating-point operations per second

High-fidelity Natural User Interface (NUI) sensor is always present

Storage and Memory:

- 8 gigabyte (GB) of RAM DDR3 (68 GB/s)

- 32 MB of fast embedded SRAM (ESRAM) (102 GB/s)

- from the GPUā€™s perspective the bandwidths of system memory and ESRAM are parallel providing combined peak bandwidth of 170 GB/sec.

- Hard drive is always present

- 50 GB 6x Blu-ray Disc drive

Networking:

- Gigabit Ethernet

- Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct

Hardware Accelerators:

- Move engines

- Image, video, and audio codecs

- Kinect multichannel echo cancellation (MEC) hardware

- Cryptography engines for encryption and decryption, and hashing

Wonder what HDD always being present means? Also a little surprised their isn't any NFC to be found on the system.

[BlackNMild2k1]

sounds good.

Can't wait to see it in action.

[shingi_70]

From the spec sheet alone you can surmise a few things

1) Microsoft is going to push smart glass even harder. The WiFi component is capable of WiFi direct which is a way to share information between devices. Windows 8 and the surface support WiFi direct however windows phone doesnt support it.


2) Kinect 2.0 may be bundled with the console. You see the the Kinect in as well as Natural User Interface sensor is always present.

3)USB 3.0 yay

4)HDMI in is rumored to be for the cable cable box to put into dimilsar to Google TV.

[nickmitch]

I wonder how much of the extra power is going to the Kinect. I remember the old Kinect being more sensitive than previously thought when people toyed around with it on better hardware. And with a better Kinect, maybe even more power than that?

[Ceric]

I wonder how much of the extra power is going to the Kinect. I remember the old Kinect being more sensitive than previously thought when people toyed around with it on better hardware. And with a better Kinect, maybe even more power than that?

In the old kinect I'm fairly sure it did a lot of the processing on Hardware but due to cost that had to be moved to software.  I'm sure the new one will do it by Hardware again which means by default it be more powerful.

[shingi_70]

The who did a really cool Blog Post on how to Redesign Microsoft's brand is now working for Microsoft on the Xbox team.

http://www.minimallyminimal.com

Big News.

I'm working at Microsoft as of Summer.

Xbox to be specific.

Itā€™s true. Iā€™m going to go work for Microsoft. When my Microsoft rebranding project went viral, I frequently got asked if I was approached by them. "Yes" is the short answer but this relationship has actually been going on for nearly 6 months.

This was a difficult choice to make. I was approached by countless companies with offers, ranging from electronics manufacturers to ad agencies. Some of the companies that approached were the makers of my favorite products ever. I am even a ā€œfanboyā€ of some of them. But when it came time to make my final decision, I wanted to work at a place I can really get excited about. Working at a company is like getting married, it becomes a fundamental part of your life. I want to work with awesome people on awesome projects that I can get excited about. If youā€™ve been watching Microsoft over the past year, itā€™s been exciting, regardless of what your ecosystem preference is.

I canā€™t talk about the details of how things fell into place but the choice became obvious. I'll be designing for Microsoft as of summer. I promise that Iā€™ll make the my greatest work ever while I'm there.

I want to thank every reader of Minimally Minimal for the support so far. Without you, I would have never been able to get to where I am. You have been the wind beneath my wings, my catalyst, my mentor. I hope youā€™ve been able to see me grow since 2009, the beginning of this blog, and continue to see my work develop in the future. I still have my final semester of school left, and MM is only 3 years old. Donā€™t take this as the end of me as a curious designer, itā€™s only the beginning.

Always looking forward,

Andrew

I want to make it clear that MM has no plans of closing. Iā€™ll continue to share my thoughts with you. The details of what I can/canā€™t post is still in discussion but this will always be a blog about my honest opinions on subjects I care about.

