Microsoft to End Availability of Azure Kinect DK – Here’s How You Can Still Obtain It
There is unfortunate news for users of the Microsoft Azure Kinect developer kit as Microsoft has decided to discontinue it. Initially released in 2010, the Microsoft Kinect faced a halt in production of its camera and microphone components after 7 years, before eventually resuming manufacturing.
Termination of Azure Kinect DK
After discontinuing Kinect in 2017, Microsoft relaunched it in 2019. It is a connected depth camera that allowed companies to manufacture AI vision solutions. It had a depth sensor, a high-definition 4K camera and an array of 7 microphones. According to Microsoft’s blog post, they will retire Azure Kinect later this year.
The blog post said that users can continue to use their developer packages without interruption. However, if you ever wanted a Kinect DK, you can still get it, but you have very less time left. The Azure Kinect DK will be available in the market until the end of October, while Microsoft stocks last. Kinect DK may also have a standard limited hardware warranty. If you want a long-term solution to this, you can check out what Microsoft partners have to offer.
Microsoft licensed partners
Microsoft has licensed the indirect time-of-flight (iToF) depth sensing technology behind Azure Kinect to its hardware partners. So you can stop worrying if you want a device like Azure Connect, you can still get it.
Microsoft has provided a list of partners along with the technologies, they have provided a license for the following: Check them out below:
1-Microsoft’s pixel and sensor technology is licensed to Analog Devices. Analog Devices processes the raw data from the sensors to create depth maps.
2-Another Microsoft partner is SICK A.G. It is a global manufacturer of sensors and sensor solutions for industrial applications.
3-The third partner is Orbbec. They plan to use iToF depth technology in their 3D depth cameras for manufacturing. Orbbec’s camera offering is the same depth camera module as the Azure Kinect Developer Kit.
So if you want to use the technology, you can still do so.
