Microsoft rolled into our offices this morning toting a handful of very pretty, shiny toys - toys that you'll be playing with at some unspecified time in the future. You've probably heard of these upcoming accessories already, but we got to see 'em and touch 'em, and we wanted to share.
For instance, most people know about the Xbox 360 Vision digital camera, but we're happy to report that the teeny digital eyeballnot only works wonderfully, but you're already ready to use it. Thedashboard update in late Mayprepared all online 360 owners with the settings necessary to plug in and take photos of your naughty bits. Mind you, since Microsoft expects that to happen, you'll also find full parental controls to lock down what each user of the machine can and cannot see. But actually using the camera is a no-brainer - just plug it in and ta da, instant picture. You can then apply filters to give yourself two heads, a spooky negative image, or a sickly Xbox-green tint.
In most cases, normal folks will use the Vision to create a custom Gamer Photo (different from your Gamer Picture) that only people on your friends list can see. The 1.3 megapixel, 640x480 video camera is already integrated into the Xbox Live Arcade version of Uno, and we saw that functionality ourselves - a running video stream replacing the Gamer Picture for each camera-equipped player, with no visible slowdown. Fun. As previously announced, Uno is one of the games that will come with the Vision, but if you already own it, don't worry - just pass the download code on to a friend and share the love.
