Advanced Multitouch Trackpad 'Unique to MacBook Air'

[MacRumors]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com)

Yesterday, T3.co.uk published a story based on statements from Apple that existing MacBook and MacBook Pro owners might see expanded multitouch trackpad capabilites through a software-only update. The statement, however, was inaccurate and resulted in T3.co.uk pulling the original article.

Apple later clarified to T3.co.uk (http://www.t3.com/news/apple-multi-touch?=35269&cid=OTC-RSS&attr=T3-Main-RSS) that the new Multitouch Trackpad is indeed unique to the Air, implying that existing Apple notebook owners should not expect to see these features added:"MacBook Air features the most advanced trackpad we've ever made, integrating the multi-touch technology from the iPhone. This integrated feature is unique to MacBook Air."This also correlates with disassembly photos (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/02/01/macbook-airs-on-display-at-apple-stores-disassembly-photos/) that revealed the MacBook Air incorporates the same multitouch controller as the iPhone, which is not found in previous Apple notebooks.

While existing Apple notebooks, however, do have some multitouch capabilities (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/01/17/mulitouch-on-the-macbook-air-and-beyond/) (two finger scroll, secondary click), Apple introduced 3 new gestures (swipe, pinch/expand, rotate) in the MacBook Air. Apple, of course, is rumored (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/01/21/next-macbooks-macbook-pros-to-receive-multi-touch-trackpad/) to be adding the new advanced multitouch trackpad to future Macbooks and MacBook Pros.

Article Link (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/02/15/advanced-multitouch-trackpad-unique-to-macbook-air/)

[liketom]

shame but to be expected - next lot of updates to notbooks should see this feature added

[koobcamuk]

I found the techniques not as good as the iphone, because of how one uses the tackpad. I also thought that the mouse button was too thin and too near the edge.

[lamina]

I call shenanigans on Apples part. My PowerBook can detect 2-finger movements in all directions, as the little article snippet said, so why can't a small piece of software be written to allow for later-model iBook and PowerBook owners to enjoy the same gestures?

The trackpad can detect multi-fingered movements in any direction. Its too bad Apple has patented the junk out of the multitouch gestures, else I'm sure we'd see software to make these same abilities possible on later PowerBooks and iBooks. Of course, the iBook and 12- and 15- inch PowerBook trackpads are too small to do this comfortably. My 17" PowerBook has a huge trackpad, the same size as current MacBook and MacBook pros, but I'm not sure about the size of the one on the Air.

[robgreene]

Why does "unique" have to mean "we only plan to offer it on this platform?" Why can't "unique" mean "it can only currently be found on this platform?" Seems like a pretty large assumption to say that because it's unique to MacBook Air, it won't find its way into the other MacBooks in future revisions.

[operator207]

Why does "unique" have to mean "we only plan to offer it on this platform?" Why can't "unique" mean "it can only currently be found on this platform?" Seems like a pretty large assumption to say that because it's unique to MacBook Air, it won't find its way into the other MacBooks in future revisions.

My thoughts exactly. Its the wording of the statement. It leaves them open to either keep it only on the MBA if its a flop, or bring it out later on other laptops if its a success.

[psychofreak]

Software was available to give notebooks without the 2-finger-scroll the feature before Leopard gave it, hopefully the same will be possible in this case, even with the older hardware. The rotating and zooming of pictures is something I'd hardly use, the changing text size in Safari was disappointingly bad when I tried it, but going back and forward with 3 fingers is awesome.

[YoMamasPyjamas]

I just noticed yesterday that on my 15" MBP 2.0 ghz, I was able to "pinch" and "reverse-pinch" in Google Maps just like I do on my iPhone. I had not read or seen anything indicating that this was possible, so I was a little shocked that it actually worked. Am I late to the party on this one, or is this a sign that MBP's et al actually can use the multi-touch capabilities in more applications?

[machspeed5]

anyone who thinks apple would release a software update for older macs is very naive. :rolleyes:

[liketom]

anyone who thinks apple would release a software update for older macs is very naive. :rolleyes:

$20 and all the NEW Mouse Features are yours :D

[SheriffParker]

Why does "unique" have to mean "we only plan to offer it on this platform?" Why can't "unique" mean "it can only currently be found on this platform?" Seems like a pretty large assumption to say that because it's unique to MacBook Air, it won't find its way into the other MacBooks in future revisions.

I don't think they are ruling that out. Apple is just saying that the features will not be available on current laptops via software update.

