Leap Motion, the hands-free gesture control system that has captured the computing world’s attention, has announced that all preorders made from LeapMotion.com earlier this year will ship on May 13. That’s right – all of you believers out there who saw The Leap Motion Controller’s initial launch and immediately threw down your money in the hopes of living a mouse and keyboard-less existence will have the device in less than three months time.
And if you aren’t among the first buyers, Leap Motion VP of product marketing Mike Zagorsek tells us that the device will be available exclusively in Best Buy stores beginning May 19. Just don’t expect them to stay on shelves very long. The set price at launch is $80.
For the record, the Leap Motion Controller will support operating system interactions with Windows 7 and 8, and Mac OS X 10.7 and 10.8.
In addition to the availability announcements, Leap Motion says that its app store has a new official name – Airspace – and that the company has been working closely with some big-name developers in time for the release. Disney, The Weather Channel, and 3D design and engineering software company Autodesk are among the impressive list. Cut The Rope and an exclusive game from indie game developer Double Fine will also be available at launch. Suffice it to say, there will be some variety.
Zagorsek says that the unit we were able to go hands-on with at CES this past January is the hardware that buyers will see come May, although he says the team is “constantly refining the internals and getting feedback from developers. But the shell and design and how it works, that is what people will get.”
The momentum of the hands-free revolution has been building, yet it remains just beyond our fingertips (pun intended) in concept labs and demonstrations that never make it to store shelves. The Leap Motion Controller is one of the first sophisticated systems to give us hands-free PC use, and now it’s finally coming to fruition. If you simply can’t wait until May, we’ll have more hands-on time with the Leap Motion Controller this March at SXSW, where the team is showing off the hardware with some of the new apps it’s been working on.
Just received an email from the CEO of Leap Motion:
“Dear Leap Motion community,
When you pre-ordered the Leap Motion Controller, you joined us in believing this small device will be huge. Just like us, you believe it will change the way people interact with technology. We’re honored and humbled that you’re behind us on our journey.
We will begin shipping May 13, 2013. Because you pre-ordered your Leap Motion Controller, we’ll make sure you get it first. But it’s just as important for us to make sure that when it shows up at your door, it will be the best product it can be.
Over the past few months, we’ve refined and perfected our hardware so it’s the smallest and lightest design possible. Now we’re mass producing hundreds of thousands of Leap Motion Controllers. We shipped 12,000 units to talented developers who are creating innovative apps. We’re building Airspace™, a new app store where you’ll discover and download these apps made for Leap Motion. So when your Leap Motion Controller arrives, you’ll experience amazing technology and equally amazing ways to use it.
Our vision is coming to life, but we’re just getting started. Leap Motion isn’t only about one single technological advancement. It’s about everyone who moves ahead with us. By changing how the world interacts with technology, we can change the world. Thank you for being a part of it.
Michael Buckwald
Co-Founder & CEO”
I’ve had mine on pre-order since June 12th. Can’t wait!
For some inane reason, I’m really looking forward to using this in tandem with the Windows 8 UI.