Ultraleap launches Leap Motion Controller 2

Before AWE even started, Ultraleap has already announced an amazing piece of news: the launch of the Leap Motion Controller 2. I’m sure this is going to make many makers happy.

Leap Motion Controller

The Leap Motion Controller has been the first product launched by Leap Motion, the company that later would have been called Ultraleap after the acquisition by Ultrahaptics. It was (and still is) a very compact device that you could connect via USB to your computer to have information about the tracking of the hands. All of it for an affordable price (around $100). Every maker or research center I know had bought this device to be used in UX studies, robotics, digital signage, or whatever other use case where hand tracking would have been useful.

But it is with VR that the controller really shined: some people defined the Leap Motion Controller “a solution looking for a problem” and the moment that someone stuck a Leap Motion controller in front of a headset using duct tape (one of the first to do this was my friend Noah Zerkin), this “problem” to solve was found. The Leap Motion controller was able to bring your hands into virtual reality, making VR interactions more natural. This kickstarted all the hand tracking in XR we have today.

As I’ve said, the Leap Motion Controller has been incredibly popular among researchers and VR people. To prove this, today the company revealed that since its launch in 2013, a million units of the original Leap Motion Controller have been sold and more than 350,000 developers have created applications and interactive experiences with hand tracking. This is not bad at all for a startup just making a hand-tracking device.

The Leap Motion Controller has been mostly Windows-only. There has been a preliminary version of the runtime for Mac and an alpha for Android, but these runtimes never got updated for ages. And lately, Leap Motion / Ultraleap has been mostly focused on being an integrator for VR manufacturers more than a company selling an accessory. Its latest device, the IR 170, offered wider FOV of tracking, but it was not meant as an accessory for hobbyists to attach to the USB, but as a device that OEMs could integrate inside their headsets. VRgineers, for instance, has integrated the latest Ultraleap device in its XTAL headset.

This was not that good for makers and hobbyists, who had to still work with the old model of the sensor, with its limited compatibility and limited tracking performances (e.g. narrow FOV). But now, all of this is going to change.

Ultraleap announces Leap Motion Controller 2

Makers rejoice: Ultraleap has just announced that it’s going to launch a new revamped version of the Leap Motion Controller, which is much better than the previous one. It solves most of the problems of the first sensor because it is:

• Smaller and lighter (it features a 30% smaller package)
• More accurate thanks to its higher-resolution cameras
• More sustainable, with 25% lower power consumption
• Compatible with Windows, MacOS, and Android. Yes, you’ve read it right: all of these three platforms

Ultraleap is launching the device at AWE with the support of partners like Pico, DigiLens, Lenovo, Looking Glass, and Varjo. The use cases with the partners are many: using the Leap Motion Controller 2 as an accessory, you can for instance enhance your experiences on both PC VR using the Varjo Aero and untethered Android XR2 with Lenovo’s ThinkReality VRX headset.

I think that this is great news for all those people that want to experiment with hand tracking and hand interactions. The Leap Motion Controller 1 was already too dated because of the low resolution of its cameras, and especially the narrow tracking FOV. We needed a new accessory that could make hand tracking usable in every context, and Leap Motion Controller 2 is exactly that.

I do not expect this device to sell millions of units in the consumer market, this is not its purpose. I expect it to sell a lot, but as I said before, mostly to tech companies, research centers, hobbyists, and so on. The fact that this device is compatible with all operating systems makes it perfect to be used with robotics, digital signage, applications in exhibition boots, museums, etc… Of course, it can also be used to add hand tracking to headsets that do not support it. For instance, in countries with emerging economies, a Leap Motion Controller 2 could be attached to a phone in a “cardboard” holder, to give hand tracking to a Cardboard-like headset. The use cases are a lot, and I’m happy that Ultraleap is giving the community of makers a new toy to play with: I think it was much needed in certain circles.

Farewell Leap Motion Controller 1

Interaction experiences powered by the Leap Motion Controller have improved over time due to a decade’s worth of developments and iterations in Ultraleap software. With the announcement of the new product, the original Leap Motion Controller is now retired. Existing customers may continue to access the latest compatible software including the soon-to-be-released Gemini for macOS.  Support will also continue to be provided. Future versions of the software will not deliver any performance improvements to the original Leap Motion Controller device.

Price and availability

According to the company, “The Leap Motion Controller 2 is available for pre-order now through RobotShop for $139 (USD) MSRP – XR Headset Mount and license options are separate. Global shipping is expected in Summer 2023. The Leap Motion Controller 2 macOS, Android XR2, and Windows releases will be made available at the same time.”

And if you are at AWE…

Ultraleap will be showcasing the Leap Motion Controller 2 at AWE 2023, booth #724 and #1345. AWE partners for the Leap Motion Controller 2 include Pico, Varjo, DigiLens, Tilt Five and Looking Glass. ManageXR (#725), ArborXR (#400) and bHaptics (#513) will also have Ultraleap’s hand tracking available to demo.

Personally, I can’t wait to go hands-on with it (pun intended)!

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(Header image by Ultraleap)