[brad.c]

I would have been supremely surprised it Apple was able, or likely to offer multitouch via software upgrade. It's in their best interests to isolate tech improvements to newer products as incentive for periodic hardware refreshment.

That said, I think they should offer a multitouch graphics tablet as compensation for eliminating expanded keyboards from their bluetooth selection. Priced competitively against Wacom, of course. They should be seeing payback on their R&D for the multitouch development via iPhone sales alone, so no need to gouge.

[arn]

I just noticed yesterday that on my 15" MBP 2.0 ghz, I was able to "pinch" and "reverse-pinch" in Google Maps just like I do on my iPhone. I had not read or seen anything indicating that this was possible, so I was a little shocked that it actually worked. Am I late to the party on this one, or is this a sign that MBP's et al actually can use the multi-touch capabilities in more applications?

this is just the two finger scroll, not the pinch/expand

arn

[koobcamuk]

That said, I think they should offer a multitouch graphics tablet as compensation for eliminating expanded keyboards from their bluetooth selection. Priced competitively against Wacom, of course. They should be seeing payback on their R&D for the multitouch development via iPhone sales alone, so no need to gouge.

How does a tablet make up for no numerical keypad?

[psychofreak]

anyone who thinks apple would release a software update for older macs is very naive. :rolleyes:

10.5 brought 2-finger-scroll support to older iBooks and Powerbooks. It could happen.

[joefinan]

10.5 brought 2-finger-scroll support to older iBooks and Powerbooks. It could happen.

Not to my iBook G4 it didn't.

[brad.c]

How does a tablet make up for no numerical keypad?

It doesn't, but it's a start.

[tinydinosaurs]

10.5 brought 2-finger-scroll support to older iBooks and Powerbooks. It could happen.

Yes, but even the macbooks dont have the software for the tracking yet, so im doubting that will happen, if not after the macbooks, right?

[mklos]

Why would someone expect Apple to release a software update to make previous MacBooks and MacBook Pros to use this new touchpad? That simply doesn't make any sense. Its takes more than just software to do that.

Possibly would be in a future MacBook and/or MacBook Pro update at some point, but definitely not in a current product. Anyone who thinks Apple should do that is just plain full of it.

It doesn't, but it's a start.

How is it a start?

[eatmocrawfish]

I'd like to see Apple make a multi-gesture trackpad that I could plug into my iMac. This would be so much better than the Mighty Mouse.

[Stella]

I'm not surprised. We known that the Air touchpad differs from that of other Mac laptops so the hardware is different. All other Apple laptops touch pad simply do not have the capabilities to offer equivalent functionality, no amount of software will help: Its the hardware.

[brad.c]

How is it a start?

Punitive math.

They've reduced the functionality of the bluetooth keyboard by eliminating the number pad. (All my InDesign shortcuts are accessed via the number pad.)

So, I want them to make it up to me by offering a new toy. Of course, as I said in post #12, they won't. But I can pout like a two year old.
:(
See?

[a456]

I found the techniques not as good as the iphone, because of how one uses the tackpad. I also thought that the mouse button was too thin and too near the edge.

I had my first opportunity to see an MBA this week, and I have to say that I wasn't wowed by it. I've always been sceptical about it, but thought that seeing one would if nothing else make me think it was an attractive object. Unfortunately not. To me it doesn't look sleek or sexy or any of those things. It's almost reminiscent of the clamshell. The edges of the screen are too rounded and too wide. The track pad is not immediately appealing in its functions either. Zooming in and out on a webpage was clunky and awkward. And I see more advantages for Apple taking away the optical drive than for the consumer - i.e. more downloads from iTunes less physical media. It's all a bit unnecessary to my mind and the problems I have sharing folders over a network between my PowerBook and iMac make me very sceptical of the remote disk functionality. In contrast the iPhone and iPod Touch I am very excited about, they carve out a new, exciting and very functional direction.

[Tycoonguy]

Hopefully the fact apple let this information out means that there going to put it in the new MBPs.

[YoMamasPyjamas]

this is just the two finger scroll, not the pinch/expand

arn

...and now the world makes sense again. sorry!

[MattJessop]

As far as I'm aware, it's actually that the current MB and MBP trackpads can't pick up 2 points of data at the same time, only the one?. The reason Apple got around this is possibly that OS X ignores one point should another be placed on the trackpad.

This shows with two finger scrolling. You don't actually need to scroll with two fingers. Just need to put two fingers on the trackpad and scroll with one.

