Apple Readying External Trackpad for Desktops?
With WWDC going on this week, all eyes were on the iPhone 4, Safari 5 and iOS. However, there's a little something else that's garnering headlines around the blogosphere and so far, it hasn't appeared at WWDC.
Back in February, Apple filed for a trademark on the name 'Magic Trackpad' suggested the company's Magic Mouse wasn't the only 'magical' input device at Cupertino. Yesterday Engadget suggested that this Magic Trackpad might have been part of the lineup in Steve Jobs' keynote speech, but that never happened. The site did post some pictures along with the report and later added a few more images from a source who claimed to be testing the device.
This source said the Magic Trackpad supports handwriting recogition, all the functions of the Magic Mouse and possible some features of a MacBook trackpad. The multitouch Bluetooth device is aid to be aimed at desktop Macs. One Engadget reader threw together the following cardboard mock-up based on the leaked images.
It's still not clear what exactly this is; we could be looking at a simple trackpad for a desktop concept or it could be a miniature Wacom-style tablet.




Plus, Can I get a wireless CPU? latest version? anybody
Gee 1!!
I think everyone agrees mouses are easier to use, more natural, and here's the killer: GAMES.
I've already patented the useless, rectangularish-shaped, brownish, paper-based, wireless device for the computer.
I'll soon be rolling in the money. Does cold hard cash give papercuts when you roll in it?
Someone was gonna do it! You know they were.
Bah... whatever... red down-thumb me then.
+∞
Yeah no kidding. I can't stand track pads, I always plug a wired or wireless mouse into a laptop if I have the chance. Why in the world would I want a track pad for a desktop?
Just for reference...I [mainly] don't use either a trackpad OR a mouse -- I use a wacom tablet. Much more intuitive (and easier on the hands) than either, except [like I said] for reading PDF's, scrolling webpages, etc -- trackpad is lightyears ahead on convenience there.
(sorry...still don't know how to edit messages here...)
it's the most user-friendly cardboard square to date!
Maybe I'm wrong though. Hard to tell dimensions of an image without a reference so it may very well be large enough to be an external digitizer for artists and what not. It may also be pressure sensitive. Guess we'll have to wait and see.
So, for those of us who know how to type and where all the buttons are...and, by the way, all the keys on your keyboard are located on the same surface: the keyboard.
Not if it supported multi-touch and had a high resolution. this would be much better for drawing programs on computers than a mouse. And as for your comment on games, those things dont work on Macs, remember XD
I'm sure Apple isn't trying to compete with the mouse with this (if they develop it for mass market)... It's kind of like their idea re: the iPad. It's not there to replace the laptop--but to accompany it. This pad is for handwriting transfer and zoom/selection functions... That's all... It literally CAN NOT replace the mouse for the same reason you just gave... Unless, of course, it will allow you to just use your hand in the motion of a mouse--then it is. But, people like Logitech will fight tooth and nail to not have the mouse replaced...
Interesting story...although it's just speculation...
too true, tho it would be called the iCard, because the word after the 'i' can never be longer 5characters (eg. phone,pad)