In 2014, for instance, Apple was looking for Oculus and Leap experts to work on virtual reality gaming, experiences, and interfaces.Some Faceshift users said in the perception Kickstarter forum that they receive mail by Faceshift that the application is no longer available, the problem is that this app was a year subscribtion to run and they won't be able to use it until the end of this year. Apple's patent was originally filed 5 years ago and is not proof that Apple will come out with a VR headset any time soon, but the company has been eager to hire engineers who work on similar technologies. Samsung’s Oculus-powered VR headset and Google’s Cardboard are similar devices in that they require a smartphone to not only display virtual reality but also power the experience. Apple's patent also mentioned a remote and exterior controls, the ability to connect to a device’s camera, and the use of haptics and other sensors. According to PatentlyApple, the patent is about a video headset that uses an iPhone oriPod for its display. Imagine a Hololens or an Oculus Rift made by Apple!Įarlier this year, the US Patent and Trademark Office granted 41 new patents to Apple, one of which detailed a VR headset for iPhone. It's been rumoured that Apple is working on a virtual-reality product, and Faceshift's augmented technology could help that product come to fruition. The company has longstanding ties to Pixar and Disney, after all.īut if original programming and games is too much of a stretch, consider the possibility that it might want to offer a framework that'll let developers add Faceshift-type features into their own apps and games for the Apple TV, such as animated avatars that mimic your face. So, with that in mind, it's possible that Apple bought Faceshift to create its own animated shows or even games.
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The latest Apple TV of course aims to bring content (in the form of Apple's forthcoming cord-cutting TV subcription service) and mobile gaming to your livingroom TV, among other things. But now Apple is rumoured to have abandoned all TV plans in favour of improving its set-top box.
It was believed these purchases were helping Apple develop some fancy television with a gesture-loaded interface.
It bought PrimeSense in 2013, which worked on the technology behind Microsoft's Kinect, and it bought Polar Rose in 2010, which developed a technology that could recognise faces and auto-tag users in photos. Apple TVĪpple's been interested in motion-sensing and facial-recognition technology for quite some time. But we're going to focus on the tech angle, of course. Also, it's very possible this was just an acquihire, in which Apple wanted Faceshift for its engineers rather than tech. It's just our attempt at putting together the puzzle pieces. So, without further adeiu, here's five possible reasons why Apple might've bought Faceshift, but again, none of this has been confirmed. That means the world can do nothing but speculate. It's not yet known how much Apple spent on the company or why it purchased it, as an Apple spokesperson would only admit that "Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time" and generally does not discuss its purpose or plans. Star Wars used it to animate the faces of CGI characters, for instance.
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(Pocket-lint) - Apple has acquired a Zurich-based startup responsible for the motion-capture technology used in the latest Star Wars film.įaceshift develops software that allows 3D-animated characters to mimic the facial expressions of an actor.