Also Remember my secret collaboration project with Microsoft in 2012? Well, the IP is being acquired by Microsoft so it will have to stay confidential. I know that many people were looking forward to seeing it so Iā€™m sorry to say that itā€™ll have to be tucked away for now.


Sure. It was reiterated to me that MS was fully behind doing everything the same like they did in the first few years of the Xbox 360 and that MS knows that is what got them a good deal of backing when the system first came out. That is the 4th or 5th time I was informed that.
I was told there is a very even split between new IP's and faithful IP's. And 3-4 big surprises.


Also it sems that microsoft has a new studio in development that will be based in Richmond, VA. If you serch all on the job listing in Microsoft studios you can find a job posting for a Narative drsigner.


http://www.microsoft-careers.com/job/Richmond-Narrative-Designer-IEB-Microsoft-Studios-%28824217%29-Job-VA-23173/2389695[/url]

[shingi_70]

So talking about the new London studio a lot of guys from Sony London have jumped ship to join the studio.

[azeke]

Microsoft Windows logo just keeps degrading with each iteration...

[Ceric]

Microsoft Windows logo just keeps degrading with each iteration...

Microsoft tried to be more Apple like with the US flash with Windows 7.  Had a pretty large backlash from it so they decided to go the simple everything could do it UI for Win8.

I wonder what this says about Move.  The London Sony studio was pretty intertwined with that product.  Those are some pretty long tenures for the tech industry to switch.

[shingi_70]

I like the new logo its nice and minimal and says a lot about their main consumer products.

Orange = office 365
Blue = Windows 8
Greeen = Xbox
Yellow = Windows Phone

[Louieturkey]

I like the new logo its nice and minimal and says a lot about their main consumer products.

Orange = office 365
...
Orange = Windows Phone

You wanna fix that?

[shingi_70]

So Microsoft released their newest game and IP for Windows 8 called gunpowder.

United States Patent Application   20130027296
Kind Code   A1
Klein; Christian ; et al.    January 31, 2013

COMPOUND GESTURE-SPEECH COMMANDS

Originally Posted by Rƶsti:
Abstract
A multimedia entertainment system combines both gestures and voice commands to provide an enhanced control scheme. A user's body position or motion may be recognized as a gesture, and may be used to provide context to recognize user generated sounds, such as speech input. Likewise, speech input may be recognized as a voice command, and may be used to provide context to recognize a body position or motion as a gesture. Weights may be assigned to the inputs to facilitate processing. When a gesture is recognized, a limited set of voice commands associated with the recognized gesture are loaded for use. Further, additional sets of voice commands may be structured in a hierarchical manner such that speaking a voice command from one set of voice commands leads to the system loading a next set of voice commands.

Inventors:   Klein; Christian; (Duvall, WA) ; Vassigh; Ali M.; (Redmond, WA) ; Flaks; Jason S.; (Bellevue, WA) ; Larco; Vanessa; (Kirkland, WA) ; Soemo; Thomas M.; (Redmond, WA)
Assignee:   MICROSOFT CORPORATION
Redmond
WA

Serial No.:   646692
Series Code:   13
Filed:   October 6, 2012

Originally Posted by Rƶsti:
Claims
1. A method for controlling a computing system using a voice commands, comprising: accessing multiple depth images from a depth sensor system; recognizing a gesture from the multiple depth images; in response to recognizing a gesture, choosing a subset of a set of sound commands based on the recognized gesture, the set of sound commands includes multiple subsets, each subset is associated with one or more gestures and sound command recognition data for the respective subset; receiving sound input; recognizing a sound command from the chosen subset based on the sound input; and performing an action in response to the recognized sound command.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein: the depth images include a two-dimensional pixel area of a captured scene, each pixel in the two-dimensional pixel area represents a depth value of one or more objects in the scene captured by the depth sensor system; the method further comprises displaying the chosen subset of sound commands in response to the recognizing the gesture; the sound input is received after displaying the chosen subset of sound commands; and the recognizing includes attempting to match the sound input to sound commands in the chosen subset and not to sound commands in other subsets of the set of sound commands.

