Kinect - Do I Have Enough Room?

[Chunky]

Hi everyone

With the recently reduced prices in 250gb Xboxes and Kinect i'm tempted to move to the new versions. However, my lounge isn't the widest so i'm not sure I have enough room for a Kinect sensor. I've taken some measurements this morning and put together a crude image showing the space I have. Can anyone who has a Kinect in a limited area take a look and give me any indication of whether I have enough room or not ?

Also where should I look to mount the sensor ? The TV is on it's stand on the TV unit and I have no plans to mount it on the wall. I think that the sensor would have to be mounted above the TV to give me enough room, what options do I have for doing that ? Apart from the official mounting kit, is there any cheaper alternatives ?

Thanks

P.S. All measurements in the image are in centimetres.

[Pavey]

I have one and the on screen area i need to be in is 243cm roughly from my tv, i think you'll be fine to be honest as i can go nearer.

As for the sensor, after reading this thread, i made my own. My tv has a perfect shelf/lip on the back to sit a bit of 2x1, so i sprayed a bit black, sticky velcro'd it to the tv, sticky velcro'd the sensor to it and the tv and it's been perfect.

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(tempted by a slim 250 myself but the dust issue really puts me off, check my sensor and tv!)

[EvilBoris]

I'm 6 feet tall and from my experiences I'd say the 6 feet minimum (which you fall just short off) really is a minimum.
7-8 feet works much better and having a little space behind you certainly stops injurys.

My tv is about 5.5 feet away in it's standard position and I can control the dash and play joy ride whilst sitting on my sofa, anything standing up has no chance unless I move the sofa away and I can stand further back. Even then I'm banging into the wall and low ceiling behind me.

[MartyG]

Space seems game dependent too - Kinect Sports definitely needs more than 6 ft, the more space the better.

I calculated the TV as being 7 ft from the sofa with the heels stuck to it (100 cm = 3.28 ft), but it will likely be a squeeze unless you can move the sofa from behind you.

[EvilBoris]

Yeah my calculations were pish! 7.21 feet from front of screen to front of sofa, you should be ok! Especially if you mounted the sensor on the wall.

[SUMIRE]

Basically, the min distance from the camera is 6ft which isn't ideal as that is the front edge of the playspace, so 6ft is kind of a lie.

Realistically you really need to be stood 7ft to 8ft back as well as having some space behind you, width depends on the game, but your talking about 6ft for one player. It is also usually best to mount it above your TV with smaller play spaces.

Luckily my Panasonic TV had a flat top ridge so I mounted the sensor using velcro.

[Yakumo]

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(tempted by a slim 250 myself but the dust issue really puts me off, check my sensor and tv!)

Yep, you really do need to clean that mate! At least once a week wih a duster.

[Pavey]

Old house, wooden floor and piano black is not a good mix Should of seen my old PS3.

[toythatkills]

Vaguely related: If I play in front of a mirror, will Kinect be able to deal with that or will it confuse the hell out of it?

[cutmymilk]

You can play 2 player with a mirror.

[Flabio]

It... might confuse it. It won't see two people, it's more likely it won't see anything at all.

[Spatial]

I'm a vampire, will Kinect be able to detect me?

[DarkSavior]

It will, but if Kinect ID says now try recognition in different lighting conditions and asks you to open the blinds - DON'T! Its a trap and you will be incinerated.

[Flabio]

Given that the Kinect throws out a lattice of IR beams, won't most vampires already be in trouble? Or is it UV they don't like? Not sure how vampires work these days since they went all 'paranormal romance' instead of 'rip your throat out carnage'.

[EvilBoris]

It's UV although I'm surprised there hasn't been a media outcry about the dangers of prolonged IR exposure