This would probably explain why there's new hardware in the Macbook Air. Otherwise we may have seen it trickle back down into the current gen Macbooks after a year or so.

[SolRayz]

You would think that a software update would give us these MBA trackpad features, but after some thought I don't see this as possible. Our current trackpad can sense two independent touches simultaneiously however, lateral scrolling or pinching of the of the finger touches would seemingly require hardware sensors to detect this movement. I'm just not sure that this would be possible without some convoluted software that would try to simulate this movement and lacking precision in the process.

[slffl]

I think everyone has become to accustom to having un-released features already in their Apple product. I think it's pretty sad that there's a story about how a feature of a new product is only available on that new product and not on 1-2 year old products.

[Small White Car]

I call shenanigans on Apples part.

I hapen to believe it's the hardware. The "my laptop recognizes 2 fingers" argument is totally bogus. My ATM screen recognizes my finger too...do you think ANY amount of software could make it as accurate as a laptop track-pad? Although 2 technologies may be similar, it doesn't mean they can do the exact same things.

Just because your laptop know that there ARE 2 fingers doesn't mean it can track them both smoothly enough and with enough detail to do the things the MBAir does. The current MB and MB Pro don't do ANYTHING with the 2 fingers besides toggle modes on and off. (scrolling on/off, right-click on/off) I've seen nothing that shows that it can actually keep track of both fingers and offer multi-touch ability. As far as I can tell it just "sees" 2 fingers as one big fat finger and knows to treat that differently than a regular finger.

Now, of course it's POSSIBLE the ability is there and someone will figure it out...my point is just that we've seen zero evidence of this. Saying "I bet it's possible" is really no more than a wild guess.

[iSlave]

'Unique to MacBook Air'

Yeah, we know this. I thought this article was going to tell us something new? At no point does it say that this feature won't be integrated into MB or MBP.

Surely, Apple's track record suggests that they will introduce a new feature in a new (and expensive) product first (MBA, iPhone, and the first Intel Macbook Pros), and then cascade those features to the less expensive models (i.e. iPod touch, Intel Macbooks and iMacs) over time?

[tjwett]

this also adds some special value to the MBA, which really needs all the help it can get right now to get people excited enough to part with their $1799.

[koobcamuk]

I had my first opportunity to see an MBA this week, and I have to say that I wasn't wowed by it. I've always been sceptical about it, but thought that seeing one would if nothing else make me think it was an attractive object. Unfortunately not. To me it doesn't look sleek or sexy or any of those things. It's almost reminiscent of the clamshell. The edges of the screen are too rounded and too wide. The track pad is not immediately appealing in its functions either. Zooming in and out on a webpage was clunky and awkward. And I see more advantages for Apple taking away the optical drive than for the consumer - i.e. more downloads from iTunes less physical media. It's all a bit unnecessary to my mind and the problems I have sharing folders over a network between my PowerBook and iMac make me very sceptical of the remote disk functionality. In contrast the iPhone and iPod Touch I am very excited about, they carve out a new, exciting and very functional direction.


Nicely said.

I also wondered what the deal was with the keyboard being black? It looks awful.

[OS X Dude]

How about a Multi-Touch Mighty Mouse???
:D

[EagerDragon]

Punitive math.

They've reduced the functionality of the bluetooth keyboard by eliminating the number pad. (All my InDesign shortcuts are accessed via the number pad.)

So, I want them to make it up to me by offering a new toy. Of course, as I said in post #12, they won't. But I can pout like a two year old.
:(
See?

Not sure why you say that they need to make it up to you.
You knew there was no number pad before you purchased the keyboard. Also you can get a previous version in eBay that has the numeric pad.

[HLdan]

I think everyone has become to accustom to having un-released features already in their Apple product. I think it's pretty sad that there's a story about how a feature of a new product is only available on that new product and not on 1-2 year old products.


If that's the way you feel then you understand nothing about business. Adding the latest features to older hardware especially 1-2 years old in the computer world is not good business for the company.

All any company should be obligated to do is support the system for security updates and system improvement. Multi-touch is a feature not a system improvement and if Apple added it to older hardware it reduces the incentive to buy new hardware.
Isn't this the same thing that happens when Intel comes out with a new processor (namely Penryn), it encourages people to buy new hardware.

[twoodcc]

as long as they put this in the future macbooks and macbook pros, then i think people will be happy.

