Microsoft is rolling out the second version of its motion sensing device for Windows in the middle of this month.

According to Game Rant, the Xbox-maker is planning on releasing the Kinect for Windows v2 on July 15 for $199. "This time, it will be taken out of the hands of developers and put in the tinkering hands of the public," says the report.

For the said price, the second Kinect for Windows, based on its product page on the Microsoft website, has the following specs and features:

- Depth sensing which means much better "3D visualization" and "clearer" objects

- 1080p HD Video for crisper and "high quality" video and images

- Wider or Expanded Field of View translating to a "larger total area"

- Improved Skeletal Tracking allowing for tracking "six complete skeletons" and "25 joints per person" in a "more anatomically correct and stable" manner

- New Active IR to enable seeing in the dark plus "lighting-independent view"

The company adds that the public beta of the new software developer kit (SDK), the SDK 2.0, will be available by July 15 too. Together, the two will allow developers to start creating Windows applications for the Windows store, says Microsoft.

The Kinect for Windows has been successful during its first run although most Xbox 360 users have shunned the motion sensor. The Verge reports that it has "become extremely popular with Windows developers," bringing forth innovations in fields other than gaming.

Microsoft's motion sensor has reportedly been used to "control and visualize live music" and has even made it "in hospitals to analyze CAT scans in sterile operation rooms," says The Verge.

One project even allowed an entire human body into the virtual world. Extreme Tech reports that Oliver Kreylos has made the feat possible through 3 first generation Kinects and an Oculus Rift dev kit.

"By placing three Kinect sensors in an equilateral triangle around his room, Kreylos is able to generate a live 3D model of his body from the raw video data. By sidestepping the Kinect's processor-intensive skeletal reconstruction, this visual representation is extremely low-latency. When you put on your Oculus Rift and hold your hand to your face, Kreylos claims that your brain immediately registers the limb as your own," says the report.

Kreylos is just one of the many in the modding community who are tapping on the potential of Microsoft's Kinect. Watch the first gen Kinect's ad in the video below for more of these technological possibilities.