Quanta and 3M's DST touchscreens like styli and fingers too
By Tim Stevens 
posted June 2nd 2010 9:56AM
posted June 2nd 2010 9:56AM
Spend a few days with a capacitive touch device and moving back to resistive can feel a bit... clumsy. Quanta and 3M are saying they have created a new type of touch sensitive screen that could make capacitive feel relatively just as vague, what they're calling dispersive signal technology. DST is a layer of "specially-designed glass" that detects the pressure of a finger or a stylus (or, probably, other things too) with high precision, all without making the display thicker. We're not sure how another layer could not make things at least a little bit beefier, but it at least won't be an expensive addition, with DigiTimes saying "consumers should have no difficulty accepting the price." There are, however, no comments on how well consumers will handle the other stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, and depression. Remember, we're here for you.
They look so happy
@Look4Wally
the guy on the left is secretly flipping the product off :D
@Look4Wally
Well they should be. "Consumers should have no difficulty accepting the price" is probably marketspeak for "It's going to be so awesome they won't care what we charge"
I gotta admit, resistive touch screens are the real future because they allow for pressure sensitivity and the option of a stylus.
@Bhima Yes, this. Stylus, people! Poking with fingers is fine for phones, but real work gets done with a keyboard or a pen-- full stop.
@Bhima
I think the "real future" is in neither tech, really. Resistive isn't responsive enough to light finger touches and degrades too easily, while capacitive styli are nearly a joke. What we need is something like this, that allows for the responsiveness of capacitive touch input combined with the accuracy of real styli (as opposed to the marker-sized capacitive styli). And preferably with a pen that is pressure sensitive! But that last part is probably wishful thinking. :)
Let's hope they inherit 3M "quality".
I bet this will just end up being another piece of phone vaporware that will supposedly bridge the HUGE gap between the user experiences provided by capacitive and resistive screens (in favour of capacitive, obviously). Where's Haptikos? Where's a Strantum resistive multitouch phone? Where are the hybrid resistive/capacitive screens?
I'll admit, capacitive is pretty much at its peak with little room for advancement. But until actual consumer advancements are made for resistive screens, the capacitive screen is still the best choice for manufacturers.
I mean, have you ever tried using a N900 and DROID side-by-side? The difference in experience and sensitivity is more than just day and night.
@iLoveApple
My experience is the opposite. I feel the same as JFH a few comments down. The swiping to my felt basically the same as on the G1 I had. It actually the pinpoint targets (browser links while zoomed out, mostly) that I had the real trouble with.
I've said it before, I'll say it again: it's not "sensitivity", it's programming. I'd like to see a minimum/maxiumum recognition area widget setting on resistive phones though. If you don't use the stylus, much, keep it larger until the few times you need it. Voila - resistive that plays better with bigger thumbs.
@iLoveApple
says "iLoveApple"
"other things too" + "thicker" + some Engadget readers = ... well, I'm waiting for that joke, folks! :)
There is a big market for the someone to bring this kind of product at a decent price.
Seems useful for countries that require handwriting. Other than that, who needs it?
Capacitive screens are good enough. Just bring on the Super AMOLED screens and I'll be a happy camper.
@Johnny Rockets
They are good enough for some. Not everyone want the lesser accuracy. For instance on my N900, the resistive is really just as good as any capacitive I have used, but also great for use with a stylus when I am running GIMP or similar (Yes, GIMP on a phone). The only downside I see, is that glass is more scratch resistant than plastic. On the other hand, my screen would not crack as fast as IPhone, for example.
The guy on the right looks like an Asian William Shatner.
DST has been around for years, what is new here?
The Digitimes article compares DST to optical touch techniques when making the thickness comparison. They're referring to camera based techniques used in AIO PCs, which do require a thick bezel. Compared to no touch sensor, DST will definitely be thicker. In fact, unlike some implementations of capacitive touch, DST will always require an air gap between the top layer and the underlying panel, so it will be thicker than capacitive touch in some cases.
One shortcoming of DST is that it detects impacts, albeit really slight ones. This means it knows when you tap or drag something across the screen. If you have a gesture that requires you to simply hold a finger in a stationary position on the screen, though, it does a very poor job of detecting something that is already in contact and not moving. DST detects vibration, not pressure... do not expect it to support pressure sensitivity in Photoshop, etc.
DST does support a stylus, but there is no fundamental reason for it to be more sensitive than resistive. Maybe the one valuable consideration is that DST works with durable glass top layers, as opposed to the compliant scratch-prone plastic required with resistive. If developers can figure out how to get high resolution input with a capacitive stylus on a capacitive screen, forget both resistive and DST.
You forgot Acceptance oh wait... it was on my test today
This could mean iPhones and N1's and what not with paint apps and spreadsheet apps that work much better, while preserving the awesomeness of capacitive response. I should be excited, but like most emerging awesome tech, it will be years before we see this in phones an tablets.