[pine1045]

But they might as well, since it has been completely ignored for almost 8 months now (a 2.6GHz and 250GB HD option do not count as updates, even this site says so). Everyone is waiting on pins and needles for it and it's just not gonna happen. We haven't heard anymore rumors about the event at the end of the month and if it does happen, it probably will only be for the iPhone SDK. We're holding our breaths for nothing. Time to switch?

p.s. I hope I am proven wrong and all of you ram it in my face.

[forafireescape]

Sad day. I was hoping....

[Yaboze]

I'd be surprised if the new MBP's or MB's (refreshes later on) will get this, Apple wants the MBA to be unique.

This is disappointing though, although I wouldn't wait 6 months or more (if I was buying now) just for that.

[foobarbaz]

10.5 brought 2-finger-scroll support to older iBooks and Powerbooks. It could happen.

Nope. Actually it brought 2-finger secondary click to iBooks and Powerbooks that already had 2-finger scrolling.

[arjunm]

I had my first opportunity to see an MBA this week, and I have to say that I wasn't wowed by it. I've always been sceptical about it, but thought that seeing one would if nothing else make me think it was an attractive object. Unfortunately not. To me it doesn't look sleek or sexy or any of those things. It's almost reminiscent of the clamshell. The edges of the screen are too rounded and too wide. The track pad is not immediately appealing in its functions either. Zooming in and out on a webpage was clunky and awkward. And I see more advantages for Apple taking away the optical drive than for the consumer - i.e. more downloads from iTunes less physical media. It's all a bit unnecessary to my mind and the problems I have sharing folders over a network between my PowerBook and iMac make me very sceptical of the remote disk functionality. In contrast the iPhone and iPod Touch I am very excited about, they carve out a new, exciting and very functional direction.

I beg to differ. I've spent a good week with this machine now and must say that I absolutely love it. It's really light-weight, which is a big deal to a lot of people. Besides that, your "clunky zooming" wasn't zooming at all. It was changing the font size in Safari (Press Command + or - ). I can't live without "the swipe" in Safari anymore, I notice it when I try swiping in Firefox.

The fact that I already download all my music from iTunes, use Software that I buy and download online and watch video via BitTorrent (Which is still legal here in Switzerland), I think I'm very happy to have a less cluttered, cleaner, leaner computing experience.

The MBAir isn't for everyone, it's aiming at a target niche that's not the type to surf Macrumors.com :-)

[DMC-12]

I don't know about this. I still think that similar gestures could be added to MB and MBP via software, at least the pinching feature. On the iPhone and iPod touch, you don't actually need to pinch outward or inward to make the zooming happen. You only need to have one finger at a point on the screen while moving another finger toward or away from the first. My MBP can sense the two finger scrolling simply by having one finger moving up/down/left/right away from one finger placed on the trackpad.

[rezonat0r]

current MB and MBP trackpads can't pick up 2 points of data at the same time, only the one.

This shows with two finger scrolling. You don't actually need to scroll with two fingers. Just need to put two fingers on the trackpad and scroll with one.

Nice one. Hadn't noticed this before.

[DMC-12]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I could make a similar argument about the iPhone/iPod touch screen. In my experience, pinching does not have to be rendered by actually moving two fingers away or toward each other, only by moving a single finger in relation to another-- just like two-finger scrolling.

[skeep5]

I just noticed yesterday that on my 15" MBP 2.0 ghz, I was able to "pinch" and "reverse-pinch" in Google Maps just like I do on my iPhone...

That freaked me out, i tried it and it seemed to work, but i believe it is just the two finger scroll.

[jnc]

I call shenanigans on Apples part. My PowerBook can detect 2-finger movements in all directions, as the little article snippet said, so why can't a small piece of software be written to allow for later-model iBook and PowerBook owners to enjoy the same gestures?

Because, dear lamina, if possible - such a software update would certainly not encourage you to buy a newer model, thus it would not bring any new money to Apple - unless they charged for it, which I'm sure everyone would hate too :)

[andrewdale]

"MacBook Air features the most advanced trackpad we've ever made, integrating the multi-touch technology from the iPhone. This integrated feature is unique to MacBook Air."


'Unique to MacBook Air'

Yeah, we know this. I thought this article was going to tell us something new? At no point does it say that this feature won't be integrated into MB or MBP.

I totally agree there. The first thing I noticed is that Apple states that it "is unique to the MacBook Air." Well, duh. Right now, it is.

Maybe that's reading too much into it, but they never stated that it "will be" unique.

