Multi-touch functionality has been continuously attracting consumers attention for the
last two years or so. We are now not too far from the day when multi-touch-capable tablets and desktops will become a standard part of our daily lives. The PC market is preparing for this paradigm shift, as Microsoft ships the much-awaited Windows 7 to the masses on October 22nd. Among many of its attractive features, the ability to use two (or more) fingers as input mechanism (multi-touch) in my opinion stands out for re-coursing the shape of personal computing in the near future.
Windows Touch in Windows 7 with a multi-touch capable hardware allows for the use of two or more fingers to manipulate images or perform gestures on the screen. Users can increase or shrink the size of pictures on the screen by pinching or zooming and flip through documents and websites just like they can do on their iPhone.
PC manufacturers and vendors like HP, Acer, Lenovo, Fujitsu, LG and Dell are all gearing up for its launch by readying new hardware as a part of their Q4 2009 lineup. Some of these products are already in market and are being assessed by both experts and users alike:
Lenovo ThinkPad X200 and T400s
Category: Notebook/Tablet PC
Display Size: 12.1’’ for X200 and 14.1’’ for T400s
Availability: Already Available
Price: Starting at $1,999 for T400s and $1,654 for X200
HP Touchsmart tx2
Category: Notebook/Tablet PC
Display Size: 12.1’’
Availability: Already Available
Price: Starting at US $799
Fujitsu’s Multitouch LIFEBOOK T4310
Category: Notebook/Tablet PC
Display Size: 12.1’’
Availability: Q4 2009
Price: N/A
Dell Latitude XT2
Category: Notebook/Tablet PC
Display Size: 12.1’’
Availability: Already Available
Price: Starting at US $1909
ASUS Eee PC T91 (Netbook)
Category: Netbook
Display Size: 8.9’’
Availability: Already Available
Price: Starting at US $495
