ZCam 3D Webcam Brings Interactivity to Games, Apps to Follow

Throngs of gamers are waiting for E3 expo in June 2009. That in itself is no surprise to anyone. E3 Demos tons of new game technologies but one of the new releases has more than a few non-gamers upright and interested. 3DV is rumored to be showcasing its new 3D camera system, the ZCam, as an add-on for the XBox 360. Their system uses an infrared sensor integrated into the camera's regular sensor that. This sensor system is capable of measuring distances between 1 and 3 meters and should compete with the Playstation EYE but be much more, well, 3 dimensional. The EYE can only track motion in 2 dimensions but the Zcam will be able to use all 3 for a much more immersive experience.

Now while this first hopeful release is only for the Xbox their original concept model was a USB 2.0 and PC based. This brings hope for business applications and assistive technologies as well. The only major drawback is that this is still very speculative. The Xbox release will likely not happen until mid-2010 and the PC version would likely trail that release depending on its success. The best news however is the projected price. 3DV says that they are able to manufacture these units for the same price as regular web cams. The ability to stay under that all important $100 price-point is a major advantage for any new product.