What is so special about the MBP Trackpad?

[Gav2k]

http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/15/3879224/apple-gets-design-patent-on-glass-trackpad

it's a somewhat limited patent that doesn't excuse other OEMs for their garbage trackpads

They have both

http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/05/14/apple-wins-utility-patent-for-macbooks-trackpad-design

 

[mcmul]

It is the only trackpad I have used that makes me feel like I don't need a mouse

Ditto. And I have used loads.

 

[ohbrilliance]

What I find cool is that the glass trackpad is capacitive. It's just loke using an iOS device without the display behind it. (I have mo idea whether the Windows laptops use the same tech)

 

[DarwinOSX]

What is so special about the MBP Trackpad?

What does it do better than or different from higher end Windows computers like the Dell XPS-15, or ASUS?

Thank you

It works.
Pc laptop trackpads are awful. The Apple track pad is very smooth and precise, utilizes multiple gestures and is large in size. PC's use different trackpad mechanics and drivers that have to work with Windows and so far nobody has made anything like Apple's trackpads. I have to laugh when you describe an Asus or Dell as high end though. Nothing Asus is and the only Dell that might quality as close to a MBP is their workstation series. But I would use HP's workstation series laptops over Dell and have in the past.

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Exactly right.

That's the thing, they CAN, they just cheap out.

Back in 2011 Synaptics put out a video showing great PC trackpads that were honestly equal to those in MacBooks. That said, working at Best Buy the last two years I've been disgusted by the crap trackpads that companies put out. Clearly they are there to cut costs, but even setting up the machines became a major frustration as companies add textures to their trackpads and include crappy buttons, or even worse if the entire pad is a button they rock terribly and constantly get false clicks. It's beyond me why someone would put a texture on a trackpad when all it does is get skin oils on it instantly and become stuttery as fingers jump off the surface when scrolling.

It's not that there aren't good PC trackpads out there, its just that for the majority of models the venders simply don't give a damn.

 

[KUguardgrl13]

What I find cool is that the glass trackpad is capacitive. It's just loke using an iOS device without the display behind it. (I have mo idea whether the Windows laptops use the same tech)

This is a recent option they added (maybe with Lion? I'm not 100% sure). You can still switch back to the "old" gestures, and many long-time OS X users do. I find that I have to use the older scrolling gesture to maintain my productivity.

In any case, Apple trackpad gestures are much more intuitive than those on PC. Hence why they also lead in touch screen gestures . Where do you think they started developing the tech?