12. A computing system, comprising: a monitor for displaying multimedia content; a depth sensor for capturing depth images; a microphone for capturing sounds; and a processor in communication with the depth sensor, the microphone and the monitor; the processor communicates with the monitor to display an object, the processor receives multiple depth images from the depth sensor and recognizes a gesture from the multiple depth images, the processor chooses a subset of a set of sound commands based on and in response to the recognized gesture, the set of sound commands includes multiple subsets, the processor loads sound command recognition data for the chosen subset of sound commands in response to the recognized gesture, the processor receives sound input from the microphone and recognizes a sound command from the chosen subset based on the sound input and the loaded sound command recognition data without searching all of the set of sound commands, processor performs an action in response to the recognized sound command.

Originally Posted by Rƶsti:
Detailed description:
[0064] FIG. 4 illustrates one embodiment of the controller 12 shown in FIG. 1 implemented as a multimedia console 100, such as a gaming console. The multimedia console 100 has a central processing unit (CPU) 101 having a level 1 cache 102, a level 2 cache 104, and a flash ROM (Read Only Memory) 106. The level 1 cache 102 and a level 2 cache 104 temporarily store data and hence reduce the number of memory access cycles, thereby improving processing speed and throughput. The CPU 101 may be provided having more than one core, and thus, additional level 1 and level 2 caches 102 and 104. The flash ROM 106 may store executable code that is loaded during an initial phase of a boot process when the multimedia console 100 is powered on.

[0065] A graphics processing unit (GPU) 108 and a video encoder/video codec (coder/decoder) 114 form a video processing pipeline for high speed and high resolution graphics processing. Data is carried from the graphics processing unit 108 to the video encoder/video codec 114 via a bus. The video processing pipeline outputs data to an A/V (audio/video) port 140 for transmission to a television or other display. A memory controller 110 is connected to the GPU 108 to facilitate processor access to various types of memory 112, such as, but not limited to, a RAM (Random Access Memory).

[0066] The multimedia console 100 includes an I/0 controller 120, a system management controller 122, an audio processing unit 123, a network interface controller 124, a first USB host controller 126, a second USB controller 128 and a front panel I/O subassembly 130 that are preferably implemented on a module 118. The USB controllers 126 and 128 serve as hosts for peripheral controllers 142(1)-142(2), a wireless adapter 148, and an external memory device 146 (e.g., flash memory, external CD/DVD ROM drive, removable media, etc.). The network interface 124 and/or wireless adapter 148 provide access to a network (e.g., the Internet, home network, etc.) and may be any of a wide variety of various wired or wireless adapter components including an Ethernet card, a modem, a Bluetooth module, a cable modem, and the like.

[0067] System memory 143 is provided to store application data that is loaded during the boot process. A media drive 144 is provided and may comprise a DVD/CD drive, Blu-Ray drive, hard disk drive, or other removable media drive, etc. The media drive 144 may be internal or external to the multimedia console 100. Application data may be accessed via the media drive 144 for execution, playback, etc. by the multimedia console 100. The media drive 144 is connected to the I/O controller 120 via a bus, such as a Serial ATA bus or other high speed connection (e.g., IEEE 1394).

[0068] The system management controller 122 provides a variety of service functions related to assuring availability of the multimedia console 100. The audio processing unit 123 and an audio codec 132 form a corresponding audio processing pipeline with high fidelity and stereo processing. Audio data is carried between the audio processing unit 123 and the audio codec 132 via a communication link. The audio processing pipeline outputs data to the A/V port 140 for reproduction by an external audio user or device having audio capabilities.

[0069] The front panel I/O subassembly 130 supports the functionality of the power button 150 and the eject button 152, as well as any LEDs (light emitting diodes) or other indicators exposed on the outer surface of the multimedia console 100. A system power supply module 136 provides power to the components of the multimedia console 100. A fan 138 cools the circuitry within the multimedia console 100.

