Touchscreens
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Neonode's zForce optical touchscreens hitting ASUS tablets later this year
It's been over a year since Neonode coyly said some nameless "Asian companies" would use its multitouch zForce displays in future products. Now one of them, at least, is coming out of the woodwork -- ASUS said it plans to ship a "series of products" with these optical touchscreens later this year. What does this mean for consumers? Neonode's screens don't tack any additional layers on top of the touchscreen, making this line of 5 to 13-inch displays different from more common capacitive and resistive ones. The result, Neonode says, is thinner and -- one would hope -- more responsive screens. No word on when these products will hit (nor how creative ASUS will get with its designs), but feel to dig for details in the terse press release.
Garmin intros the Forerunner 610, its first touchscreen GPS watch for runners (video)
Over the years, Garmin's beefed up its line of Forerunner GPS watches, offering something for everybody with graphs and even a dash o' pink. But the new, slimmed-down Forerunner 610 is the first to feature a touchscreen that you can tap to flip menus instead of feeling around for a host of bantam buttons. For your $350, it'll display distance, time elapsed, and pace all on one screen, though you can add other metrics, such as heart rate. The 610 is also the first in the line with a run / walk alert, which keeps Auto Lap and other features active even when it detects you're walking. As always, you can upload your runs to the web in excruciating detail, but this watch jumps on the social bandwagon with "Virtual Racer," a Nike Running-esque community where you can compare your stats with strangers' (or just try to best your own PRs, if you don't play like that). After logging some epic runs with the touchscreen Nano, we'd be curious to see how responsive the display is after your fingers become sweaty, though Garmin promises it'll work well through sweat, rain, and touchscreen-friendly gloves. It's available now on Garmin's site, though we suggest you hardcore runners check out DC Rainmaker's review below: it's everything you wanted to know about the 610 but were afraid to ask, including comparison shots with other Forerunners and a glove test.
Full specs leak for BlackBerry Bold Touch, 1.2GHz Snapdragon can't overcome ugly
We understand that it's hard to take two steps rather than one, but a solid list of specifications isn't going to make the BlackBerry Bold Touch (Dakota) look any less last-decade. For whatever reason, RIM's design department seems to be stuck in an era where last-generation is the new next-generation, while it's internals team has seemingly managed to escape. For those who couldn't disagree more regarding the exterior, you'll likely be elated to know that the impending handset will boast a blisteringly fast 1.2GHz Snapdragon processor, 8GB of internal storage, 768MB of RAM, a microSD expansion slot, 5 megapixel camera and a 35-key backlit keyboard. You'll also get a microscopic 2.8-inch LCD with a woeful 640 x 480 resolution, Bluetooth 2.1, a 3.5mm headphone jack, A-GPS, dual-band 802.11b/g/n WiFi and a 720p movie mode. So, one down, one to go -- time for a reread, is it RIM? Update: Seems as if the faucet's still flowing, with a full specs list popping up for the BlackBerry Torch 9860 (Monza) as well! [Thanks, bighap]
BlackBerry Bold Touch prototype photographed, leaves a good impression
Are video tutorials and leaked presentations still not enough to convince you of the BlackBerry Bold Touch's existence? Well, if not, you can thank BGR for getting its real live hands on an honest-to-goodness prototype, which it says looks even better than the renders. The site also reports that the touchscreen is plenty responsive, which could help induce users to move their thumbs from the optical trackpad for navigation. It also reiterates a BlackBerry World launch, so if things stay on track we'll be getting our own hands on one in just about one month's time -- we know you can't wait.
Comodo console brings internet to Israeli autos, dares you to keep your eyes on the road
Considering how far we've come with in-flight connectivity, internet for the automobile hasn't gained an awful lot of traction. With the introduction of the 3G-connected Comodo console, Israeli start-up Iway Mobile and cellphone provider Cellcom are hoping to change that. The Comodo -- for all intents and purposes -- looks like an iPhone on a stick, and sports a 4.3-inch touchscreen, rear camera for easy reversing, GPS antenna and a cellular modem for consistent connections. Predictably, there's also 3D navigation, an MP3 player, and functionality in 30 different languages. Drivers can access 80 total apps and receive, but not send e-mail -- video functions are accessible only when the car is stationary. Comodo's website features the device mysteriously shrouded in black satin, and provides no evidence of a spec sheet. According to Cellcom, the console costs 109 shekels (or $23.50) a month for 36 months and hits Israel in February. No word on when Comodo will make its US debut, but honestly, we'd be content to just strap our smart phone in and go to town.
