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Microsoft Arc Touch Mouse rumor resurfaces, expected in September for $69.95 (updated)
It was almost exactly a month ago that we reported on swirling rumors of Microsoft pulling together a multitouch-capable mouse to call its own, while earlier this week we saw the company's Twitter feed enlivened with teasers of a mysterious new touch-input device. Coincidence? No chance, says Neowin, whose insider source confirms the Arc Touch Mouse moniker and also adds that launch is expected in September. It's said this peripheral will come with just basic touch functionality initially, with multitouch presumably being thrown in via a later update. Sounds like Microsoft's version of the Magic Trackpad, though the Mouse part of its name suggests it'll also be able to track around your desktop like a more conventional rodent as well. That'd certainly offer more versatility than the stationary Apple option, but we have our doubts about the ergonomics of using a flat mouse over long periods of time. More should be known soon, provided @msfthardware keeps feeling loquacious. Update: Never mind waiting for MSFT to tell us, the Arc Touch Mouse has appeared in a reseller's price list with an MSRP a few cents south of $70 -- right in line with Magic Trackpad and Magic Mouse pricing.
Magic Trackpad review
Apple's Magic Trackpad isn't the first of its kind -- in fact, Wacom has been playing this game for awhile -- but it's the first of its kind from the cats in Cupertino, so obviously people take notice. The premise of such a device is stupidly simple: it's a laptop trackpad that lives on your desktop. Over the past few years, there have been rumors that Steve Jobs has his sights set on eliminating buttons from Apple products altogether, and this certainly feels like the next step in the plan. But does it make sense? Is this an improvement over standard input devices like a mouse or trackball? More importantly, in the age of iPads and netbooks, does anyone even need an external input device like this? We're going to try and answer those questions (and more), so read on for our full review! %Gallery-98289%
BlindType vows to autocorrect all wrongs with your iPhone or Android virtual keyboard (video)
Remember that episode of The Simpsons where Homer gets too fat to be able to dial a number? Well, he wouldn't have had that problem had BlindType been around. This soft keyboard is described by its makers as being extremely resilient to inaccurate input and looking at the demo video after the break, you kinda have to agree -- it seems to have a pretty kickass predictive algorithm. Aside from that, the keyboard also dynamically adjusts to wherever and however you choose to type, meaning its size and orientation track along to your input, which goes some way to justifying the somewhat odd name (it's meant for blind operation, not blind people). Text can be inserted without the keyboard even being on screen, while spaces are added by swiping to the right. BlindType should be coming to Android and iOS devices some time in the near future. [Thanks, Fadl] Update: We asked BlindType's makers whether implementing their software will require replacing Apple's default button slate and they've confirmed that it would. They're making and submitting it for iOS use, nonetheless, "to put pressure on Apple to finally allow this kind of thing."
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.]
Graffiti for Android scribbles Palm OS memories all over Google's platform
Gather around the campfire, children, as we tell you a story from or youth. You see, back in our day, we carried around PDAs driven by Palm's operating system (no, not that one). Primitive and bulky by modern standards, sure, but if there's one aspect we remember most fondly -- or at least most vividly -- it'd be Graffiti, the shorthand writing system for your stylus-based text entry. And guess what? You can now bring that same frustration enjoyment to Google Android. Available now via Market, the free, OS-wide keyboard alternative comes care of Access, who gained the rights to Graffiti following the Palm / Xerox settlement from way back in 2006. The future is the past as remembered by the present, or something like that -- download away.
Swiftpoint's tiny mouse finally up for pre-order, shipping in August
It's been a long couple of years since we last heard from Swiftpoint, but the company is back with a (tiny) bang and introducing its eponymous ultraportable mouse. Touting a pen-like grip, tilt-scrolling, and a 30 to 40 percent better efficiency than your touchpad, this little thumb accessory wants to be seen as the solver of an eternal problem -- namely, getting all the utility of a desktop rodent without having to deal with its full size. Whether it lives up to that lofty goal will require some fingers-on time to determine, but the Swiftpoint does a very credible job on the battery front: it can turn a 30-second charge into an hour's use and can last 3 to 4 weeks on a fully juiced cell. It all sounds quite appealing, but be prepared for some sticker shock as the pre-order price is £67 in the UK or $70 in the USA... and that's with a 10 percent early bird discount included. We might just wait till these hit the sales before grabbing one. [Thanks, Patrick]
Apple applies for 'disappearing button' patent
You know that little sleep indicator light on the front of your new MacBook Pro -- the one that simply disappears when your notebook is wide awake? Apple wants to do that for buttons, too. Cupertino's latest patent application is for pressure-sensitive, capacitive touchscreen materials it could build right into the surface of its aluminum-clad devices, and identify with laser-cut, micro-perforated holes that let light shine from within. According to the filing, the technology could potentially be used to eliminate existing buttons in favor of a smooth, solid slab, and / or integrate new ones into surfaces that weren't previously considered for use. Engineers imagine light-up controls on a laptop's lid that could be used while closed for things like USB charging and media playback, and local heat and sound sensors that selectively light up interface opportunities when users are in close proximity. Not bad, Apple. As long as you let us keep our nice, springy keyboards, we're all for revolutionizing the rest of modern input.
