Develope has word from a trusted source that the reason the $150 price tag for
Kinect keeps getting floated around is that that's what it costs Microsoft per unit. Now, it doesn't go into whether it's all about the parts but the article goes on to say it wouldn't be surprised if the R&D and software costs are factor in.
$150 is just way too much for a camera device, which while looks cool in some aspects, is largely unproven. At least with the Sony
Move, there's the Wii MotionPlus controller to kind of gauge how it could be. The various camera detection software that was in the past PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3 games have never really been pushed that strong in my opinion and the software is no where near as robust as the one that
Kinect has leaving nothing to really compare it to.
I'm sure most of you agree that Microsoft has to cut the price down in order to really push
Kinect and get to the goal that Microsoft's set for themselves. As the article suggests, the technology in
Kinect has potential for other applications so they can make up the costs elsewhere and not rely solely on the sales of
Kinect.
We got a few more months to really know though.