Apple brings multitouch to desktops with Magic Trackpad
The Apple Online Store is back up and with it comes the Magic Trackpad, bringing full on MacBook-style multitouch goodness to Apple's desktop line.
It's got click, scroll, swipe, and rotate, so if the Magic Mouse just wasn't enough for you, here's the escalation you've been waiting for. Oh, and there's an Apple battery re-charger to go with it.
And while it's not the iPhone or iPod touch "Magic Trackpad" app I've been waiting for -- can you please get on that Apple? -- it does show Apple is continuing to leverage their technologies across their various platforms, devices, and machines, creating a virtuous cycle iOS is sure to benefit from as well.
(And no, there's no info on whether or not it will work as a companion to the BT Keyboard for iPad -- we'll have to try it when it arrives).
$69. Anyone besides me picking one up?
Editor-in-Chief of iMore, Executive Producer at Mobile Nations, co-host of Iterate and ZEN and TECH, cook, grappler, photon wrangler.
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This thing is sweet!!!!! Too bad I don't own a desk top to use this on. I love my MacBook Pro's track pad.
Apple Battery Charger? Are you kidding me??
I will wait for the reviews. Not ready to spend 70 dollars on something I know nothing about yet
I was really hoping for apple fanny packs
Looks like they've copied the Wacom Bamboo pretty well. I wonder if this means more lawsuits?
I find it hilarious that Apple has expanded it's product range to include AA batteries and charger! Now all we need is for that charger to plug straight into an iPhone or iPod or iPad to give it extra juice! Nah just kidding.
thank god I have a MacBook Pro!! already got the trackpad =]
This doesn't look like the bamboo at all. I never heard of the bamboo, till your post and looking at it...it is nothing like the Magic Pad. Yes multitouch gestures, but the bamboo has pen inking and it seems to be twice the price.
I just wish the Magic Pad would work with Windows. I love my Macbook, but I still have a windows desktop.
This is a garbage product.
A Harris: The Apple Battery Charger is only $29, and promises some very nice performance and environmental specs. AND GUESS WHAT? You don't have to buy it if you don't want to, just like any other product!
Shocking, I'm sure!
I was going to get the Magic Mouse for my Mac mini entertainment center, this is much more couch friendly.
Rod: The Magic mouse was eventually available on Windows (I googled it, and it all looks legit) I would venture to gamble this won't be far behind...
the article makes it sound like you get a free battery charger with the trackpad.
I don't get it myself. I'm not exactly dying to bring the laptop experience to my desktop.
Cool blog do you think i should get it and do an unboxing on http://ikejhamb.com ? is it worth it?
Pretty similiar to the Bamboo Touch tablet, not the Pen tablet as Rod was looking at. Been using the Touch tablet almost a year now. The Bamboo Touch tablet is Windows centric, it has four buttons as well, Back, Forward, Right and Left click, which can be customized. Also multi touch. Works with Windows, Mac and Linux. Retails for $49.
http://www.wacom.com/bamboo/bamboo_touch.php
This thing could be killer with the next Apple TV running iOS!!! Very lap friendly and a cool way to navigate thru menus and play games on your TV!
I like it. I'm not sure if I'm ready to buy it yet considering I have a Macbook pro.
I fail to see how this is related to the iPhone or iPad.
This changes everything. It's now entirely obvious where OS X is going. Within a few years, there will only be one OS. It will be a slow process, 10.7 will introduce touch elements, 10.8, even more. 10.10 and iOS will have the same interface.
Will it work with logic
Is it compatible with Windows?
@Darkstar
Not yet Windows compatible but soon, similiar to the Magic Mouse.
I have the bamboo touch, I like it alot, and I got it on sale at best buy for $40, sorry apple, I've been cheating on you....
@Chris: I hope at LEAST by 10.10 we get Mac OS 11! LOL!
"Mac OS X goes to 11."
Looking at the specs. You get two AA batteries. The charger you will have to buy separate. It may not be chargeable batteries. This looks nice, but with a keyboard, and this, it takes up space. I like the mouse better. To bad they cannot make it a keyboard, and pad in one unit. "you can use it up to 33 feet away" seems impractical for a computer. Apple should throw in the battery charger.
I love the 3 and 4 finger gestures on the laptops, I wonder if this one supports fisting!
Wish: Windows drivers so I can use this with boxes besides my Mac!
@Chris Latko - I repeat, this has nothing to do with the iPhone or iPad. Years down the pipe, the OS might be the same but devices remain different. I trust you're not really speaking seriously though or else you'd realize that the version after 10.9 would infact be 11.0, and not just a step backwards...
I cant wait to see the capabilities of this with BetterTouchTool. Has made my Magic Mouse experience so much better.
I'm totally serious. I don't expect Apple to actually call it 10.10, but that's what version it will be. I expect either the cat branding to play a bigger role or a name change upon unification with iOS.
And yes, 10.10 comes after 10.9. Go look up software version numbering somewhere.
I like the idea--just waiting to see some decent reviews on it first.
Yea I like it too. I also like the new Mobile Layout of TiPB. Shweeeet! Do I smell an iPhone App?
@Chris Latko, You're hillarious.
@ Chris L: I wouldn't expect a complete overhaul of the way the user interacts with the OS for Apple computers to simp,y be made a "point" update. Somethhing that substantial is going to be a new paid upgrade to OS 11 for sure, but yes, I can see where you are going with this. I don't mind my iOS devices being closed devices, but it would be a bad thing if Apple closed development on computers to everything but the app store.
I can see this thing being very useful for the people with Mac Mini entertainment center setup with their TVs, (thus the advertised range), and if the Apple TV rumors are true, it would solve my biggest question I had about the possibility of iOS on the Apple TV: how to multitouch interact with the machine when its sitting across the room.
I have a new Mac Mini...how easy would it have been for Apple to add this Magic Trackpad to the end of the Bluetooth Keyboard so I have it all in one piece of hardware? That would be sweet.