3M touts capacitive touchscreens with tiny bezels, 10x faster responsiveness
Add another one to the (short) list of obscure things that slipped our net at CES. 3M, a company concerned with the materials and components that go into your delicious new gadgets, spent its time in Vegas this month discussing a new way for building capacitive touchscreen panels. By employing silver as its conducting material, 3M says it has made it possible to shrink the circuits at the edge of a touch panel by a whole order of magnitude, resulting in finger-friendly screens unhampered by bulky bezels. Additionally, due to silver's high conductivity, response times have been shown to dip down as low as 6ms, which is ten times speedier than the currently used Indium Tin Oxide stuff. It's arguable that neither advancement is revolutionary today, as bezels serve a purpose in providing a gripping surface for slate devices and touch responsiveness is currently constrained by software lag more than hardware capabilities, but 3M sure looks to have a nice building block for the future. The future being 2012, according to the company's estimates.
Digits conductive pins won't make a fool of you in the cold
Ever tried writing a text message or an urgent work e-mail with gloves on? Chances are what you planned to type and what came out couldn't look more different...if anything came out at all. Digits are a $14 set of four conductive pins that, like the Dots iPhone gloves, were designed to make cold weather touchscreen use easy, and hopefully error free. Unlike Dots and other pre-made touchscreen products, however, Digits allow you to use your own gloves, provided they're knit (unfortunately, they're not leather-friendly). Each pin comes in two parts: one piece sticks through from inside your glove, and the other, which sports silicone caps, attaches from outside, using the same concept as this DIY set. Digits should keep your touchscreen free of scratches and your texts and e-mails free of error, even when it's freezing out. Hopefully now you won't end up firing when you should be filing.
Infinity I-Kitchen sports Linux-based touch screen computer, kitchen sink still not included
We've seen ridiculous fridge concepts from Electrolux before and covered Linux running on all types of gadgets, so it's only natural that the OS has found its way into an icebox developed by Electrolux's Brazilian subsidiary in partnership with ProFusion Embedded Systems. Dubbed the Infinity I-Kitchen, it sports a Linux-based 800 x 480 touchscreen computer built around a 400Mhz Freescale i.MX25 SoC -- which itself is based on 400MHz ARM926EJ-S core and already used in some automotive systems. The touch UI was developed by the open source organization Enlightenment Foundation Libraries and allows users to control a variety of fridge functions like internal temperature in addition to running apps for notes, calendars, contacts, photos, and recipes. All of the particular open source code modifications developed for the fridge have also been shared back with the community in Tux-approved fashion and will soon be posted to Electrolux's site too. Unfortunately, there's no mention however of features like internet connectivity (WiFi or otherwise), USB ports, or SD Card slots being on the appliance. Likewise, details on pricing or availability are also unknown, so your iPhone can hold off on making those the jealousy-fueled fat jokes for now.
HP responds to Jobs about touchscreen PCs
Steve Jobs has never been averse to exaggeration or verbal misdirection when discussing features publicly. However, Hewlett-Packard's Ken Bosley has taken issue with Jobs' recent comments on touchscreen PCs. During the recent Back to the Mac press event, Steve had this to say: "...Touch surfaces don't want to be vertical. It gives great demo but after a short period of time, you start to fatigue and after an extended period of time, your arm wants to fall off. It doesn't work; it's ergonomically terrible." Bosley responded in an interview with DVICE. He admits that a touch interface probably wouldn't be optimal if it were the only input mechanism for a vertical screen. However, he emphasizes that each of the TouchSmart machines offers users multiple inputs, including keyboard, mouse, and touch. Users are free to use whichever they like. Bosley also notes that the orientation of the screens on its machines can be adjusted for use with touch. For example, its touch-enabled laptops are convertibles with screens that flip around and lay flat, essentially turning it into a tablet. Similarly, the desktop screens can be made more horizontal. Despite this, HP's TouchSmarts are generally not considered to be huge sellers, especially the laptops. Bosley's arguments do lend credence to the idea of a touch-enabled iMac with an adjustable screen (like the one seen in a recent Apple patent). Such an arrangement would provide the horizontal surface that lends itself to touch. Would you want such a convertible desktop machine? Have your say in the comments.
