What is Apple Planning on Making with this 3x3cm Touch Screen?

[Neeliosis]

HEY! I came up with something. If Apple doesn't want to put a FRONT camera on the iTouch, They just put a screen on the back, below the camera, like the Samsung ST225, So you can see the other person, instead of having to turn the iPT around.

 

[jahsavi]

Given Apple's tendency to stick rigidly to its design principles, I can't see it dropping the home button from an ios device.

This is only the LCD panel the home button can still be added later. But I believe we are looking at the new AppleTV remote screen.

 

[iMattvfs]

I dont think this is it, BUT

It would be extremely cool if it was like a slim watch that can connect to your iPhone so you can answer the calls on your phone simply by tapping an answer button on the watch and talk into the watch.

Id buy that, it would be so awesome 😀

 

[foshizzle]

how big are keys on a keyboard? about 3cm? touchscreen keys.

 

[3247]

you guys are stupid, it's not a screen , it's a fingerprint sensor

Be careful whom you call stupid. It's far too big for a fingerprint sensor. The active area of a fingerprint sensor is usually 10 to 15 mm wide and 1 or 2 mm high.

Now that I'm seeing some of these shuffle concepts, yeah maybe. I still suspect it's for some internal experimental stuff that we're unlikely to see for some time. I've been way off before tho.

It's too expensive for the shuffle. The shuffle currently is 55 €. There's no way they can keep the price below 100 € with a 30x30 touchscreen display.
------------------
Well, let's just go through Apple's products:

iMac: does not make sense, an iMac is a big display.
Mac Pro and Mini: nope, they are used with displays.
Apple TV: nope, used with a TV.

Magic Mouse, Keyboard, Apple Remote: nope, too expensive

iPod nano: wrong form factor, quadratic one does not fit videos
iPod touch, iPhone, iPad: nope, already has a bigger touchscreen.
iPod shuffle: nope, too expensive.

MacBook (Pro): maybe as a secondary display.

=> The secondary display makes most sense. Unless it's a entirely new product.

 

[Vahvakarhu]

lol! propably nothing!

 

[VeryNifty]

iPod touch

It might be for the iPod touch. If they integrate face time into the touch, but can't fit 2 cameras into their design because they insist on making impossibly thin, then a screen/touchpad on the back would let you see what you're pointing the front camera at and take the picture.

 

[3247]

It might be for the iPod touch. If they integrate face time into the touch, but can't fit 2 cameras into their design because they insist on making impossibly thin, then a screen/touchpad on the back would let you see what you're pointing the front camera at and take the picture.

Yes, fitting a second display is certainly easier than fitting a second cam.

 

[johnhope]

This is the upcoming apple tv remote

 

[firewood]

You know what's funny? You might actually be right. I remember I had a watch by the company fossil, years ago. It attempted to do a lot of what the iphone now does but very very poorly and no color.

I had one of those. It had awful battery life. Barely lasted a day on a full charge, if that, even with only a very dim greyscale display and a CPU about 100X slower than an A4.

 

[lord patton]

It might be for the iPod touch. If they integrate face time into the touch, but can't fit 2 cameras into their design because they insist on making impossibly thin, then a screen/touchpad on the back would let you see what you're pointing the front camera at and take the picture.

Just... What?!

 

[intervenient]

Shuffle would be really cool. I'd buy one.

 

[outaru]

Shuffle would be really cool. I'd buy one.

me, i'll buy two.. just imagine clipping this thing on your shirts collar or sleeve.. if my imagination may get wild, i bet there will be an app that can turn it to a flash light or a blinker..

 

[viniciusc]

We don't know what it is. Fact.
Perhaps apple doesn't as well. I believe they have tons of projects in development "just in case" they might fit somewhere among 'i's and 'macs'.

 

[bogg]

I can see two different uses:

1. Notification screen for Laptops. Will contain push notifications from applications even if the computer itself is sleeping.

2. Dock extension on palmrest. Will allow you to switch between and start applications. Will also give notifications as in #1.

Why do i believe this? Well, A square screen is obviously most suited to show things with a fixed square size, such as Icons. A Square GUI? NAH.

 

[Gator24765]

sucks for people with fat fingers...

 

[res1233]

iPod shuffle with a screen!!! YES! that must be it! 😀
OMG! Maybe an iWatch! Make it so! 😀😎

 

[alphaod]

Back of the computer LCD (where the Apple logo sit); then you can customize your logo with different colors (or even pictures!).

Oh I can only wish!

 

[nathb]

my thumb fits pretty well on a 3x3cm square, maybe it's a fingerprint recognition screen?

 

[res1233]

my thumb fits pretty well on a 3x3cm square, maybe it's a fingerprint recognition screen?

That would be pretty nice. Imagine that type of device on all Macbook/pros. As long as it isn't too expensive, I'd give it a big thumbs up, but... I find it hard to believe that such tech isn't expensive, although if someone else knows better, I'd be happy to hear it. 😀😎

 

[jamiedudd]

Maybe a rear facing screen for the next gen iPod touch? They'd only need the front facing camera then. 🙂

 

[chasemac]

how big are keys on a keyboard? about 3cm? touchscreen keys.

2.54 cm per inch
So 3cm times 1 inch/2.54 cm equals 1.1811

Could be a part of the keyboard or some type of input device. A button or some part of a series of touch screen buttons. The first touch type of buttons on apple products I remember (with your finger) were on the cinema displays. What I would like the see is what someone mentioned about car stereo integration. Whatever this is, I would really want something that works perfectly with my car stereo.

 

[MattInOz]

Yes, fitting a second display is certainly easier than fitting a second cam.

The second display would either still make it thicker or reduce the battery size?

If they are happy to make it thicker to fit the 5MP camera they would have room for second camera and a bigger battery. They are buying those things already so adding extra number helps bring the price down.

A second screen only adds complexity for no real feature benefits.

A shuffle nano hybrid replacement with the nano being replaced by smaller iPod touch.

Small screen clip on iPod with the full Nike+ system built in. Shuffle is the king of the gym anyway and the camera in the nano makes them not the best in that situation. Can the shuffle take up that cost.

A cool option would be the a phone watch. Team it with a iPad or iOS hybrid Macbook Air sounds like a winning combo. Although Samsung already have a phone watch it's very thick to get the battery in.


Samsung watch at giz

 

[Burnincoco]

New Keyboard with iOS and OSX integration

 

[Lesser Evets]

sucks for people with fat fingers...

Not really.

If this little screen is touch and made for a very simple iPod (shuffle/nano), you only need 5 or 6 functions, maybe 8 at most. You can have the edges be the button surfaces(pause, play, menu) with drags across for other functions (fore, back, different play lists). That gives 8 functions from one, tiny screen. Add double tap for another function. At the same time it could display stuff, so it might be like MattInOz said above: nano-shuffle hybrid.

Could be a new shuffle feature to keep the tech price up. Seems like crap to me, though, since Apple should be getting those tiny shuffles down below $50 as entry tech.