Skip to Content

AOL Tech

vibetonz posts

F-Origin's HaptiTouch 2.0: MyOrigo returns!

Step asside Immersion, you're not the only ones offering haptic technology for mobile devices. From the ashes of MyOrigo's assets comes F-Origin's HaptiTouch 2.0 force-sensing technology. Pressure sensors measure your push on the screen to cause a "pinpointed vibration" directly below your finger. In contrast, Immersion uses resistive technology which measures the changes in electrical current as your grubby finger smudges across the display. See, as good as they look, the problem with the latest round of button-less, touchscreen handsets is the lack of that good ol' fashioned haptic feedback. Something you'll surely miss while tapping away on a zero-feedback, touchscreen keyboard. Immersion's VibeTonz tech can already be found in Samsung's SCH-W559 phone loosed in China. With any luck, F-origin will be licensing their newly acquired technology to manufacturers such as Siemens who will "likely" be first to market with product before the year is up. Check the 2003 MyOrigo Mydevice with 2007 F-Origin corporate voice over (and complimentary audio cheese) after the break.

[Via Wired Gadget Lab]

Samsung SCH-W559 touts vibrating VibeTonz touchscreen

Although Immersion's VibeTonz technology has been integrated into various Samsung handsets in the past, the shakin' technology was previously limited to ring tone and gaming enhancements. Today, however, Samsung is launching the keypad-less SCH-W559, which is the self-proclaimed "world's first" handset to utilize the VibeTonz system as a means of tactile feedback. The unit's QVGA touchscreen is meant to be a hands-on experience, and whether you use a stylus or the tips of your finger, the phone will provide a vibrating cue, which can be adjusted and customized within the phone's software, whenever you touch a virtual button. Immersion claims that its technology allows the on-screen buttons to feel more like "mechanical keys" rather than just a sheet of plastic. The device will be launching solely on China Unicom initially, will support both CDMA / GSM networks, and will feature a 1.3-megapixel camera, Bluetooth, handwriting recognition capability, and audio / video playback functions to boot. Of course, users will be able to pimp out their ringtones with integrated buzzing, and while we're not sure how much Samsung plans on charging for the rumbler, we can't wait for it to start shaking things up here on American soil.

[Thanks, Peter S.]
    Zune HD ExposedHTC Hero: Android Evolved
    Follow us on TwitterEngadget Video



    AOL News

    Joystiq

    Download Squad

    TUAW

    Daily Finance

    Asylum

    Autoblog

    Switched.com

    FanHouse

    Autoblog Green