[0070] The CPU 101, GPU 108, memory controller 110, and various other components within the multimedia console 100 are interconnected via one or more buses, including serial and parallel buses, a memory bus, a peripheral bus, and a processor or local bus using any of a variety of bus architectures. By way of example, such architectures can include a Peripheral Component Interconnects (PCI) bus, PCI-Express bus, etc.

[0071] When the multimedia console 100 is powered on, application data may be loaded from the system memory 143 into memory 112 and/or caches 102, 104 and executed on the CPU 101. The application may present a graphical user interface that provides a consistent user experience when navigating to different media types available on the multimedia console 100. In operation, applications and/or other media contained within the media drive 144 may be launched or played from the media drive 144 to provide additional functionalities to the multimedia console 100.

[0072] The multimedia console 100 may be operated as a standalone system by simply connecting the system to a television or other display. In this standalone mode, the multimedia console 100 allows one or more users to interact with the system, watch movies, or listen to music. However, with the integration of broadband connectivity made available through the network interface 124 or the wireless adapter 148, the multimedia console 100 may further be operated as a participant in a larger network community.

[0073] When the multimedia console 100 is powered ON, a set amount of hardware resources are reserved for system use by the multimedia console operating system. These resources may include a reservation of memory (e.g., 16 MB), CPU and GPU cycles (e.g., 5%), networking bandwidth (e.g., 8 kbs), etc. Because these resources are reserved at system boot time, the reserved resources do not exist from the application's view.

[0074] In particular, the memory reservation preferably is large enough to contain the launch kernel, concurrent system applications and drivers. The CPU reservation is preferably constant such that if the reserved CPU usage is not used by the system applications, an idle thread will consume any unused cycles.

[0075] With regard to the GPU reservation, lightweight messages generated by the system applications (e.g., pop ups) are displayed by using a GPU interrupt to schedule code to render popup into an overlay. The amount of memory required for an overlay depends on the overlay area size and the overlay preferably scales with screen resolution. Where a full user interface is used by the concurrent system application, it is preferable to use a resolution independent of application resolution. A scaler may be used to set this resolution such that the need to change frequency and cause a TV resynch is eliminated.

[0076] After the multimedia console 100 boots and system resources are reserved, concurrent system applications execute to provide system functionalities. The system functionalities are encapsulated in a set of system applications that execute within the reserved system resources described above. The operating system kernel identifies threads that are system application threads versus gaming application threads. The system applications are preferably scheduled to run on the CPU 101 at predetermined times and intervals in order to provide a consistent system resource view to the application. The scheduling is to minimize cache disruption for the gaming application running on the console.

[0077] When a concurrent system application requires audio, audio processing is scheduled asynchronously to the gaming application due to time sensitivity. A multimedia console application manager (described below) controls the gaming application audio level (e.g., mute, attenuate) when system applications are active.

[0078] Input devices (e.g., controllers 142(1) and 142(2)) are shared by gaming applications and system applications. The input devices are not reserved resources, but are to be switched between system applications and the gaming application such that each will have a focus of the device. The application manager preferably controls the switching of input stream, without knowledge the gaming application's knowledge and a driver maintains state information regarding focus switches. For example, the cameras 26, 28 and capture device 20 may define additional input devices for the console 100 via USB controller 126 or other interface.
The bolded segments are what I find most interesting here. Especially the audio processing unit (which I assume is not that of Xbox 360's hardware accelerated audio decompression). 0073 is bolded just for reference since it's a rather obvious thing for most (all?) operating systems.

And lastly, the images, with description first. Note that many of these are just flowcharts of Kinect operations, but hardware is described here as well, note for example the appearance of the camera.

Originally Posted by Rƶsti:
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] FIG. 1 illustrates a user in an exemplary multimedia environment having a capture device for capturing and tracking user body positions and movements and receiving user sound commands.

[0010] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a capture device coupled to a computing device.

