touch-screen

An early, first look at Windows 8 (hands-on)

Not unlike an artfully created but tiny-portioned appetizer leading into a flavorful and filling main course that remains stuck in the kitchen, my first hands-on experience with Windows 8 left me eager for what was coming but disappointed with what was set in front of me.

Microsoft lent out Windows 8 tablets to attendees at the end of the Build conference preview yesterday, surprisingly running an earlier version of the in-development operating system than the one that had been demonstrated as functional earlier in the day.

The operating system represents a major change for the company and its fans, as … Read more

Nikon Coolpix S100: The Kutchercam strikes back

If you like touch-screen cameras, keep reading. The Coolpix S100 is Nikon's top-of-the-line ultracompact featuring a large, 3.5-inch 820K-dot resolution OLED touch screen, likely the same one used on last year's S80, which was really quite beautiful. In fact, the whole design of the S100 seems to be unchanged.

What is new is a 16-megapixel BSI CMOS sensor and a 5x f3.9-4.8 28-140mm lens. With that new sensor comes all its advantages such as the potential for better low-light photos and video (kind of important for what's essentially a nightlife camera), faster shooting performance, … Read more

Sony intros TX55 ultracompact with new digital zoom, creative filters

So it seems digital zoom is experiencing a bit of a revival after years of consumers being told not to use it. Panasonic has its Intelligent Resolution/Intelligent Zoom function, which extends the zoom ratio by about 1.3x while maintaining the picture quality. Sony's new By Pixel Super Resolution technology in its latest ultracompact, the Cyber-shot DSC-TX55, puts that ratio to shame.

Instead of just magnifying pixels or cropping in, Sony's Clear Image Zoom uses pixel creation and pattern matching when it "zooms" in. Sony claims this will maintain the image quality and keep the … Read more

Telikin focuses on seniors with non-Windows touch all-in-ones

Traditional PC vendors often make claims that a certain application or function is "easy enough for grandma," but Chalfont, Penn.-based Telikin seems to offer a more ground-up approach to broad usability with its 20-inch Elite and 18-inch Touch touch-screen all-in-ones. Forgoing Windows, these systems use a custom operating system designed to provide intuitive access to basic computing functions like Web browsing, video chats, and other typical light-duty media consumption and communication-oriented tasks.

Telikin doesn't offer many details on its Web site as to the technical underpinnings of its two all-in-ones. You'll find no mention of … Read more

Game of Phones: Why Xperia Play suggests the Vita will be Sony's true PlayStation phone

Sony, you baffle me. I'm sitting down with an Xperia Play, the PlayStationesque Android phone released earlier this year. The one I had been awaiting, for a year, the so-called "PlayStation phone." CNET's already reviewed the Xperia Play, but I was sent the unit to play with a little for myself, at long last. After this year's E3, the Xperia Play sits in my hands like an afterthought. I'm underwhelmed, unexcited, bored. Partially, it's the software: a depressing suite of PlayStation 1 games and choppy frame rate Android titles. Partially, it's the hardware: the Xperia Play has its own buttons, the build quality is impressive, and the device feels good to hold, yet it lacks physical analog sticks.

Yet, what bothers me most of all, strangely, is the branding.

The Xperia Play doesn't say "PlayStation" anywhere on it. A small square with square, triangle, X and circle icons on the lower-left corner of the control pad are the only indication of any PlayStation relationship. "Sony Ericsson" and "Xperia" appear once each, and "Verizon" appears twice.

Even in the software menus or apps I could find, not once did the "PlayStation" word or logo appear. It's a branding white-out.

Does that matter?

Not really. But it's a critical statement. I can't help but be reminded of the MotoRokr E1 phone. The first phone to play well with iTunes, it predated the iPhone as a music phone by two years. However, the device lacked any clear Apple branding or iDevice labeling, or even a look that matched the iPod. The MotoRokr died a quiet death in the shadow of the iPod Nano, a precursor to all that happened after with the iPhone.

