Skip to Content

Watch the Hand

August 25, 2010

The PlayStation controller uses a lighted globe at the end of a wand (two are shown below) to precisely place a character in three-dimensional space. A camera tracks the ball to determine the position of the player’s hand; crucially, it uses the apparent size of the ball to gauge depth. This allows precise placement of a character’s hand, which is helpful when shooting things.

Courtesy of Sony

Product: PlayStation Move motion controller

Cost: $50 ($100 bundled with required ­PlayStation Eye camera; console sold separately)

Availability: September 2010

Source: us.playstation.com/ps3/playstation-move

Company: Sony

Other products in this section:

A Charger for the Smart Grid

Low-Cost Solar

Keep Reading

Most Popular

Large language models can do jaw-dropping things. But nobody knows exactly why.

And that's a problem. Figuring it out is one of the biggest scientific puzzles of our time and a crucial step towards controlling more powerful future models.

The problem with plug-in hybrids? Their drivers.

Plug-in hybrids are often sold as a transition to EVs, but new data from Europe shows we’re still underestimating the emissions they produce.

Google DeepMind’s new generative model makes Super Mario–like games from scratch

Genie learns how to control games by watching hours and hours of video. It could help train next-gen robots too.

How scientists traced a mysterious covid case back to six toilets

When wastewater surveillance turns into a hunt for a single infected individual, the ethics get tricky.

Stay connected

Illustration by Rose Wong

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review

Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.

Thank you for submitting your email!

Explore more newsletters

It looks like something went wrong.

We’re having trouble saving your preferences. Try refreshing this page and updating them one more time. If you continue to get this message, reach out to us at customer-service@technologyreview.com with a list of newsletters you’d like to receive.