[ntrigue]

I understand there exists a desire to have 'the newest' and 'the best'; however, I am not impressed with the Air's touchpad. Actually, I am disappointed.

This is a silly gimmick and although I appreciate it as laying the foundation for something greater; this rudimentary touchpad is something few will ever use. Give me the capability to spin a photo on its access in 1 degree increments or drag it somewhere else in the CS3 window but the implementation that I experienced at the Apple Store was laughable. Safari page forward/page back? I've had that on my mouse for 10 years.

[asdavis10]

How about a Multi-Touch Mighty Mouse???
:D

That's what I'm talking about. Or maybe a USB or wireless trackpad with multi-touch that you could use with any of the Mac desktops. It could be used with or in replace of your mouse. Now that would be sweet. As far as the unique statement, of course its unique to the Air. But it doesn't mean that its not coming to the new laptop models.

[Freyqq]

the quote seems to imply that presently it is only in the macbook air...which is true. It does not imply that future models may include it. Honestly, it would be silly for apple if they didn't add this feature. It's purely a software thing and they've already designed the software.

[MacFly123]

Yes, it is unique to the MacBook Air now because the new MacBook Pros are not out yet. Of course they will have it too. All Macs will. They will come out with a new mouse for the desktops too. Wait and see :) This is all going to slowly be added in to get people use to it and with 10.6 we will see some serious Multi-Touch going on. Then windows will have theirs out 2 years later in Windows 7 with lots of trouble trying to get hardware to implement it after Apple has had it in their mobile devices and computers for almost 5 years LOL :D

[Darth.Titan]

the quote seems to imply that presently it is only in the macbook air...which is true. It does not imply that future models may include it. Honestly, it would be silly for apple if they didn't add this feature. It's purely a software thing and they've already designed the software.

How many times does it have to be stated? The multitouch trackpad is not purely a software thing. We have the take-apart of the Air to confirm this. The Air has the same multitouch chip in it that the iPhone has.
No software update will ever make this chip appear in older notebooks.

[skorpien]

I don't think it's possible to incorporate this into existing MBs/MBPs with a software update like a lot of people on these forums believe. From the MBA disassembly pictures, they have the chip used in the iPhone/iTouch. If the trackpad technology available on current MB/MBP models was able to perform the multi-touch gestures of the MBA, Apple wouldn't have needed to include the iPhone chip in there. So either the chip is required for the multi-touch gestures, or Apple just likes to randomly include unnecessary pieces in their computers (which wouldn't make sense for the MBA seeing as they were trying to make it as light as possible). But I agree that it'd be foolish for them not to include it in their next revisions of their laptop lineup.

[rezonat0r]

For those that have used the Air, is the trackpad still laggy like it is on the current MBPs?

Switching from my MBP to my old Dell Inspiron 7500 (with a synaptics touchpad), the difference is noticeable. Perhaps its the USB interface that the MBPs use vs. the more "direct" PS/2 interface of the Dell, but the mac touchpad is definitely at least several ms behind the ancient Dell. Took me a long time to get used to the difference.

[iPie]

Why does "unique" have to mean "we only plan to offer it on this platform?" Why can't "unique" mean "it can only currently be found on this platform?" Seems like a pretty large assumption to say that because it's unique to MacBook Air, it won't find its way into the other MacBooks in future revisions.

For the same reason that the external superdrive only works with the MBA.

[skorpien]

For the same reason that the external superdrive only works with the MBA.

But that's only because it requires an over-powered usb port to run, which is currently only found on MBA. Nothing's stopping apple from adding such usb ports on other models in the future, but seeing as how they already have optical drives, there's no need.

On the other hand, programming the multitouch gestures into OSX for only one model (MBA) seems like a poor use of a very promising technology IMO. Apple wouldn't miss the boat to use multitouch gestures as a selling point for future MBs/MBPs.

[asdavis10]

For the same reason that the external superdrive only works with the MBA.

Good point. Didn't think about that. I still think it will be in all notebooks, but the superdrive is a good example why it won't.

[dante@sisna.com]

Yes, it is unique to the MacBook Air now because the new MacBook Pros are not out yet. Of course they will have it too. All Macs will. They will come out with a new mouse for the desktops too. Wait and see :) This is all going to slowly be added in to get people use to it and with 10.6 we will see some serious Multi-Touch going on. Then windows will have theirs out 2 years later in Windows 7 with lots of trouble trying to get hardware to implement it after Apple has had it in their mobile devices and computers for almost 5 years LOL :D

They may have it in the future but a statement like this from Apple indicates that it will be a ways off and not in the Penryn speed bump that so many in these forums are waiting for.

