What was the whole point of Kinect 2?

[binary solo]

They were positioning Xb one to be a multi-media device, that also played games, and Kinect was intended as the primary UI for multi-media purposes. Non-gamers are generally intimidated by game controllers, and some probably don;t like to "associate" themselves with video games by using a game controller. So, probably with pretty sound reasoning, MS thought that Kinect being the primary UI for interfacing with all the non-game applicatons of Xb one would make Xb one appeal to non-gamers and they would by Xb one without really any intention to play games. Hence why Xbox execs came out with delluded statements like half a billion consoles sold this gen (most of them being Xb one's of course), because there is a brand new, much bigger blue ocean out there, being TV watchers who will buy a Xb one to watch TV.

A few fatal flaws in that idea though. Most TV watchers are already watching TV, and they don't need another device to help them do that. Even if they are interested in voice and gesture controls, $500 as the price of entry to give you voice and gesture control over your TV is far too much to ask a non-gamer to pay in order for them to be able to watch what they are already watching. Voice and gesture controlled TVS were just hitting the market, and it's better for a TV watcher to just upgrade their TV with that built in functionality than to buy another set top box. Xbox is seen as a gaming machine, and non-gamers are not at all interested in being marketed a gaming machine that can also do TV stuff.

Lots of good ideas behind Kinect 2 and Xb one. Just really poor market analysis and execution of the plan. By starting out trying to sell it for the non-gaming functions they would figure they could get a decent install base then start releasing games for it. But they were never going to sell in substantial numbers to non-gamers.

I recall many threads leading up to Xb one launch where Xbox fans were predicting huge sales to non-gamers, because of the awesomeness of Kinect for all that non-gaming functionality, coupled with HDMI passthrough. Wiser heads pointed out that Xb one had virtually no appeal or marketability to non-gamers and sales would not be what the Xbox fans were hoping for.