Kinect-like Leap Motion 3D camera launches with over 75 applications

Motion control is a tainted concept for most console gamers. Nintendo’s Wii, Sony’s Move, and Microsoft’s Kinect are all products that many would rather forget, but that’s not stopping technology company Leap Motion from trying out the motion-control market on PC.

Today, Leap Motion is releasing its 3D motion-control camera, which shares the Leap Motion name, on PC for $80. The company is also launching its Airspace Store that features over 75 applications that developers specifically designed to work with the Leap Motion.

Leap Motion is a tiny dongle that attaches to a PC and tracks movement and hand gestures. It is similar to Microsoft’s Kinect, but Leap Motion claims it’s much more accurate than the Xbox 360 3D camera. Since inventor and Leap Motion cofounder David Holz designed the camera to work on PC, it can track the movement of both hands and each individual finger all at once. It can determine the 3D location of a finger within one-hundredth of a millimeter of accuracy.

“Today marks a tremendous milestone for the company, but we’re just getting started,” Leap Motion chief executive Michael Buckwald said in a statement. “Leap Motion enhances the computing experience to allow people to do things in new and better ways, and we’re committed to breaking down the barriers between people and technology to make the future more easily accessible.”

While motion control on PC can work with games, developers are also implementing gestural control into a number of traditional apps like Google Earth.

Leap Motion has also already announced partnerships with HP and Asus to integrate Leap Motion cameras into future PC releases from both companies.

Brütal Legend developer Double Fine is also launching Dropchord, its first Leap Motion-optimized game, on the Airspace Store today. Check it out in the video below: