[NEWS] OCZ Neural Impulse Actuator mass production starts.

[alexio]

Sunnyvale, Calif.—March 3, 2008—OCZ Technology Group, a worldwide leader in innovative, ultra-high performance and high reliability memory and components for enthusiasts and gamers, is pleased to announced the Neural Impulse Actuator (NIA) has begun mass production and launch into channel is imminent. A prototype was debuted last year at CeBIT 2007 which generated a newfound excitement in the global gaming community.

Neural Impulse Actuator - The Future of Immersive Gaming
OCZ saw an exciting opportunity to enhance the gaming experience and take PC gameplay to new heights. The NIA is not a replacement for a mouse but rather a pioneering new peripheral designed to provide an immersive experience for gamers. The NIA is the first commercially available BCI (brain-computer interface) specifically for PC gamers.

“Advances in hardware and software allow today’s games to offer consumers an exceptional entertainment experience, and we wanted to take the next step by immersing gamers into these environments with the innovative new NIA,” stated Ryan Petersen, CEO of the OCZ Technology Group. “The NIA radically changes the ways that gamers can interact and control elements within games, and can be configured in a matter of minutes for any game that is already published or will be released.”

The commands are easily assigned with the NIA’s user-friendly software and are calibrated based on the individual’s physiology and personal preferences. Each of the Actuator’s signals can be assigned to a specific keystroke on the keyboard or a mouse button; consequentially, gamers can run, jump, and fire faster all without “lifting a finger.” Because the NIA converts EEG (electroencephalograph) signals into specified keystrokes, the device can be used with any software. Upon proper configuration, the NIA will allow users to control PC games without the use of a keyboard and minimal use of a mouse.

Source: OCZ press release (http://www.ocztechnology.com/aboutocz/press/2008/273)

[dieqast]

...
Source: OCZ press release (http://www.ocztechnology.com/aboutocz/press/2008/273)

"Omg you fackin loser I know you hack, I'm gonna get OCZ' Neural Impulse Actuator so I can pwn all you newbs in de_dust":ROTF:

(partially quoted from www.Pwned.nl)

Very nice and innovative product again OCZ! Saw it in action at last year's CeBit, looked very sweet!

[mr_knowitall15]

"OCZ Neural Impulse Actuator mass production starts. "
Now where have we heard that before.....:confused:

OHHHH right... http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=89452&highlight=Cryo-Z :rolleyes:

[xlink]

waiting for this to work with typing

[railer]

Im' going to slap this on my head and go pwn newbs in Crysis:rofl:
I wonder is there a response lag? This might be good for SP, but i doubt you could seriously compete with this in MP

[Creek Tha Gray]

well if i can get it from newegg for $299 then it is a done deal.

[chunkylover77]

This thing looks really cool. Will wait till someone buys it and then hates it after a few hours and hopefully get it for cheaper.

[gallardo]

But you must ask yourselves... if you put this... machine on your head... do you control the computer... or will the computer control you?



Yeah, pretty cool. My wrist hurts after a long time with the mouse and my fingers from tech maps on TrackMania Nations. I'd want one of these if they'd actually work. But I'll take version 2.0 thank you very much. :p:

[BrowncoatGR]

So no one is actually disturbed that the computer can actually profile you?

[grimREEFER]

well, EEG's aren't exactly the cutting edge of brain imaging, i dont think you have to worry about the computer getting too much information from you or anything.

[NickS]

We get a FREAKING Neural Impulse Actuator before the Cryo-Z? :rofl:

[Vryada]

We get a FREAKING Neural Impulse Actuator before the Cryo-Z? :rofl:
lol, actually, yes.

But hey, we have vapochill and others already…

[Yoxxy]

My guess is this will come out when the OCZ TI ALPHA 9000, CYRO-Z, and a few other products that reviewers see but never seem to make it to market.

I hope OCZ proves me wrong though.

[Spawne32]

We get a FREAKING Neural Impulse Actuator before the Cryo-Z? :rofl:

Cool your processor with your brain. :eek:

[Creek Tha Gray]

We get a FREAKING Neural Impulse Actuator before the Cryo-Z? :rofl:

thats what im wanting i already have my Vapor Phase Change by jinu117

[M4D_H4773R]

cant wait to get one and watch my ADD go to work on my monitor.

[One_Hertz]

If we can type with this it is easily worth its weight in gold

[Loque]

do I have to take off my snuggly Sennheiser HD595 headphones to use this ? if so I'll pass :|

[aznsniper911]

Dammit I hope these fit/work with people that have glasses!

[Decami]

So no one is actually disturbed that the computer can actually profile you?

