Maximum PC touch screen RSS Feed

Bing's Mobile Site Works Well with iPhones, Touchscreens

Bart Salisbury — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:08:13 -0600

Bing for Mobile has received a nifty little upgrade from Microsoft. The Bing for Mobile site has been touch-optimized, so it now takes advantage of the touch-screen functionality of many smartphones. The upgrade builds on Windows Mobile 6.5, which makes touch-screen ability part of this smartphone operating system.

Right now it appears that Bing for Mobile, which can be accessed at m.bing.com, will work on a limited number of devices. Justin Jed at the bing community blog reports touch-screen ability is available on the iPhone, T-Mobile G1, VErizon Imagio, Samsung Omnia and the Apple iPhone. It also works with the Zune HD and the iPod Touch. Jed is promising support for new devices “over the next couple months.”

Image Credit: Microsoft

MTube’s Living Room Tablet Runs Android with an ARM Processor

Jason Barry — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 20:22:53 -0500

MTube’s latest touch screen device isn’t a new mobile phone or netbook. Instead, the Mtube Android MID is intended as a multimedia device for living room entertainment.

It offers a 7.6-inch OLED touch screen, an ARM processor, internet access and wireless streaming to your television. You can send videos and images to your television using touch screen gestures. The details on how the device communicates with your TV are not clear; it’s likely a WIFI receiver will connect your HDMI ports (on the TV) with the MTube. MTube has been in negotiations to integrate a receiver into displays.

It’s not exactly production ready (the demo unit crashed in the video) but it is an interesting use of the Android operating system and could prove to be a clever entertainment device.

Check out the video below.

Hands-On with Lenovo's Multi-touch Thinkpad T400s

Florence Ion — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 23:00:00 -0500

When we last visited the Lenovo Thinkpad T400s, we gave it a relatively good score based on its sleek, black matte chassis, its comfortable ergonomic keyboard and its reliable on-the-go specifications, which included a 128GB SSD. Now, the T400s has had a minor overhaul in hardware (including a touchscreen LCD) and software and we were lucky enough to get some hands-on playtime with the still-in-beta SimpleTap multi-touch software.

This version of the T400s now includes a capacitive multi-touch screen, which integrates the finger-gesture actions a tablet PC into the desktop interface. Tap twice with your index and middle-finger to initiate the proprietary SimpleTap interface; you’ll be able to control the basic functions of your computer from this menu, including the brightness of the display and the audio settings, as well as any hot keys and web pages you may want to bookmark. Additionally, you can use your fingers instead of the Multi-touch Touchpad or the TrackPoint joystick to navigate around Windows, though we found that using touch to hit small Desktop icons was a chore.

The SimpleTap Menu, which pops up when you tap the screen twice with both your index- and middle-finger

This Simple Tap feature reminds us a lot of the iPhone home screen, with each transparent square tile functioning as its own application. In essence, SimpleTap accomodates new customizable hot keys that are not embedded into the hardware, and can be switched out and utilized in any manner the user prefers.You canadd custom application links or even bookmarks to your favorite websites.

The SimpleTap menu icons can be arranged however you like. Some buttons bring up other options, like the volume menu in the top left corner.

Though it seems to be a bit of an overkill for a laptop that does not have a reversible swivel LCD screen, we can see how the touchscreen could benefit professionals that do not have the luxury of having an external mouse or a tablet with them at all times—like graphic designers, doctors, and engineers using Auto Cad. The screen however, isn't a pen-based digitizer, so you'll have to rely on your fingers.

SimpleTap is currently still in beta mode and the multi-touch gestures are not supported by all programs. Regardless, the new T400s comes equipped with Windows 7 and the Microsoft Touch Pack, which includes a handful of nifty games, a touch enabled screen saver, and the Microsoft Surface Collage, which allows you to arrange your photos into a collage for your desktop. Though it may seem a little out of place to include a touch screen on a non-tablet computer, we’re excited to see if more laptop makers will adopt this hardware in the future.

Latest Sony E-reader Includes 7" Touch Screen, 3G Connectivity for $399

Pulkit Chandna — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 19:53:39 -0500

Sony today further bolstered its lineup of e-readers by announcing the Sony Reader Daily Edition - first in its stable to feature wireless connectivity (Wi-Fi and 3G). The Reader Daily Edition also features a 7-inch touch screen. In fact, wireless connectivity and a larger screen are the only notable features that separate it from the Reader Touch Edition.

Sony had announced the $299 Reader Touch Edition and $199 Pocket Edition earlier this month. The Daily Edition, which was announced at a launch event at the New York Public Library, will retail for $399 and debut in December.

Steve Haber, president of the Digital Reading Business Division at Sony, also announced that users will be able to borrow ebooks from the local library, with the borrowed books having an expiration period of 21 days. The new version of Sony’s online book store will let users search for libraries that loan electronic versions of their books.

Image Credit: Zdnet

Touch Screens to Get More Smudge Resistant

Pulkit Chandna — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 10:01:54 -0500

Seeing touch screens get daubed with finger marks and other blemishes can be a heart-wrenching experience. Although screen overlays that help protect touch screen devices are easily available, scientists are trying to figure out ways to make touch screens more smudge resistant. They have developed a test for ascertaining the efficacy of anti-smudge – and reflection – coatings found on touch screens.

"Surfaces are particularly important in consumer products. This work investigates how products can be modified to reduce smudging and reflections. These modifications can offer improved resistance to fingerprints, anti-reflection properties or enhanced physical resistance,” Dr Stephen Carlo said while describing the test at the 238th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society.

Dr Carlo’s team used depth profile X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) to compare the chemistry of anti-smudge and anti-reflective coatings. Their findings could lead to touch screens that are clearer and more immune to smudge.

Image Credit: Uniwell

We Want to Touch NZXT's Sentry 2 Touch Screen Fan Controller

Paul Lilly — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 10:44:52 -0500

SpeedFan is still our favorite software program for adjusting fan speeds and maintaining an optimal balance between cooling and noise, but software solutions don't have anywhere near the sex appeal as some dedicated hardware fan controllers, the newest being NZXT's Sentry 2.

The Sentry 2 installs in a 5.25-inch drive bay and works with any fan that uses voltage control. But it's the sleek looking touch screen that might be the biggest draw. NZXT claims an "ultra fast selection and response time," with the display including temperature readout in both Celsius and Fahrenheit.

Up to 5 fans can be either manually controlled or automatically adjusted based on temperature. Settings are stored after the power is off too, so you needn't worry about finding the best balance of noise to performance only to have it go by the wayside during a power outage.

NZXT tells us the Sentry 2 will be available later this month with an MSRP of $30.

Image Credit: NZXT

Vissumo Shows Off Touch Screen that Takes Gunfire; Still Works

Paul Lilly — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 11:20:23 -0600

Thanks to Vissumo, you may have one less thing to worry about the next time you find yourself surrounded by gunfire. The company has cooked up a touch screen technology it says can withstand a "high impact event," such as being repeatedly shot by 9mm rounds.

In Vissumo's humorous Test Video #99, an employee wields a Ruger 9mm pistol, shooting the touch screen three times (well, two and a half - the third shot grazes the lower edge). Afterwords, he walks up the the touch screen to demonstrate that it still works, something we're fairly certain wouldn't be possible with Apple's iPhone or any other consumer touch screen gadgets.

No word on what Vissumo plans to do with the technology or when it might show up in shipping devices, but it's probably safe to assume your next mobile phone won't withstand gunfire. You're far more likely to find this and similar technologies being used in military applications long before they show up on consumer devices.