Synaptics extends multitouch Gesture Suite to Linux, Chrome OS included
Well, it had to happen at some point. After eons of watching Mac OS and Windows users swiping away nonchalantly on their touchpads, Linux laptop buyers can now also join the multitouch fray. Synaptics has announced official Gesture Suite support for a wide range of Linux-based OS flavors -- Fedora, Ubuntu, RedFlag, SuSE, and Xandros get name-dropped, while future support for Chrome OS is promised -- which will all benefit from its set of multi-fingered touch and swipe responses. The infamous pinch-to-zoom is quite naturally included in the Suite, which will come bundled with new installations of those operating systems. We're not seeing any mention of a downloadable update as yet, but we imagine that'll be corrected in due course, whether by the company itself or the resourceful Linux community. Full PR after the break.
Multitoe floor shows us the logical next step (video)
If the toe mouse just wasn't grand enough for you, how about an entire floor to practice your foot-based inputs on? Researchers at Potsdam's (that's in Germany, yo) Hasso Plattner Institut have put together a multitouch floor that recognizes individual users by their shoe pattern and responds to such universally familiar actions as stomping your feet and tapping your toes. The so-called multitoe project works on the basis of frustrated total internal reflection, which allows it to ignore inactive users while being precise enough to recognize foot postures. Follow us after the break to see this back-projected proof of concept in action. [Photo by Kay Herschelmann]
Toe Mouse!
You know what, the more we look at this thing, the less crazy we think it is. While the concept of mousing around your desktop on foot may appear foreign at first, we imagine we can get used to it after a while. Not that it's designed for lazybones like us anyway, as the wireless Toe Mouse concept is primarily intended to help out people with upper limb disabilities, who aren't able to navigate in the usual manner. Just to score some extra flair points, designer Liu Yi also points out it has a "streamline model that symbolizes the motorboat surfing the internet." So it's not just practical, it's also poetic. Click the source link for more pictures of this flip flop-inspired creation.
T9 Trace lets you Swype through your text messages
You may or may not yet be aware of the Swype virtual keyboard (comes preloaded on the Cliq XT from Motorola), but you'll definitely be hearing about the T9 Trace from Nuance. This is because, although it's fundamentally the same thing as Swype (but from a different maker), the T9 Trace is on offer from the company behind the T9 predictive text dictionary that pretty much everyone from your 7-year old nephew to your octogenarian grandpa has used. The big idea here is that you trace out the word on your virtual keyboard without lifting your finger off, with short stops at each letter you want to add being taken for input. Once you get over the seemingly unintuitive idea of abandoning those woodpecker taps for the grace of tracing, it promises to be a real fun and rapid way to input text. Nuance has bundled the whole thing with error correction, word prediction and auto-completion, while supporting 70 languages. The company has yet to tell us when the T9 Trace will be showing up on phones (touchscreens only, for obvious reasons), but you can check out video of the competing Swype implementation after the break.
Skinput: because touchscreens never felt right anyway (video)
Microsoft looks to be on a bit of a hot streak with innovations lately, and though this here project hasn't received much hype (yet), we'd say it's one of the most ingenious user interface concepts we've come across. Skinput is based on an armband straddling the wearer's biceps and detecting the small vibrations generated when the user taps the skin of his arm. Due to different bone densities, tissue mass and muscle size, unique acoustic signatures can be identified for particular parts of the arm or hand (including fingers), allowing people to literally control their gear by touching themselves. The added pico projector is there just for convenience, and we can totally see ourselves using this by simply memorizing the five input points (current maximum, 95.5 percent accuracy), particularly since the band works even if you're running. Make your way past the break to see Tetris played in a whole new way.
Pressure-sensitive touchscreens show up on the not too distant horizon
Ever heard of quantum tunneling? It's the basis for the latest approach to gather steam in the never-ending quest to endue touchscreens with force recognition, and its promises are as lofty as you'd expect. Developed by UK researchers Peratech, this new methodology revolves around a 75-micrometer (less than a tenth of a millimeter) quantum tunneling composite, which display makers can add to their screens relatively cheaply and painlessly. The pressure-sensing layer consumes no power when it isn't depressed and requires a miniscule two micrometers of movement to register a touch. Japanese display maker Nissha (who counts LG and Nintendo among its customers) has grabbed a license and we're even hearing devices could be coming out as soon as April. Check the Peratech site for more info.
