Leap Motion, 3D control technology

DAILY DOT COM - The distance between you and the virtual world is about to get even smaller.  Leap Motion has created a 3D motion control device that lets users control their computers by gesturing with their hands.

According to reports, the technology is reminiscent of that in Microsoft's Xbox Kinect device, but with The Leap your hands and fingers are the controllers instead of a mouse or keyboard.

The device is rather small, about the size of a pack of gum and half as thick, and plugs into any USB port on a computer. 

"Breakthroughs in technology come in all sizes, but often the very biggest disruptors come in very small packages: the computer chip, the mouse, the smartphone and now the Leap. Roughly the size of your pinky finger, I believe the Leap is the future of how people will interact with their devices," said technology visionary Bill Warner, founder of Avid Technology and a Leap Motion investor.

"What's previously been an expensive special effect in movies is now an affordable everyday reality, in full 3-D. With the Leap, you use both hands and all 10 fingers to work within your computer's virtual environment just as easily as you do in the real world."

The Leap creates a three-dimensional interaction space of 4 cubic feet to control a computer more precisely and quickly than a mouse or touchscreen, and as reliably as a keyboard. Leap Motion's patented software, the heart of the Leap, represents four years of research and a series of major mathematical breakthroughs by co-founder and CTO David Holz.

The Leap is accurate to within 1/100 of a millimeter, a precision level required for touch-free natural gesture controls like pinch-to-zoom.

The company started taking pre-orders Monday, although the device isn't slated for release until this winter.  The total cost including shipping is $76. 

Click here for more information: http://live.leapmotion.com/pre-order-the-leap .