I've owned non-Apple laptops before and the trackpad can usually register a press from anything being pressed onto the trackpad. My MacBook Air (2019 model) trackpad works normally, but there is something strange about it.. a gloved finger will not register a press. Bare skin will register a press, but a gloved finger will not - I used a towel wrapped around my finger. This leads me to believe that the trackpad isn't just a normal piece of glass-covered metal, but the glass may actually be a capacitive screen similar to the digitizer of the iOS devices. I suppose it would have to be this way since the trackpad can differentiate between a one finger press and a two finger press. Is the MacBook Air/Pro actually a type of iPhone screen without the iOS bit?
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Resolved Is the MBA trackpad actually a capacitive touchscreen? Will they add a UI?
- Thread starter revmacian
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Yes, trackpads are capacitive.
Thank you. I now wonder how long it will be before Apple turns the trackpad into a small OLED touchscreen. They've already done this with the Touch Bar.
The trackpad for Apple notebooks has always been capacitive. It's a sure bet that Apple will turn the trackpad into a touchscreen because (A) other companies have already done it, and (B) Apple will need a new gimmick to draw people in to continue to buy their more expensive models.
Yeah, I think it's only a matter of time before our trackpad doubles as a small screen with its own content. I just hope they give us the option of turning the content off and using it as a traditional trackpad. Having the trackpad contain a UI and its own content may require the use of a second OS (similar to the Touch Bar running a modified version of watchOS) and that could introduce more bugs into the notebook operating system.
I fail to see what usage that would have, other than being a gimmick larger than that of the touch bar.
Agreed. The issue is that Apple are excellent salespeople.. able to come up with a silly gimmick and sell it to gullible people as if they actually need said gimmick. Then Apple uses the sales numbers to justify continuing the gimmick as if it were necessary. The real problem is that you can sell a gullible person their own shoes, we'd be better off as a species teaching the gullible people how they're damaging society. Apple would have us believe that they're creating these useless products (like the Touch Bar) for our benefit when, in reality, Apple is taking advantage of gullible people in order to line Apple's own pockets. It's sad.
Since a person's hands cover the touchpad, I don't think it makes sense to put a screen there. Apple is pretty good with UIs. Putting one on the trackpad doesn't seem to make sense at all.
I think it has the potential to be useful... certainly more useful than the touch bar. Why? Because the touch bar attempted to supplement the keyboard which is about physical keys... having a long thin touchscreen in that context created an inconsistent interaction.
But the trackpad/touchpad by design is about... touch. Transforming it into a touchscreen would allow for actions that are currently touch to have a visual context for that touch.
Asus has had a screen trackpad in some of their laptops for a few years. Never got the point of it. Why would you want to stop moving the cursor and use a calculator, etc? That’s why I think a trackpad and the Touch Bar is preferable.
In addition to the questionable utility of such a screen, the textured surface of the trackpads also appears to be slightly translucent as opposed to the perfectly clear glass of a phone or iPad screen. Try running your finger across your phone, and it won't glide nearly as smoothly as it does across the trackpad.
There is already a large screen right above the keyboard that does exactly that.
Doing what exactly? I'd love to hear some examples, because I can't really imagine anything that would be even mildly useful.
If it is causing me to look away from the display, when I’m trying to touch-type, and focus on the trackpad.. then it is the opposite of useful. Nothing should be allowed to interrupt workflow like that.