My friend, computers have been able to profile you long before this thing.

cant wait to get one and watch my ADD go to work on my monitor.

Well said, we might be the first ones to break this thing!


Honestly, I'm sold, on release, i will buy this thing for shure. But i was reading somewhere that it works with movements on the face rather than thinking, like, lift eyebrow to run forward, if thats so, theres no way im getting it then, my friends screw up my gaming already bursting into my house, i dont need something worse than having to run and hide in a corner in COD4 when someone comes over.

I can see it now, me getting mad at some noob tuber and I start running in circles in the middle of the map.

[KoHaN69]

PC gaming peripherals is one of them most unstable and unreliable markets. If you wanna sell that thing, make it work with the ipod's headphone data port so joggers (a much better market than pc gamers) could switch songs/volume/etc w/out touching their mp3 players

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
this pos better have 20+ bindable commands.

anyway, this does NOT use EEG waves or any other true-brainscanning technique, for that the device needs to be mounted on the TOP of the head, where the motor complex is.



signals originate from some neuronal activity but what is actually captured is a mixture of muscle, skin and nerve activity including sympathetic and parasympathetic components that have to be summarized as biopotentials rather than pure neural signals.

Neural Impulse Actuator is rather decieving.

"Brain mouse" is a bit of a misnomer, since we used the NIA in conjunction with a real mouse for actually looking around (http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/04/heads-on-with-oczs-neural-impulse-actuator/)

on the positive side,

the one big advantage it seems to have is reading one's reflexive responses to surprises. Dr. Schuette claimed he could map such a response to the "fire" button, for instance, and wind up shooting someone who had just popped around a corner before he fully consciously registered what he was seeing. Such quick-response opportunities could be happily lethal in a deathmatch. (http://techreport.com/discussions.x/13928)

this device does take quite a bit of cpu power, but:

quad-core processors are best used with games like UT3, and interestingly, he claimed he'd seen noticeably better responsiveness from AMD's quad-core CPU's than Intel's, perhaps as a result of AMD's monolithic quad-core architecture. (http://techreport.com/discussions.x/13928)


But in finality, OCZ's "Neural" Impulse Actuator is completely a child's joke, compared to Emotiv's Project Epoc (http://gear.ign.com/articles/772/772295p1.html)

[iddqd]

If we can type with this it is easily worth its weight in gold

I think it will be very hard to train yourself for that many distinct inputs. They've tested this technology with Apache gunners ages ago, they only ended up using it to cycle through weapons - something that a gunner had no trouble doing with manual controls anyway. Originally, their plan was to use it to fire, and do some of the other things the gunner would be responsible for, so they could put this system on the pilot, coupled with the eyeball tracking helmet that aims the cannon, and get rid of the gunner seat altogether - making the chopper much lighter, and ultimately, letting it carry more payload.

[gallardo]

I think 2015 would be a good year for a TRUE mind controlled input device. Then you'll see a true revolution in gaming. And people will be more addicted to games than ever before. Matrix anyone?

[chunkylover77]

Don't know if its a typo or not but Anandtech is saying the MSRP is $199
http://www.anandtech.com/tradeshows/showdoc.aspx?i=3252&p=2

[KoHaN69]

Don't know if its a typo or not but Anandtech is saying the MSRP is $199
http://www.anandtech.com/tradeshows/showdoc.aspx?i=3252&p=2

Earlier, it was supposed to be $300.
As I've mentioned, the PC gaming peripherals market is a joke.

anybody remember the p5 glove?

http://www.really.ru/review/images/p5_glove_all.jpg

It had the cost of ~$130 at release.

If you find it in an online store today, it'll be in some clearance section, for under $20 shipped

[safan80]

Dammit I hope these fit/work with people that have glasses!


http://www.anandtech.com/tradeshows/showdoc.aspx?i=3252&p=2

[tbone8ty]

can this be used for blind people?

[Swatrecon_]

can this be used for blind people?

lol, they still need to see the screen. unless they have some sort of Ultra Sweet Surround Sound thing goin on, and they can fight by sound. :)

[tbone8ty]

lol, they still need to see the screen. unless they have some sort of Ultra Sweet Surround Sound thing goin on, and they can fight by sound. :)

rofl

[iddqd]

would be cool if someone implemented eyeball tracking for pc games, though. That would be so incredibly easy, all you need to do to aim at something is look directly at it.

[KoHaN69]

would be cool if someone implemented eyeball tracking for pc games, though. That would be so incredibly easy, all you need to do to aim at something is look directly at it.

Not as you might think, you're not actually looking where you're aiming.
But you do subconsciously move your head.

