Microsoft's Kinect Team has clarified that the availability of the Kinect v2 sensor and its SDK 2.0 means that sales of the original Kinect for Windows will cease during 2015. No more units will be manufactured once the existing stocks expire.

The announcement on the Kinect for Windows Blog reminds us that the Kinect was an innovation that has had a big impact: 

The original Kinect for Windows sensor was a milestone achievement in the world of natural human computing. It allowed developers to create solutions that broke through the old barriers of mouse and keyboard interactions, opening up entirely new commercial experiences in multiple industries, including retail, education, healthcare, education, and manufacturing. The original Kinect let preschoolers play educational games by simply moving their arms; it coached patients through physical rehabilitation; it gave shoppers new ways to engage with merchandise and even try on clothes. The list of innovative solutions powered by the original Kinect for Windows goes on and on.

I don't think the news that the Kinect v1 is now being phased out will come as a surprise - and in fact it possibly gives us the opposite message, namely that that are still stocks of it.  

There are good reasons for moving forward to the Kinect v2. The new sensor is more accurate and its higher resolution depth camera, infra red camera and 1080p color camera give it enhanced capabilities. If you want to sense fingers, not just arms and heads, then the new Kinect can do it. In addition the new SDK lets you track six people with 25 joints per person including and its face tracking makes good use of the higher resolution to create a 2000-point mesh of the face. 

However, if you don't want the ability to create Windows Store apps and haven't moved to Windows 8 then the fact that the Kinect v2 doesn't run on Windows 7 might be enough reason for you to stick with it for the time being. 

So stock up while it lasts.

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