Back in July, Apple was reported to have been looking at acquiring Israeli firm PrimeSense, the company behind the original 3D body sensing technology used by Microsoft for its Kinect platform, for around $280 million.
According to Israeli newspaper Calcalist [Google Translate, via SlashGear], a deal is now on the verge of being completed, with Apple agreeing to purchase PrimeSense for approximately $345 million. The report claims that the contract was scheduled to have been signed earlier this month but that one final legal issue has delayed the process. The contract should be finalized within the next few days, with an official announcement coming in the next two weeks.
Apple has expressed interest in Kinect-like motion control of such products as appliances and vehicle instrumentation, but the main area where the company has been rumored to be using the technology is in television. Reports have indicated that Apple is looking at Kinect-like motion control for its future television set, although the project is said to be seeing continuing delays due to difficult content negotiations with Apple shifting its near-term focus to wearables such as the "iWatch".
Update:AllThingsD has confirmed that Apple is indeed in talks with PrimeSense, but while a deal is "close" to being completed, final details such as liquidity preferences have yet to be worked out. Apple has declined to comment on the matter, while PrimeSense has released the following statement:
"PrimeSense is the leading 3D technology in the market. We are focused on building a prosperous company while bringing 3D sensing and Natural Interaction to the mass market in a variety of markets such as interactive living room and mobile devices. We do not comment on what any of our partners, customers or potential customers are doing and we do not relate to rumors or re-cycled rumors."
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices.
Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of May 2025:
Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X ...
Wednesday May 28, 2025 11:56 am PDT by Juli Clover
With the design overhaul that's coming this year, Apple plans to rename all of its operating systems, reports Bloomberg. Going forward, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, watchOS, and visionOS will be identified by year, rather than by version number. We're not going to be getting iOS 19, we're getting iOS 26.
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iOS 26 will be accompanied by...
Sony today provided a closer look at the iPhone rigs used to shoot the upcoming post-apocalyptic British horror movie "28 Years Later" (via IGN).
With a budget of $75 million, Danny Boyle's 28 Years Later will become the first major blockbuster movie to be shot on iPhone. 28 Years Later is the sequel to "28 Days Later" (2002) and "28 Weeks Later" (2007), which depict the aftermath of a...
Apple's iPhone 17 lineup will include four iPhones, and two of those are going to get all-new display sizes. There's the iPhone 17 Air, which we've heard about several times, but the standard iPhone 17 is also going to have a different display size.
We've heard a bit about the updated size before, but with most rumors focusing on the iPhone 17 Air, it's easy to forget. Display analyst Ross...
The next major version of macOS, now dubbed "macOS 26," is rumored to drop support for several older Intel-based Mac models currently compatible with macOS Sequoia.
According to individuals familiar with the matter cited by AppleInsider, the following Macs will not be supported by the next version of macOS:
MacBook Pro (2018)
iMac (2019)
iMac Pro (2017)
Mac mini (2018)
MacB...
With the next-generation version of iOS and other 2025 software updates, Apple is planning to change its numbering scheme. Rather than iOS 19, which would logically follow iOS 18, Apple is instead going to call the update iOS 26. Apple plans to use 26 across all of its platforms (the number representing the upcoming year), which will presumably be less confusing than having iOS 19, macOS 16,...
With iOS 26, macOS 26, tvOS 26, and watchOS 26, Apple is planning to debut a new design that's been described as taking inspiration from visionOS, the newest operating system. With WWDC coming up soon, we thought we'd take a closer look at visionOS and some of the design details that Apple might adopt based on current rumors and leaked information.
1. Translucency
Inside Apple, the iOS 26...
....Apple TV.....slowly but steadily....the clues are becoming more clear.....
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I believe Microsoft is using their own technology for Kinect.
According to wikipedia, a subsidiary of Microsoft writes the software, but the hardware still comes from this Israeli firm. If this is true, it's a smart move by Apple. Why didn't Microsoft buy PrimeSense?