A few days ago, Microsoft has decided to terminate the production of the Kinect Adapter, which is a USB accessory that is used to connect the Xbox One Kinect sensor to the Xbox One S, Xbox One X, and some Windows devices. In an interview via Polygon, Microsoft stated that:
“After careful consideration, we decided to stop manufacturing the Xbox Kinect Adapter to focus attention on launching new, higher fan-requested gaming accessories across Xbox One and Windows 10.”
This marks the end of Microsoft’s camera sensor as it is now impossible for new owners of an Xbox One S and Xbox One X, to use the accessory on their consoles without the adapter. Originally, Microsoft offered the adapter for free for Xbox One S owners to encourage players to continue supporting the Kinect with their newer consoles. However, this promotion ended and the company started charging customers $39.99 for the dongle.
If somehow you are a new owner of an Xbox One X or One S, and still don’t have the adapter, then it is probably too late to purchase the dongle at a decent price online via third-party resellers. In Amazon, the price of the Kinect adapter falls around $300, which is far more expensive than a brand new Xbox One S, while used adapters from eBay have gone up by hundreds of dollars in the past weeks.
Initially, players thought that without the Kinect adapter, they won’t be able to play games that would require a Kinect sensor to play. However, Microsoft made it clear that they have re-released some first party Kinect games and added traditional controls so that they can be played even without a Kinect sensor on the newer consoles.
Last October, the company announced that it has ended the production of the Xbox One Kinect itself. The company said that “it is not the end of the journey for the technology, Kinect continues to delight tens of millions of Xbox owners.” I guess this statement would no longer be relevant because when Microsoft stopped the production for the Kinect adapters, they also made it impossible for new users to discover the Kinect.
What do you think about Microsoft's decision to cease production of the adapter?