Apple will not in any way shape or form complete with the MBA in the short term -- even across professional lines such as the MacBook and MacBook Pro.

[rockosmodurnlif]

Everyone who thinks this:
I call shenanigans on Apples part. My PowerBook can detect 2-finger movements in all directions, as the little article snippet said, so why can't a small piece of software be written to allow for later-model iBook and PowerBook owners to enjoy the same gestures?

The trackpad can detect multi-fingered movements in any direction. Its too bad Apple has patented the junk out of the multitouch gestures, else I'm sure we'd see software to make these same abilities possible on later PowerBooks and iBooks. Of course, the iBook and 12- and 15- inch PowerBook trackpads are too small to do this comfortably. My 17" PowerBook has a huge trackpad, the same size as current MacBook and MacBook pros, but I'm not sure about the size of the one on the Air.

Should read this:
How many times does it have to be stated? The multitouch trackpad is not purely a software thing. We have the take-apart of the Air to confirm this. The Air has the same multitouch chip in it that the iPhone has.
No software update will ever make this chip appear in older notebooks.

Smartest thing said in thread (other than above):
How about a Multi-Touch Mighty Mouse???
:D
*bump*

[Digital Skunk]

All i know is. the next MacBook Pro had better be a show stopper, and not some childish update to the processors. I expect a redesign and a multi touch trackpad like the MBA's to be used with Aperture 2.0.

Apple didn't disappoint me that much with Aperture 2, so I am hoping that they don't disappoint me that much with their next professional laptop.

[amacisbetter]

Not adding the new trackpad functionality wouldn't make sense to me. Yeah, right now it is a unique feature to the MacBook Air, but I'm not going to buy a MacBook Air because it has one unique feature. If the trackpad were on a Macbook Pro it would just be more incentive for me to purchase a new one.

[murtoid]

its seems pretty obvious that apple are only referring to the current situaiton,

they are saying there will be no software updates on existing models... ie macbookpro and macbook




its likely that there will be an incorporation of the new technology in future models though


and of course apple are working on a mouse with a touch surface, they showed the patent drawings... there was also a touch screen surface that lit up when touched...

[MacFly123]

They may have it in the future but a statement like this from Apple indicates that it will be a ways off and not in the Penryn speed bump that so many in these forums are waiting for.

Apple will not in any way shape or form complete with the MBA in the short term -- even across professional lines such as the MacBook and MacBook Pro.

Guess we will see :)

[MacFly123]

How about a Multi-Touch Mighty Mouse???
:D

After the rest of the notebooks get the Multi-Touch Track Pad it will be on the way shortly for sure :) Can't wait :D Now can we get the new Cinema Displays FOR CRYING OUT LOUD :rolleyes:

Not adding the new trackpad functionality wouldn't make sense to me. Yeah, right now it is a unique feature to the MacBook Air, but I'm not going to buy a MacBook Air because it has one unique feature. If the trackpad were on a Macbook Pro it would just be more incentive for me to purchase a new one.

Exactly. The MacBook Air has it's own demographic, and a much smaller one than the MacBook Pro. They will add it to the next MacBook Pro for sure, then the MacBook in its next revision, and from there with a new mouse to the desktops. I think this should be pretty obvious people.

[stainlessliquid]

I wont cry myself to sleep. The ONLY useful feature was the swipe, which would be kind of nice for browsing the web. I use cmd+[<-] for going back anyways if Im using a crappy mouse at school like the mightymouse, so swipe isnt such a major substitute to that method on a laptop where your fingers are right next to the keys.

The pinch and rotate crap is just plain stupid. If coverflow wasnt such garbage then pinching might be kind of nice to resize the window, but coverflow is terrible and unuseable in Finder. As long as you can still do 2finger scroll then I dont see this is a bad thing. The MBA can keep its pointless gimmicks, it wont add any value to the other laptops.

[theonlyrealj]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com)

Yesterday, T3.co.uk published a story based on statements from Apple that existing MacBook and MacBook Pro owners might see expanded multitouch trackpad capabilites through a software-only update. The statement, however, was inaccurate and resulted in T3.co.uk pulling the original article.

