Troll Touch ships touchscreen iMacs

Sure, it's not the real thing, but those of you aching for a taste of Steve's "research project" touch Macs can now order up the latest and greatest iMacs retrofitted with touchscreens from Troll Touch. The company's been putting its PSRT touchscreens on all sorts of displays for years, and much like the ModBook, the tech pretty much just works. Pricing for the new iMacs starts at $2499 for the base 2.0GHz 20-inch model and runs up to $3899 for the 2.8GHz 24-inch Core 2 Extreme, while those of you who want to upgrade your existing machines can get in on the action for $1099 (20 inch) or $1599 (24 inch). Shipping now, apparently.

[Spanky @ Dec 4th 2007 4:02PM]

I use Windows boxes and a couple of Linux machines, I am gonna have to start thinking about getting a Mac.

[John @ Dec 4th 2007 4:40PM]

"The company's been putting its PSRT touchscreens on all sorts of displays for years"

Might want to try finding one of these other options instead. I've got an HP tablet touchscreen working quite well with both vista and fedora. I'm sure it wouldn't be a far cry to get the same setup going with a pc touchscreen monitor.

[Aaron @ Dec 4th 2007 4:50PM]

Nah, I would still go with a Mac. I have and haven't looked back.

[Ellianth @ Dec 4th 2007 6:26PM]

Aaron, the only reason you're not looking back is because steve won't let you :p.

[Chris Kraynik @ Dec 4th 2007 7:03PM]

Why's that? Just run OS X on your existing Intel/AMD hardware, though you might need a guide to do it.

http://wiki.osx86project.org/wiki/index.php/FAQ

That should get you the information you need, assuming that you're interested... and yes, you can dual boot and even use virtualization in both directions.

- Chris

[superfresh @ Dec 4th 2007 4:01PM]

"pretty much just works"

nice.

[Chuckles McGee @ Dec 4th 2007 8:54PM]

It's a nice idea, but the screen's going to get really dirty from all the smudging

[BigDaddyM @ Dec 4th 2007 4:02PM]

Interesting concepts, especially the ModBook... However, since I am not big on Macs, this is further down the line of a purchase.
M

[will clifton @ Dec 4th 2007 11:39PM]

your opinion has been noted. thank you so much for your input.

[BigDaddyM @ Dec 5th 2007 1:08AM]

Okay... Are you making a list for XMas?

[anonymous @ Dec 4th 2007 4:03PM]

Does the 24 inch model come in a tablet?

[jdog @ Dec 4th 2007 5:03PM]

Sure, with a luggage cart to put it on.

[Siva Nadarajah @ Dec 4th 2007 4:04PM]

Now, if only they could make the monitor thinner. I'd buy one for sure. Yeah! I'm there!

Siva

[a ham sandwich @ Dec 4th 2007 4:21PM]

you're kidding right?! or did i miss the point here?

http://www.apple.com/imac/specs.html

[Tommy Connelly @ Dec 4th 2007 6:46PM]

ummm what? this is almost as thin as a normal lcd and there is no tower... the computer is in the monitor!
yall crazzy!

[AlexP @ Dec 4th 2007 10:34PM]

Actually, I have a 24" iMac and a 24" monitor, and the iMac is thinner than the monitor.

[mongoos150 @ Dec 4th 2007 4:30PM]

...Is this supposed to be cool?

[wesg @ Dec 4th 2007 10:22PM]

Yes

[Rob @ Dec 4th 2007 4:27PM]

You know how annoying that would be? Mac OSX UI isn't designed for touchscreen, try dragging scrollbars, hitting menus, etc with your finger. I'd be very surprised if you could do it without frustration.

[js @ Dec 4th 2007 4:36PM]

iPhone?

[Rob @ Dec 4th 2007 4:38PM]

The iPhone UI was designed exactly for a touchscreen, OSX was not.

[Andrew @ Dec 4th 2007 4:59PM]

With Expose I believe it would be no problem.

[Dan @ Dec 4th 2007 6:37PM]

I have no need or desire to touch my home PC's LCD display screen. What an irritation that would be, if I had to reach out and touch the screen every time I needed something done. Ugh. The screen would show touch wear in 6 months or less.

[js @ Dec 4th 2007 7:40PM]

iPhone has OS X. Haven't you learned anything from the keynote when Jobs first introduced the iPhone?

[Maddles @ Dec 5th 2007 8:34AM]

If Mac OS X wasn't built for some sort of touch screen interface, explain Ink.

[stillen @ Dec 4th 2007 4:38PM]

Multi-touch? It'd be a really big home version of the ipod touch with more of the functionality and none of the portability!

[John @ Dec 4th 2007 4:43PM]

as i mentioned above, i've got a touchscreen working with Fedora (linux). Fedora was never designed for a touchscreen, but the drivers i'm using work perfectly and the touchscreen is as effective as it is in Vista Tablet. I would imagine that this company has also made some pretty slick software to accompany the touchscreen that allows for effective use in OSX.

[Maddles @ Dec 5th 2007 8:35AM]

Or they just used Ink, the system touch screen preference pane.

[John @ Dec 4th 2007 4:47PM]

oops, that was supposed to be a reply to Rob.

[Tehrab @ Dec 4th 2007 4:55PM]

Uhmm, my iPhone's screen just kind of cleans itself when I carry it around in my pocket. Probably no such convenience on a desktop. Especially so for people who hate smudgy anything.

[anonymous @ Dec 4th 2007 5:12PM]

This unit has a laser cleaner. It is embedded on the right side of the screen and basically by pushing a button in the bezel, it cleans the screen by vaporizing the oils and dirt right off! Just make sure you remove your fingers before pushing or else you may also remove some of your own fingerprints!

[dogjellopoop @ Dec 4th 2007 5:03PM]

"and much like the ModBook, the tech pretty much just works"

It's been almost a year since the announcement, and the ModBook has yet to ship. So comparing this Touch iMac to a product that doesn't even really exist to prove that it "works" is a strange choice :)

[noza @ Dec 4th 2007 7:05PM]

I'm sure this is meant for Kiosk or POS applications. Having to reach out and touch this thing repeatedly in a desktop context would cause a lot worse RSI than the carpal tunnel from typing...

[crescentdavid @ Dec 4th 2007 7:50PM]

Does anybody use their computer to work with? I fail to see how a touch screen is going to be useful for people using real applications like databases, spreadsheets, any of the professional editing programs like Photoshop or any of the major business suites like Office 2007. Ergonomically, a vertical touch screen ... let's not beat around the bush here ... sucks. I kind of get it in terms of gaming ... but even then, I'd want the screen to be like a mildly tilted tablet. As far as real productivity goes ... what am I missing here?

[Twist @ Dec 4th 2007 8:29PM]

I have no idea if they make a decent product, but I do know that Troll Touch has less than stellar customer support. I recently bought an eMac with one of their touch screens installed on eBay, but the seller didn't include the drivers for it. Troll Touch won't even respond to my emails requesting to know how I can get a copy of their software for use on this system. Their support email might as well be a black hole for all the good it has done me.

[wickedpheonix @ Dec 4th 2007 8:38PM]

waiting for the real thing...

[Mark @ Dec 5th 2007 12:11AM]

Macs were expensive before...now it isn't even in my reach anymore.

[Satan_L5 @ Dec 16th 2007 11:23PM]

这价格,不如说牛点,20几万一个好了.™