Hasta La Gadget!

Are you eagerly waiting for Disney’s mind-blowing touch technology to become mainstream? You might want to settle for this touch sensor for the meantime. It’s called the EveryTouchFX, a system that’s meant to replace mechanical switches with a hidden touch-based switch.

I think the picture above sums up the magic of EveryTouchFX. The sensor itself is hidden under the rock, but as you’ll see in the video below you can touch just the rock and the sensor will still detect the input. The inventors didn’t elaborate on their technology in their Indiegogo write-up, only that EveryTouchFX is designed to recognize only the electric potential of the human body. It can also detect touch from behind insulation that’s up to 4″ thick. Combine those two capabilities and you can hide the sensor pretty much anywhere.

While it certainly has a lot of decorative and security-related applications, EveryTouchFX has one big drawback: it’s expensive. As of this writing you have to pledge at least $119 (USD) on its Indiegogo fundraiser to get one unit. I wonder if it’s possible to use the MaKey MaKey for the same purpose.

The rear touch-panel is one of the most unique features of the Sony’s PS Vita. Now, a Minnesota-based company called Canopy wants to bring that same feature to the iPhone 4 and 4S with the Sensus, a protective case with built in capacitive touch sensors.

A rear touch-panel won’t be beneficial in all apps or situations because iOS apps weren’t made with this hardware in mind. That said, it could make some games more fun or playable and make it easier to look at documents. Canopy says the Sensus also has two built-in microprocessors to handle the gestures and touch input on the case, so there’s no additional burden on the iPhone’s own CPU.

If you pre-order Sensus right now you’ll only pay $39 (USD) (plus $7 shipping), significantly discounted from its $59 retail price. It seems like a product with a lot of potential, but still If I were you I’d hold off my purchase until we see more details, demos and support from app developers. Also, they need a version for the iPhone 5.

[via Joystiq]

With Lion and the upcoming Mountain Lion operating systems, Apple is continuously integrating features from its mobile OS to the desktop experience. Does it mean that a touchscreen iMac is a good idea? I still don’t think so, but you can decide for yourself with the help of the Zorro Macsk attachment.

The Zorro Macsk is a frame that is placed over the iMac and plugs in via USB. It has no screen of its own, rather it uses infrared sensors to detect input. While it won’t turn your computer into an expert swordsman, it does support the same multitouch gestures that you can pull off on the Magic Trackpad, so it is a bit practical.

I think it’s nice to be able to use it to switch between Spaces, but other than that I don’t see any great benefit for a touchscreen iMac, unless you happen to like the look of greasy fingerprints on your screen. The Zorro Macsk is currently only available for the 21.5″ iMac., and you can order it on Amazon for $199 (USD).