Apple later clarified to T3.co.uk (http://www.t3.com/news/apple-multi-touch?=35269&cid=OTC-RSS&attr=T3-Main-RSS) that the new Multitouch Trackpad is indeed unique to the Air, implying that existing Apple notebook owners should not expect to see these features added:This also correlates with disassembly photos (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/02/01/macbook-airs-on-display-at-apple-stores-disassembly-photos/) that revealed the MacBook Air incorporates the same multitouch controller as the iPhone, which is not found in previous Apple notebooks.

While existing Apple notebooks, however, do have some multitouch capabilities (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/01/17/mulitouch-on-the-macbook-air-and-beyond/) (two finger scroll, secondary click), Apple introduced 3 new gestures (swipe, pinch/expand, rotate) in the MacBook Air. Apple, of course, is rumored (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/01/21/next-macbooks-macbook-pros-to-receive-multi-touch-trackpad/) to be adding the new advanced multitouch trackpad to future Macbooks and MacBook Pros.

Article Link (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/02/15/advanced-multitouch-trackpad-unique-to-macbook-air/)

I think this is referring to the current time. We'll see the enhanced feature on macbooks in the future. I'm sure of it.

[brad.c]

Not sure why you say that they need to make it up to you.
You knew there was no number pad before you purchased the keyboard. Also you can get a previous version in eBay that has the numeric pad.

Who said I bought one? :rolleyes:

What's relevant to this thread is that I'd like to see a multi-touch graphics tablet with some serious Photoshop integration. I'd pay money for that. Either as a peripheral in the next year for my current MBP, or incorporated into the next big thing.

I'm also being facetious in that I'd take it as compensation for eliminating another practical peripheral. (My current extended BT keyboard is just fine, but the virginal snow whiteness isn't going to last forever.)

Sorry if that confused you.

[rezonat0r]

The MBA can keep its pointless gimmicks, it wont add any value to the other laptops.

Who says swipe, pinch and rotate are going to be the only gestures? I bet we'll see Apple providing developers with tools to support custom gestures. Basically like a backport of the multitouch library from the iPhone SDK to Xcode.

[i.maverick]

10.5 brought 2-finger-scroll support to older iBooks and Powerbooks. It could happen.

ya..10.5 was a paid update..
20 dowllaws anyone..??!!
:D:D

[jnc]

After the rest of the notebooks get the Multi-Touch Track Pad it will be on the way shortly for sure :) Can't wait :D Now can we get the new Cinema Displays FOR CRYING OUT LOUD :rolleyes:

Make sure they're multi-touch! :rolleyes:

[BillyBobBongo]

I'm not surprised at all by this. If you ask me those who expected to be given this feature to existing technology were somewhat naive. Apple want you to buy this new technology (personally the MacBook Air doesn't impress me) so their gonna hold back releasing this to other devices for a while yet...and when they do release it for other devices I'd imagine it'll only be available on new models so that you go out and buy those models should you want this feature.

It's business!

[t0mat0]

All i know is. the next MacBook Pro had better be a show stopper, and not some childish update to the processors.

From the "Early" in "Early 2008" Mac Pros, isn't it a good guess that both Macbooks and MBPs will get 3 refreshes this year?
1 to get the chips up to Penryn, and the second come June to update to Montevina, then a speed bump later in the fall (after new iPod/iPhone ranges for back to school /Japan launch) which will incorporate

So where do the chips fall?We've got the Centrino platform of Sa nta Rosa, with it's successor being Montevina launched in May. So what's stopping Apple from doing a chip bump now, then holding off till Montevina?

Oh and yes -T3 is being sensationalist as Darth.Titan points out:
1) The multitouch trackpad is not purely a software thing. So no software update will ever make this chip appear in older notebooks.
2) It's only unique as the MBP (which outranks the Air in terms of professionality so to speak) hasn't been refreshed with it yet.
I wouldn't be shocked if they threw the Amultitouch trackpad in on the next release with Penryns, then you have the Montevina, then a chip bump by Christmas.
Tick tock release peeps.

[Eriamjh1138@DAN]

Apple will never add multi-touch to older macbooks. Period. Not even for a fee. Not even through an OS update.

Apple's history is that new models get the new features, not the older ones. New MacBooks (Pro or otherwise) are coming. They will be thinner and use the new trackpad. The only question is when.

[jnc]

From the "Early" in "Early 2008" Mac Pros, isn't it a good guess that both Macbooks and MBPs will get 3 refreshes this year?


