Microsoft to add seated tracking to Kinect for Windows 1.5

Software giant Microsoft is to release an updated Kinect for Windows 1.5 which will add the ability to track the neck, head and arms of a seating user of the motion sensing device.

Microsoft Kinect for Windows boss Craig Eisler said that the 1.5 release would be available at the end of May and will bundle a new application called Kinect Studio. The software will "allow developers to record, playback and debug clips of users engaging with their applications," Eisler said.

"Also coming is what we call ‘seated’ or ’10-joint’ skeletal tracking, which provides the capability to track the head, neck and arms of either a seated or standing user," Eisler wrote on the Kinect for Windows blog.

Eisler said that the new functionality would also work in both default and near modes of the motion sense device. In addition, further languages are being added to Kinect’s speech recognition as well as regional variants of English from Great Britain, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

Eisler promised further details in an upcoming blog post.