Multitouch

Apple brings multitouch to desktops with Magic Trackpad

By Rene Ritchie, Tuesday, Jul 27, 2010 a 9:10 am

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.

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.

Apple Magic Trackpad/Magic Slate coming at WWDC? Make a nifty Apple TV controller?

By Rene Ritchie, Monday, Jun 7, 2010 a 9:15 am

Could WWDC 2010 finally bring the Magic Trackpad/Magic Slate -- essentially a large, flat surface with iPhone/iPad-like capacitive multitouch input -- to the Mac? Whether it will support the full range of gestures that the iPhone and iPad do, or the currently more limited range supported by the Magic Mouse and new Mac Book Pro trackpads is unknown.

Rumors of the Magic Trackpad/Magic Slate date as far back as the Magic Mouse last October, and while this leak (if real) means we might actually see it soon, it would also mean Apple takes time away from their even more iPhone-centric WWDC 2010 to focus on Mac peripherals it today. And if they do, will new Mac Mini, Mac Pro, and MacBook Air come with it?

And before anyone asks -- no idea if it will pair via Bluetooth to an iPad or iPhone running iPhone OS 4. But it sure would make a nifty lower-cost next generation Apple TV controller...

A couple more pics after the break!

[Engadget]

More iPhone OS on Mac and Apple TV Talk

By Rene Ritchie, Friday, Feb 26, 2010 a 11:48 am

A little while ago TiPb asked if the Apple TV should be switched over to the iPhone OS, but what about the Mac? Coincidentally, a recent Apple job offering was discovered by ComputerWorld that hinted Apple was seriously considering pushing the iPhone OS from phone, MP3-player iPod touch, and tablet iPad to further devices:

Do You Want the 4th Gen iPhone Case to be Multitouch like Magic Mouse?

By Rene Ritchie, Thursday, Jan 14, 2010 a 12:03 am

From the now we've heard everything department, an analyst is "predicting" that the 4th generation iPhone's plastic casing will be multitouch enabled, just like Apple's new Magic Mouse.

Not "predicted" of course is how it would work, and how it would filter out things like holding the iPhone for normal use vs. deliberately initiating a multitouch gesture on the back of the case.

Again, with Apple anything is possible, but is this desirable? Can you see Apple doing it?

CEO(is)h-Snap: Android Founder Rubin Doesn't Like Two-finger Gestures

By Rene Ritchie, Saturday, Jan 9, 2010 a 11:49 am

Engadget confronted Android Founder Andy Rubin -- by all accounts a brilliant and passionate guy who really wants to make great products -- about why the US versions of the Droid and Nexus One don't use the Android 2.0 supported multitouch keyboard and gestures, while the non-US versions do. The response:

"It's not an America versus outside America kind of thing. It's a decision that is a result of the OEM model. I personally don't like two-handed operations... there is no conspiracy."

NYT: Apple Developing Multitouch iWork, Complex Gestures for iTablet (and iPhone?!)

By Rene Ritchie, Saturday, Jan 9, 2010 a 11:13 am

The New York Times says Apple has been working on a multitouch version of their iWork office suite -- Pages word processor, Numbers spread sheet, and Keynote presentations -- for their rumored upcoming iTablet/iSlate, along with complex gestures based on technology they acquired from Fingerworks.