We didn't get "early" "mid" and "late" MacBook Pros in 2007, and certainly not Mac Pros, so heck knows what would make you assume that. All that is denoted by the Early-Mid-Late tags is what point in the year the model in question came out, eg Late 2006 MacBook Pro vs Mid 2007 MacBook Pro.

By the way things are looking, we may not even be seeing an "Early 2008" MacBook Pro. If they're not ready to go and for sale within the next few weeks, maybe :apple: just won't produce a newer model until Montevina... otherwise the product cycle will be very short between the two udpates.

[sk8kar]

would any of you advise me to buy the macbook air? is it a wothwhile instalment for a primary pc? i am soon to join a management institute in which all students require a notebook. i saw the air and was completely amazed by it.reading ur posts i find its not too impressive. do explain if i should go ahead and buy it or not.

[theonlyrealj]

would any of you advise me to buy the macbook air? is it a wothwhile instalment for a primary pc? i am soon to join a management institute in which all students require a notebook. i saw the air and was completely amazed by it.reading ur posts i find its not too impressive. do explain if i should go ahead and buy it or not.

Not worth it. Far too pricey for the features you get. For an extra 4 lbs. you can get a desktop replacement macbook pro for the same price or less with significantly better features and capabilities. Remember to buy through the education store to save some $$ for being in school. Good luck.

[jnc]

would any of you advise me to buy the macbook air? is it a wothwhile instalment for a primary pc? i am soon to join a management institute in which all students require a notebook. i saw the air and was completely amazed by it.reading ur posts i find its not too impressive. do explain if i should go ahead and buy it or not.

It's not primary computer material. I wouldn't recommend it unless you already had an amazing computer at home and just wanted something light and breezy to complement it for on-the-go situations.

$200 more gets you a MacBook Pro, which is definitely a capable primary computer. Considering the fw4800 and 800, internal SuperDrive, dual-link DVI etc. it might be worth the 2.4lb hit in weight for you.

[psychofreak]

ya..10.5 was a paid update..
20 dowllaws anyone..??!!
:D:D

Sidetrack (http://www.ragingmenace.com/software/sidetrack/#purchase) is $15, hopefully that will help us MB and MBP owners hoping for this advanced multitouch stuff.

[AidenShaw]

...the MBP (which outranks the Air in terms of professionality so to speak)...

Wow - you've hit Apple's false "professional" marketing right on the head. :D

Apple's "Pro" machines aren't more "Pro", but they have more "professionality". HaHa!


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truthiness

[katejones]

My 2004 toshiba laptop has vertical and horizontal swipe, vertical and horizontal scrolling ,plus 4 corner zones that assignable. With all this turned on you can barely touch it without doing something you didnt want to.

Like typing this post, clicking a smiling, moving the pointer to select a font (you just swiped and the browser hit the backbutton and you lost your post. you fail)

I had to turn all this stuff off, it had a mind of its own. Though still would like to see this apple trackpad in all models, who knows what cool things developers will come up with? it has alot of potential.

[denladeside]

If you've ever worked with the synaptics touchpad on IBM thinkpads (and probably also macs), you'll know that similar functionality is possible.

I'll have to find my old software (linux) but seem to remember stuff like (back in 2004 at least):

* 1,2 and 3 finger detection (individual coordinates - not 100% sure about this.. but pretty)
* a possibility to switch it between normal scroll (using the sides) or ipod like circular scroll
* palm detection (to eliminate the accidental push of a mouse button with your palm)

I might remember wrong about the coordinated when using multiple fingers though (as this post is really about... I'll get back to you when I find the info ;-) )
:)

UPDATE: found this -> http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/10/video-demoing-the-multitouch-trackpad/

[jnc]

My 2004 toshiba laptop has vertical and horizontal swipe, vertical and horizontal scrolling ,plus 4 corner zones that assignable. With all this turned on you can barely touch it without doing something you didnt want to.

Like typing this post, clicking a smiling, moving the pointer to select a font (you just swiped and the browser hit the backbutton and you lost your post. you fail)

Sounds like poor implementation, then. Every gesture needs to be pretty deliberate and varied enough to tell one from another.

[t0mat0]

Wow - you've hit Apple's false "professional" marketing right on the head. :D

Apple's "Pro" machines aren't more "Pro", but they have more "professionality". HaHa!


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truthiness

They could always do an Air Pro with a FW 800 and a bundled USB to ethernet cable...
I think professionality is aking to truthiness. That and what a rep might call a "higher spec" - it has more potential to be used at a higher level professionally.

Ack 14 days or less and counting...