MIT gestural computing makes multitouch look old hat
Ah, the MIT Media Lab, home to Big Bird's illegitimate progeny, augmented reality projects aplenty, and now three-dimensional gestural computing. The new bi-directional display being demoed by the Cambridge-based boffins performs both multitouch functions that we're familiar with and hand movement recognition in the space in front of the screen -- which we're also familiar with, but mostly from the movies. The gestural motion tracking is done via embedded optical sensors behind the display, which are allowed to see what you're doing by the LCD alternating rapidly (invisible to the human eye, but probably not to human pedantry) between what it's displaying to the viewer and a pattern for the camera array. This differs from projects like Natal, which have the camera offset from the display and therefore cannot work at short distances, but if you want even more detail, you'll find it in the informative video after the break. [Thanks, Rohit]
HTC HD2 capacitive stylus just around the bend?
Ah, ha! Remember that curious patent application that popped up from HTC back in mid-August? You know, the one dealing specifically with a "capacitive stylus?" If UK e-tailer Clove is to be believed, one of those very devices will soon be shipping for the wide-faced HD2, though little else about the product is known. In fact, we're told that "price, specification and availability" are still being confirmed, although a preliminary asking price of £15 ($25) is posted. So, anyone already getting hot and bothered just waiting for this, or what?
Tangible 3D UI being developed in Japan (video)
People have been trying to sell us 3D this and 3D that for ages, but for the most part it's always been the same flat surface we're looking at and poking with our fingers. Some restless souls in Japan, however -- including Engadget's very own Kentaro Fukuchi -- have begun developing a way for computers to recognize a person's interactions with real objects and to respond accordingly. The essence of this new technique is to use translucent rubbery objects, whose diffraction of specially polarized light is picked up by a camera. Thus, relatively subtle actions like squeezing and stretching can be picked up by the different light results produced. Still in the early stages of design, the system is hoped to assist in surgery training, though we've got video of its more fun potential uses after the break.[via New Scientist]
Nokia interface patent fits like an AR-enhancing glove
Okay, you know the drill by now: just because it's in a patent doesn't mean it's happening anytime soon, if ever. With that said, we'd love to see what Nokia had in mind when they concocted this one. As Unwired View recently unearthed, the Finnish phone maker has drawn up a design doc / patent application for comfortable, stretchable material that fits over your skin and is used for device interaction. Gestures and stretches are computed and signaled into nearby computers, phones, or interestingly enough "near-eye displays" -- sounds like we're getting into a bit of virtual / augmented reality territory here -- and they are also tailored to provide feedback via vibration. Again, don't hold your breath on seeing this come to fruition any point in the near (or even long) future, but still, we know what you're thinking: Nokia's gonna have to think of a ton of kooky color descriptions to accentuate any future lineup of input wristbands / fingerbands.[Via Pocket-lint]
Accelerometer-dependent text entry patent from HTC sounds like more trouble than it's worth
We're all for closing the gap between our desktop and mobile WPMs, but this might be a step in the wrong... direction (keep reading to understand why that was a miserable, unforgivable pun). HTC has filed for a patent that would have your phone determine which character you meant to type by analyzing its current tilt at the time you press a key, the idea being that a single key could be responsible for entering as many as five different letters and numbers. It seems like that'd make entering a text more like a game of Labarynth than an actually enjoyable (or efficient) process, but hey, we guess some people are really good with their wrists. [Via pocketnow.com and wmpoweruser.com]
Brando delivers gaggle of wacky USB hubs
Oh Brando, will your wonders ever cease? The company famous for making our days with random, wacky, off-the-wall gizmos has just unloaded a small cadre of new USB hubs, all of which are delightfully eccentric and totally destined for neglected desks the world over. From the Clippy-approved USB Happy-Kid 4-Port Hub to the reading light-infused iteration, there's a hub for practically anyone looking to get more USB devices connected to their PC. Check 'em all out below, and don't feel like you have to pick just one, regardless of what your savings account is saying.Read - Clippy hubRead - Folding light hubRead - 3-port clock hubRead - Unreal watch hub
Champions Online wants your feedback!
Everyone has an opinion, especially when it comes to making your own superheroic persona to represent you in things like City of Heroes. Cryptic Studios learned this from their experiences and they're taking player feedback into consideration as they continue their work on Champions Online. That's right, you too can be an armchair developer for Champions!If you have some ideas for what you'd like to see in Champions, just drop by the Cryptic website, log in, and fill out their feedback form. Really, it's just that simple. No beating up any thugs or avoiding super death rays. Plus, if you're lucky, you might just find some of your suggestions in the game. Sounds like a good deal to us. We've already stuffed the ballot box asking for rocket launchers that fire flaming chainsaws.