[0011] FIG. 3 is a schematic representation of a skeleton being tracked.

[0012] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a computing system for processing data received from a capture device.

[0013] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating another embodiment of a computing system for processing data received from a capture device.

[0014] FIG. 6 is a flow chart describing one embodiment of a process for user interaction with a computing system using voice commands.

[0015] FIG. 7A is a flow chart describing one embodiment of a process for user interaction with a computing system using hand gestures and voice commands.

[0016] FIG. 7B is a flow chart describing further steps in addition to those shown in FIG. 7A for user interaction with a computing system using hand gestures and voice commands.

[0017] FIGS. 7C-7D are flow charts describing additional details for recognizing hand gestures in the process shown in FIG. 7A.

[0018] FIG. 7E is a flow chart describing additional details for recognizing voice commands in the process shown in FIG. 7A.

[0019] FIG. 8A is a flow chart describing an alternative embodiment of a process for user interaction with a computing system using hand gestures and voice commands.

[0020] FIG. 8B is a flow chart describing one option for correlating a gesture with a voice command in accord with FIG. 8A.

[0021] FIG. 8C is a flow chart describing another option for correlating a gesture with a voice command in accord with FIG. 8A.

[0022] FIG. 8D is a flow chart describing another option for correlating a gesture with a voice command in accord with FIG. 8A.

[0023] FIG. 9A is a flow chart describing an alternative embodiment of a process for user interaction with a computing system using hand gestures and voice commands.

[0024] FIG. 9B is a flow chart describing an alternative embodiment of a process for user interaction with a computing system using hand gestures and voice commands.

[0025] FIG. 9C is a flow chart describing one embodiment of a process for user interaction with a computing system using a specific hand gesture and contextual voice commands.

[0026] FIG. 10A is an illustration of a first level user interface implementing the flow chart of FIG. 7A.

[0027] FIG. 10B is an illustration of a second level user interface implementing the flow chart of FIG. 7B.

[0028] FIG. 10C is an illustration of a third level user interface.









More images in the neogaf thread

http://m.neogaf.com/showthread.php?t=511043

http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=2&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=PG01&s1=Microsoft.AS.&s2=Xbox&OS=AN/Microsoft+AND+Xbox&RS=AN/Microsoft+AND+Xbox

[Louieturkey]

I heard one of the main guys at Rare (was there since 1996) is now working for Sony.   So it looks like it's not all just people leaving Sony for Microsoft.  It seems they are exchanging people.

[shingi_70]

Yeah he's going to be over all of Sony's European studios like how Phil Harrison is now overseeing all of Microsoft's European efforts.
 
Polygon is reporting Microsoft plans to have an event between March and May to unveil the new xbox.

Sources familiar with the Microsoft console tell Polygon that Microsoft, while already aware of Sony's launch timing, plans to hold its own announcement this spring, months after Sony's unveiling. A variety of form-factors for Microsoft's new console,  we're told, are already being focus tested.
Both next generation consoles will focus on expanding their reach beyond core gaming to include more entertainment and social aspects, according to our sources. That could include, we're told, a subsidized version of the Xbox that serves as both a gaming platform and a cable box, though agreements with cable companies have yet to be finalized. Last year, The Verge reported that Microsoft was also working on a subsidized low-cost alternative to its next-gen console.

also on this weeks episode of Windows Weekly Paul Thurrott alluded to the new xbox cryptically saying that from his sources there will be more than xbox branded product released this year and  that it will shown before E3. Its about an hour and 10 minutes in.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skdxUwMgEzk
 
i'm going with late march around GDC. its when Microsoft usually has their X events and its where were going to see Bungie's Destiny which is rumored to be Durango exclusive for a year.
 
 
 

[azeke]

What i am really afraid of when both MS and Sony present their new consoles with subsidized programs (like get your xbox for 30 bucks, and then pay us 30$ every month for two years), and Nintendo won't do it.