Television Mount for Xbox One Kinect Includes Privacy Shield

[MarlaDesat]

Television Mount for Xbox One Kinect Includes Privacy Shield

Manufacturer PDP is offering a clip mount for your Xbox One Kinect with a removable cover to protect your privacy.

Peripheral manufacturer PDP has made available a television mount for your Xbox One Kinect, complete with a privacy shield. The mount is designed to clip on to flat panel televisions. The privacy shield covers both the RGB and infrared (IR) cameras. PDP also produces an Xbox 360 Kinect mount, though without a privacy shield. The Xbox One version of the mount is available for pre-order from Amazon for $19.99 USD, to be released on December 4.

Since its announcement, privacy concerns have surrounded the Kinect. In order to process voice commands to turn on your console, the Kinect must be on even when the Xbox One is off. Microsoft confirmed in May that the Kinect can stated on NeoGaf [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/124447-Xbox-Ones-Kinect-Can-Actually-Be-Turned-Off] that there is no active work being done on that kind of advertising. Penello adds, "If something like that ever happened, you can be sure it wouldn't happen without the user having control over it. Period."

Depending on your living room, a television mount may be a great solution for placing your Kinect. If you are just concerned about privacy from the peripheral, however, maybe just throw a blanket over it? Or, of course, turn it off.

Source: Polygon [http://www.polygon.com/2013/10/28/5037448/pdp-releasing-xbox-one-kinect-blocking-tv-mount]

Permalink

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

So if you want privacy kids, you have to pay more.

Or just wait for the Xbone version without the Kinect. Microsoft would have to be retarded not to make one. Which isn't really much of an argument, I know.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

Unless that "Privacy Guard" is 5mm thick lead lined with sound absorbing foam, no thanks.

 

[Saltyk]

I guess there's a market for everything. I'm not even really surprised by this. I do wonder if this is licensed by Microsoft, though. The article doesn't say and I'm really not interested in the Xbox One enough to bother looking to see if that is so.

 

[CardinalPiggles]

Or you could just not buy one, that saves you a lot of money.

Second. The Xbone is already more expensive than the PS4. Why would you get an Xbone just to cover up the Kinect and not use it?

 

[Andy Shandy]

Oh, you know, if you're that concerned about the Kinect invading your privacy, you could turn it off and have it disconnected from the machine, and that costs nothing (well besides the cost of the Xbox One, but I would assume somebody buying this shield would want the Xbox One in their home)

 

[OuendanCyrus]

How about just not include the Kinect as part of the xbox one purchase? How about that, Microsoft?

 

[fix-the-spade]

I have a one hundred percent effective Kinect privacy guard, it's called a PS4 pre-order.

 

[mechalynx]

Pfft. Just hand a goatse in front of it at all times. That should sort things out.

 

[MiskWisk]

In all honesty, this sort of thing lowers my respect for the Xbone even more.

 

[Genocidicles]

Yeah but reports are the Xbone gets rather fiddley about having the kinect not attached and working.

Yep. While the console itself doesn't require it, there's nothing stopping games from requiring it's use.

 

[Pink Apocalypse]

'Penello adds, "If something like that ever happened, you can be sure it wouldn't happen without the user having control over it. Period."

Sure. They have no plans to exploit this technology to the hilt for advertisement revenue...

...but if they did, they would never try to exploit direct access to your home environment for profit purposes in any way without informing you first. Just trust them.

 

[kailus13]

If it blocks video but not sound, would this lead to a rise in silent sex?

Given that the various departments in Microsoft don't seem to speak to each other, (what with the amount of times executives have publicly contradicted each other) I don't really trust the whole "No targeted advertising being worked on" thing.

Pfft. Just hand a goatse in front of it at all times. That should sort things out.

I wonder what sort of targeted advertising Goatse pictures would lead to.

 

[freedash22]

So Microsoft XBOX executives arrive at the conclusion that DRM and privacy concerns are what customers are worried about on the XBOX One and rather than remove the unwanted features altogether, the best that they can do is a 3rd party piece of plastic? It's like dealing with an out-of-control maniac stalker in your house by putting a blindfold on him.

 

[DirgeNovak]

In all honesty, this sort of thing lowers my respect for the Xbone even more.

How so? It's a third party mount. Microsoft has nothing to do with it.

OT: Sign me up... for the "No Xbox One In My House" club.

 

[weirdee]

So Microsoft XBOX executives arrive at the conclusion that DRM and privacy concerns are what customers are worried about on the XBOX One and rather than remove the unwanted features altogether, the best that they can do is a 3rd party piece of plastic? It's like dealing with an out-of-control maniac stalker in your house by putting a blindfold on him.

this isn't sponsored by microsoft, so somebody else came up with it

(i have some concepts for one that actually works, though)

 

[Infernal Lawyer]

Or, you could hang any amount of different objects over it instead.

But imagine that Microsoft will just throw a massive legal shitstorm their way, and that will be that.

Now excuse me, I'm off to have a cuppa with the captcha. "I made tea".

 

[Arawn]

Wow, just wow. I thought this was a joke, but seems it's legit. I guess it's something that might sell. I'd say no buy the system if that's a real concern.