Leap Motion Goes Mobile

[AlexColgan]

Building the technologies that merge our digital and physical realities is a core part of our mission at Leap Motion. Today we're excited to share a look at what’s just over the horizon – the Leap Motion Mobile Platform.

This combined suite of hardware and software is designed for seamless integration into untethered, battery-powered VR/AR headsets – and at its heart lies a whole new Leap Motion sensor.

Read more on our blog from Leap Motion CTO David Holz

[zhoupeng]

When we can get the product, and does it support in Unity3D?

[AlexColgan]

Currently it's only a reference design for OEMs -- it will be available as part of upcoming mobile and all-in-one VR headsets. It will absolutely support Unity development.

[ZenTaurus]

Does this apply to cheap Chinese VR headsets or only expensive big company headsets like Samsung GearVR and Google Daydream? Any company is allowed to use your module in their headset, right?

[AlexColgan]

We want our users to have access to the best experience possible, and any integration of our technology requires a licensing agreement. We won't integrate with platforms if we believe it will reflect poorly on the power of hands in mobile VR.

That being said, we will work with all kinds of OEMs, and I think you've presented a false dichotomy. There are outstanding headset manufacturers in China. Not all inexpensive headsets are poor quality. And we're just as excited to work with smaller OEMs as we are with industry giants.

[ZenTaurus]

Don't get me wrong, the Chinese headsets can be very good. I'd like this to be available on $30 headsets as well as $100+ ones. I just fear that headsets with this module will come with a premium price. I really hope i will be able to find $30 headsets with this module later on since there already are decent Chinese $20 headsets on the market. BoboVR for example.

[AlexColgan]

I see what you mean. There is a hardware and software licensing premium for the use of our tech -- it's fairly modest, in the neighborhood of $10.

[ZenTaurus]

Sounds great, i hope many companies will be buying into this. Especially the Chinese ones

[chrisward]

Looking forward to trying this out. Will there be any early access to Unity assets for testing?

[AlexColgan]

The Unity assets are actually one and the same as the ones for PC.

[1136530539]

Is it support android system?

[AlexColgan]

The Mobile VR Platform is built for Android.

[ahiddenlink]

I have been keeping an eye on this project for a while, I have been waiting anxiously for just this. Do you have some docs on it potentially, minimum device specs and such?

[AlexColgan]

The headset-embedded platform can run on pretty much any modern phone with Android and a USB port. That being said, we still need to ensure the total experience is good (CPU, GPU, display latency, render pipeline, etc). If there's lag or graphical glitches we don't want there to be any confusion that it's coming from us.

This isn't strictly speaking related to our hand tracking, and the VR industry as a whole is constantly optimizing. For that reason at this stage a hard minimum requirement is elusive.

[andy_blake]

Is there a possible release date this year for the android version?

[AlexColgan]

That's definitely our intention. Unfortunately we can't go into detail since it converges with our hardware release roadmap, and that's tied into our partners' roadmaps.

[edthereaper]

Can we expect an iOS SDK for apple developers and support?, or will be dust in the wind?

[AlexColgan]

With VR being our core focus, iOS support isn't something that we can deliver until Apple enters the VR/AR space in a serious way.

[Yummies]

Leap Motion is really a great inventor when it comes to technology. You guys don't stop to discover something new and better to feel the best experience while playing VR. Want to try this someday. So, I'm looking forward until it will be available on the market.

[abidullahkhan033]

Anybody please can tell me when will come Leap motion mobile SDK