I wonder if the same story is inevitably true for the Xperia Play.… Read more

SoftStep KeyWorx controller: Hands-free computing

Afraid that the excessive use of the mouse and keyboard will someday make you suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome? Maybe you should let your feet take over some of the job. And Keith McMillen Instruments (KMI) has something that enables you to do exactly that.

The company announced today the SoftStep KeyWorx multitouch foot controller, which it claims is "the world's first foot-controlled digital interface." According to KMI, SoftStep "works with any computer program to speed up access, making the computer as easy to use as a car's gas and break pedals."

The new … Read more

Tactus touch screen sprouts keys and buttons

We've gotten used to touch screens always being flat. Get ready for that to change.

Silicon Valley start-up Tactus Technology has designed a touch screen that grows 3D buttons and knobs where and when you want them.

Smartphones, tablets, game consoles, and kiosks equipped with the technology would sprout physical controls like QWERTY keyboards and knobs on demand. The controls would recede into the touch screen surface after they've served their purpose.

3D controls are often easier to maneuver than today's flat touch-screen controls, as you can use them without looking. Getting the best of both worlds means marrying physical controls' higher accuracy and ease of use with touch screens' elegance, simplicity, and dynamic nature. The physical cues are especially important for people who can't see well or who have trouble with fine hand movements. They also make it easier to control your cell phone when it's in your pocket.

The trick to making a morphing touch screen useful is fitting it in a smartphone. The Tactus design calls for sandwiching a fluid between touch-screen layers and pushing the fluid around with a series of tiny valves. The top layer is flexible, so pushing the fluid to one part of the screen raises the surface there. … Read more

Hands-on with new Nook: Better than the Kindle?

Note: CNET's full review of the new Nook is up now.

The day after Kobo served up a new $129.99 touch-screen e-reader, Barnes & Noble, as expected, unveiled its own touch-screen e-ink Nook, which it's branding as "The Simple eReader."

We had a very good idea what the new device would be prior to the launch, but before we get to the initial impressions, here's a quick rundown of the new Nook's key specs:

Touch screen with Neonode "responsive" zForce infrared touch technology 6-inch Pearl e-ink screen (same screen as Kindle'… Read more

Hands-on with the Asus Eee Slate EP121 Windows 7 tablet

We've been testing and reviewing Windows tablets for many years, the latest being the new Acer Iconia Tab W500P, but have typically found them lacking--both in comparison with more powerful Windows laptops, and with other tablets, such as Apple's popular iPad.

One Windows tablet that we've been eager to check out after seeing it at CES 2011 is the Asus Eee Slate EP121, a high-end touch-screen tablet with a separate Bluetooth keyboard. Asus is, for the uninitiated, most responsible for the (now faded) popularity of low-cost Netbooks, and the company is now pushing the boundaries of what … Read more

McDonald's hires 7,000 touch-screen cashiers

"Welcome to McDonald's. My name is HAL 9000. May I take your order?"

McDonalds recently went on a hiring binge in the U.S., adding 62,000 employees to its roster. The hiring picture doesn't look quite so rosy for Europe, where the fast food chain is drafting 7,000 touch-screen kiosks to handle cashiering duties.

The move is designed to boost efficiency and make ordering more convenient for customers. In an interview with the Financial Times, McDonald's Europe President Steve Easterbrook notes that the new system will also open up a goldmine of data. McDonald's could potentially track every Big Mac, McNugget, and large shake you order. A calorie account tally at the end of the year could be a real shocker.

The touch screens will only accept debit or credit cards, adding to the slow death knell of cash and coins. This all goes along with an overall revamp of McDonald's restaurants worldwide aimed at projecting a modern image as opposed to the old-fashioned golden arches with a slightly creepy (to my taste anyway) clown guy hanging around the french fries.

This puts McDonald's one step closer to opening up its first Alphaville location. At least our new computer overlords will be nice enough to serve us a Filet-o-Fish. Maybe they'll even throw in an iPad with the Happy Meal one of these days.… Read more