Microsoft has figured out how to make any surface into a touch screen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Pz17lbjOFn8#!

This is simply astounding. This is, to put it in short, revolutionary (To an extent)

You remember those movies where they just get some screen up in front of them and use it to type? Well, this is it.

Of course, it doesn't look to nice right now, but I don't think it'll take too long until this looks nice and works great.

Thoughts?

 

Oh my god.

This is indeed revolutionary, not sure if it's gonna be used as a public product though, considering the cost of it.

I'm a bit surprised Apple didn't do this fist considering their baggage with touch-screens.

 

Apple are far from innovative when it comes to touch screens, they just made them look nice. Microsoft are often first with things, they just don't always get in gear with making it.

It's just a prototype though :) Gotta start somewhere, you know ;)

 

Pointing an over-the-shoulder projector onto a surface seems to me like too much work to do everyday simple tasks. Imagine using a full keyboard on your arm, with display. It does not sound very revolutionary to me, it looks very similar to the PlayStation Move game controller. I could see this technology used in classrooms as a teaching utility, in place of a regular video projector, but not as a convenient over-the-shoulder device.

 

Shame on you ;p

Anyway, there is definitely a long way to go until this product is completed. However, what takes the longest is the initial invention, just being able to project something that you can "touch" probably took 10 patents only to get that :) And I'd like to see just a small tie clip you could use for this. I know that in the business world this would make things a lot more efficient.

And as far as the graphics go, basically the same as I said, it'll come with time.

 

Bulky, yes. Cool, yes. Buy it? Not a chance.
Until they get past the phase where it looks like you're wearing, whatever that resembles, I'm not even getting close to it. It's cool that they got that far in programing, and I hope they can get farther without any trouble(haha, that's a laugh) but I think I'll just stick with my computer for now

 

It would indeed be a miracle if someone can develop a tiny, full functional, on the body computer, with video projector and sensors!

 

Hot damn.


This is the stuff you see in movies! Soon after this, Microsoft will come out with holograms. I can't wait to install my house with these!

 

This isn't as impressive for Microsoft when you realize that this is based heavily (at least in concept) on technology known as "Sixth Sense" that is open source. Yes this is the best iteration of it at this time, but a lot of the foundation was done when Microsoft picked it up.

http://www.ted.com/talks/pranav_mistry_the_thrilling_potential_of_sixthsense_technology.html
http://www.ted.com/talks/pattie_maes_demos_the_sixth_sense.html

 

I like this movement, depth sensing technology, but I really don't see it being used as a portable touch computer, maybe as a replacement for a keyboard and display, but not a replacement for current devices like tablets.

EDIT: There might even be more uses for it yet foreseen, but not as a toy gadget.

 

But where's the fun in that?

Imagine playing a new Final Fantasy game on the 360 where you have to control an airship using your hands and the touch screen.

It could also be used for biometric scanning when you have to have access to a secret room.

 

The implications of this are amazing. Cameras can get really small and I'm sure projectors can as well. And that's all you really need, the rest of the processing is done on cell phones apparently. I can see a world where everyone's wearing a tiny, barely noticeable camera and project on their person. Just hope I'll live to see iit.

 

Surrogates is on its way people

 

Use it to play a video game? With your hands casting all those shadows? I think it would be easier to manufacture and use a touch screen television than it would be to create a sensor that tracks player movement relative to a projector's display.

If the processing can be done on a cell phone, why not just use your cell phone's display? It would be easier to pass a cell phone around if you want to share something. If you're looking for the ultimate potable device, it's the cell phone.

 

It's being used in a different matter though, instead of only recognizing code/images (Like the 3DS also does, with the cards), you can actually control this. (I don't know if this is already implemented in the sixth sense thing, but as far as I could tell, didn't have time to watch the entire vid.)

How about having a couple of sensors? I mean, it can read the depth, and it can differentiate between close and far items (like with the painting). The Kinect can already read movement and your face. This would be somewhat of a sensor behind you, in addition to the Kinect in front of you, perhaps?

 

We already have three-dimensional motion-tracking with the PlayStation Move. I was in awe when I saw the Move's tech demo.