Troll Touch announces 27-inch touchscreen Cinema Displays
Even if Apple CEO Steve Jobs isn't interested (for now at least) in giving his followers a touchscreen desktop computing experience, Troll Touch is. The company has added touchscreen monitors to its existing lineup with a pair of options based on the latest 27-inch LED-backlit Cinema Display. Troll Touch is offering an integrated display, where the front glass is replaced with an analog resistive panel, or a user installable option, where the same resistive panel can be applied to an existing display and removed when not needed. Both options come with calibration and driver software. The integrated unit is priced at US$2,499, and the user installable SlipCover version is $1,099. If you already have a 27-inch display, you can ship it to Troll Tech, and they will install the integrated touch panel for $1,499. Troll Tech also offers touch-enabled versions of other Apple and Dell displays as well as iMacs and plastic MacBooks. Watching the video in the second half of the post, we'd have to agree with Jobs that a desktop touchscreen just doesn't really make much sense, especially for extended use. A vertical touch panel, especially one this large, would be very fatiguing. The only place we see this system being useful is for installation into a kiosk. [Via Macsimum News]
Swype spotted swiftly slinging fingers across Windows 7 screens?
That's not your grandpappy's touchscreen panel, nor his standard Windows 7 input method of choice, oh no -- unless our eyes deceive us, we're looking at a 3M M2256PW ten-finger multitouch display, and on it, a genuine Swype keyboard. Though we've heard nothing about a partnership between Microsoft and Swype and we see nary a mention on the internet at large, there's no denying the idea -- spotted during last week's Internet Explorer demo at Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference -- is an attractive one. The question is when and how Redmond might deliver such functionality to the existing OS... and if we might possibly see the same on the company's upcoming phones as well. See it in action at the source link, and fast forward to 2:58:30 for the goods. Trust us and skip ahead -- we've got a feeling you won't want to hear Microsoft kick this party off. [Thanks, Abed R.]
Cypress touchscreens track hovering fingers, make devices even more 'magical' (video)
If you're reading this from a Samsung i8910 or Palm Pre, you're already holding a Cypress-powered touchscreen, but chances are you've never given it a thought. That's going to change, because this week the company demoed a killer app: TrueTouch screens that can detect fingers hovering over glass, not merely on it, allowing compatible software to finally register mouseover input. In other words, you won't actually need to touch new touchscreens to zoom in on text or perform certain commands. Cypress expects to have the tech ready in Q2, but first it might have some explaining to do -- we're pretty sure Apple successfully patented this very idea in January. Plus, KIRF iPhone? See it in action after the break.
Multitouch pioneer Jazzmutant / Stantum makes cocky three finger pan from past to future of input
Before the iPhone, Microsoft Surface or even Jeff Han's famous 2006 demonstration at TED, a commercial multitouch display already existed. It's a customizable music control surface called the Jazzmutant Lemur, and it dates back to at least 2004. Under the new name Stantum, Jazzmutant's touchscreens continue to impress, and now that its groundbreaking original finally has a potential competitor in the iPad, company co-founder Guillaume Largillier has granted Create Digital Music a sizable interview to comment on the future of the technology. Amidst jabs at Apple for developing a solution only a "Neanderthal" could love, the co-founder hints that the $2000 Lemur might finally see a price drop, and that the company's decided to license their tech to other multitouch tablet manufacturers. Be sure to bring your table salt before hitting our source link, as the second half of the piece is an editorial very much in Stantum's favor, but you might hold off on the full pinch -- it's a pretty good read nonetheless.
Sixteen new Apple patents, from CoverFlow to iDVD
The USPTO published a whole slew of new patent applications from Apple today, covering everything from iChat to some CoverFlow animation. Patently Apple has the whole writeup as usual. Probably the most interesting thing among them is a "virtual keyboard for media players" that uses a modified QWERTY keyboard, with more than one letter on each key. That doesn't seem like an idea that Apple will ever use, but maybe that was one of the prototypes that was originally being worked on for the iPhone. There are also some more technical patents for iChat video encoding and error adjustments on touchscreens, as well as overall patents for the MacBook Air SuperDrive and iDVD. It seems like the USPTO is just cleaning out Apple's old patents -- most of these were filed back in 2007. Now, maybe they can set the legal patent team up on newer accomplishments.
Artificial Muscle ramps up production -- expect touchscreens that push back in 2011
Last we heard from Artificial Muscle, the company was trying to convince hospitals, cell phone manufacturers and more that its technology -- a silicon film that expands and contracts with an applied voltage -- would provide a real sense of touch to their cold, hard touchscreens. On at least three counts, it has succeeded. The San Jose Mercury News reports that two cell phone manufacturers are planning Artificial Muscle-based products in 2011, and that an "electronics entertainment product" will be released this Christmas. The company also plans to produce 1 million of the electronic actuators per month to anticipate further demand. While the Mercury News notes that Artificial Muscle's product isn't the holy grail of haptic feedback -- the entire screen stiffens when pressed, not just the spot you touch -- its adoption means the company may have set events in motion to ultimately reach that goal.
