A Magic Wand For The Xbox 360?

By Digital Trends Staff May 19, 2009

A Magic Wand For The Xbox 360?

When the E3 Expo happens next month in Los Angeles, a lot of eyes will be on the Microsoft stand. Why? Because there’s industry speculation that the company is set to release a new controller for the Xbox 360.

Two years ago the company filed a patent application for a motion controller device called the Magic Wand, according to the BBC, which would interact with "a collection of sensors." The application also described the device as having "biometric sensors" to examine "fingerprint, hand geometry, hand vein pattern, palm pattern, and grip configuration" as well as "facial thermogram, a facial feature, a retinal feature, or an iris feature."

Put simply, that’s facial recognition.

Although Microsoft has officially refused to comment on any speculation about such a device, earlier this month company head Steve Ballmer told the Dallas Regional Chamber:

"Pay attention to the stuff we’re announcing in the next month on Xbox."

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