That's where this device comes in. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_AO0F5sLdVM)

Natural Point's Track Ir has been successful due to the small, yet committed pc-sim-gamers base, but it's reaching over into FPS. I have one, and it's the best $100 gaming peripheral I've ever used.

[iddqd]

Not as you might think, you're not actually looking where you're aiming.
But you do subconsciously move your head.

That's where this device comes in. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_AO0F5sLdVM)

Natural Point's Track Ir has been successful due to the small, yet committed pc-sim-gamers base, but it's reaching over into FPS. I have one, and it's the best $100 gaming peripheral I've ever used.

Hm, it seems that it does only track where you move your head. The IHADSS helmet, that is.

I'm fairly sure there was a 2-stage one in the works that tracked both the head and the eyes for finer aim adjustment.

[KoHaN69]

Hm, it seems that it does only track where you move your head. The IHADSS helmet, that is.

I'm fairly sure there was a 2-stage one in the works that tracked both the head and the eyes for finer aim adjustment.

you mean, the one that quadraplegics use to control mouse with eyes/blinking?

that can't be used for regular FPSs.
only in "light-gun" type games

there are a FEW fps, mostly tactical sims, where the crosshair is dynamic.
So you can use your head to look around and eye-tracking to aim.

[XS Janus]

I see interactive PrOn games finally getting worth playing with this.
Thanks OCZ!
:D

[villa1n]

LoL, looks like i m gonna have to OC my brain in the near future.

[Swatrecon_]

LoL, looks like i m gonna have to OC my brain in the near future.

Would help in math class. That test today blew ass. Anyone here good with logarithms? I swear they're worthless.

[gallardo]

Would help in math class. That test today blew ass. Anyone here good with logarithms? I swear they're worthless.

Uh... logarithms? You think that's difficult? Wait till you get to integrals and differentials. Then you'll know the true meaning of the phrase "cooked brain".

[BullGod]

The next thing that they should invent is the nano-tube feeding technology and we're all set. 24h/7 gaming FTW!

[Lev]

Uh... logarithms? You think that's difficult? Wait till you get to integrals and differentials. Then you'll know the true meaning of the phrase "cooked brain".

wait till you get to triple integrals in spherical/cylindrical coordinates... and vector field studys... its a pita

[[XC] gomeler]

I'd say I would still prefer a mouse for but the NIA could be very useful for simple keyboard movement in video games and weapons controls. I really wonder how it works.. :confused:


wait till you get to triple integrals in spherical/cylindrical coordinates... and vector field studys... its a pita

:yepp:

[Decami]

gomeler;2824200']I'd say I would still prefer a mouse for but the NIA could be very useful for simple keyboard movement in video games and weapons controls. I really wonder how it works.. :confused:




:yepp:

you uhh....still use your mouse with the NIA, its mostly for keyboard functions in games, you still need a mouse.

you use it for say, crouch, lean, fire, reload, and so on.

Amazing invention, this. But im a little skeptical.

[Mr. Manka]

nahhh

diff eq, and vector calc FTW

[gallardo]

wait till you get to triple integrals in spherical/cylindrical coordinates... and vector field studys... its a pita

I'm in economics, not math/physics. Differentials is as far as I go with math. :p:
BTW, what was the most advanced math you learned in highschool? For me it was the integral.

[Face]

Price of OCZ’s brain-controlled
mouse confirmed: $159

Mountain House (CA) - OCZ's Neural Impulse Actuator (NIA) could become one of the most sought after computing peripherals this year. So far, the price of the device was somewhat a mystery, with estimates ranging from £99.99 to $299 – more than what you would currently would pay for Nintendo’s Wii console (if you can get one). It turns out that OCZ will bring the NIA for $159 to the U.S., TG Daily has learned.

To clear up the confusion surrounding the NIA, we talked to Ryan Petersen, co-founder and CEO of OCZ Technology. Petersen said that the suggested retail price of the NIA will be $159. “We want people to buy the thing, not to just look at it and think that they cannot afford it,” he told us.

That number is substantially lower than our initial estimate and almost 50% cheaper than Emotiv’s EPOC, a device with similar functionality. Less money is always a good thing and we don’t mind that OCZ is in fact able to bring the NIA for just $159 to market. “We don't care about making money off it, we care about making people love it,” Petersen said. Of course, he did not tell us how much profit margin is left in the NIA at this price point.

$159 is still a significant expense for an input device, but it doesn’t look quite as bad if you consider that Logitech charges $150 for its admittedly fantastic MX Air mouse and you could pay substantially for a fancy gaming keyboard/mouse).

http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/36401/118/