MOTO touchscreen comparison recruits robotic implements for heightened precision (video)
So you saw that the first MOTO smartphone touchscreen comparison was done with a fleshy humanoid controlling the testing finger and discounted it as scientifically flawed? Well, MOTO's back and this time the arm of judgment is operated by a coldly mechanical and ruthlessly precise robot -- a machine in itself, we'll assume the robot is intrinsically immune to developing fanboy tendencies. Joining the iPhone, Droid Eris, Droid, and Nexus One of the earlier test are Palm's Pre and RIM's BlackBerry Storm 2, whose results you can see at the source link below. The full test methodology is also explained there, including a list of the drawing apps used, which were selected with a view to minimizing smoothing algorithms that may prejudice the outcome. We're not gonna tell you who won, you have eyes of your own after all, and will just direct you after the break for the full robot-on-smartphone video action.
Wintek strike settled, Apple's supply chain unaffected
There's some good news from China this week. The violent strike that happened at a Wintek factory on the 15th has been resolved. According to DigiTimes, Wintek offered previously-denied pay bonuses to the striking employees and that got them working again. Additionally, Wintek claims that production was unaffected by the strike, which is good news for Apple. Wintek provides Apple with touchscreens for iPhones and, we assume, the forthcoming tablet. The initial story about the strike mentioned the dispute over pay but also the workers' outrage over alleged deaths suffered by their coworkers due to prolonged exposure to a chemical called hexane, which is used for cleaning touch panels. The latest report from DigiTimes fails to mention that aspect of the story. Last March it was rumored that Wintek would be producing screens for "... a new Apple product," then thought to be a netbook of some sort. Today, we assume that rumor was about the tablet. [Via AppleInsider]
Coffee-like stains inspire new type of touchscreen
The magical properties of coffee stains have already spurred on some researchers to develop a better coating for TV screens, and it looks like they've now inspired a few folks to create a new type of touchscreen as well. This latest instance apparently began when Hebrew University professor Shlomo Magdassi was working to develop a touchscreen using silver nanoparticles but ran into trouble making the screen conductive while still remaining transparent. As it happens, the coffee-like stains that he and his colleagues had been trying to remove with fast-drying solvents was actually the solution to his problem, since they remained in contact with each other as they dried and preserved conductivity, but left about 95 percent of the light through the holes in the center, thereby making the screen itself almost fully transparent. Of course, there's still quite a bit more work to be done before the screens move beyond the lab, but Magdassi has apparently already found that copper nanorings can be used in similar manner, and says that the screens could even double as solar panels to give devices a bit of added juice.
Apple working on pressure sensitive touchscreens
Apple Insider's got the latest on yet another Apple patent application, this one for not just touch sensitive screens, but for pressure sensitive touchscreens. Right now, the iPhone can tell where you're touching it, but not how hard you're pressing on it. The device described in the patent could do just that, and use the force information "for purposes of providing command and control signals to an associated electronic device."Pretty interesting. I can't think of a great use for it besides the one Wacom and other high-end input tablets already use (the harder you press, the darker mark you can make with a virtual pencil), but then again, I'm not an award-winning user interface designer (just a pretty average user interface user). Who knows what Apple could come up with using an interface like this-- maybe flip through CoverFlow albums front-to-back as well as horizontally?Of course, like all patents, as AI notes, Apple has no obligation to actually use this design in any of their products. But just in case you needed any more hints that they're not walking away from a touchscreen interface anytime soon, here you go.
Nokia changes its tune on touchscreens. Entirely.
In a complete reversal of its "not enthusiastic" stance on touchscreens voiced last week by Antti Vasara, the company's General Manager of Mobile Devices, Nokia has come out in favor of that completely unproven little technology. "Optical sensors and touch will be the next big things," said Nokia Chief Technology Officer Tero Ojanpera today, in the leadup to the CommunicAsia telecom fair. "I believe there will be a lot of innovation around these." Apparently he didn't get the "people don't like touchscreens" memo. And it's really too bad that Nokia's still waiting for demand to pep up before jumping into those scary waters, it'd be a shame to miss out on the "next big thing."
