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Whats Wrong With A Glass Trackpad?!

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Original poster
Apr 10, 2007
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It seems everyone hates the idea of a glass trackpad, but for me a glass track pad is on the top of my list of things I want in the next macbook/pro.

Im not talking about putting a screen under the trackpad but just making the surface of the trackpad glass, its so much more durable, I have never seen a iPod Touch or iPhone with a worn out screen but after just a few months normal trackpads start to wear out on me, my first gen macbook's trackpad is completely worn out in the middle.

Who cares about finger prints on your trackpad if it is going to last way longer!
 
i am up for the glass track pad
but i was also looking forward to the idea of having screen underneath
it would be great
 
I am fine with the glass track-pad.
I actually think it would make the laptop look more high-tech.
 
It would be the first thing to break ...? and unfortunately knowing Apple will take ages for them to admit an issue

*ducks
 
It would all depend on the build quality of the glass trackpad, which would be hard to make it stable
 
Apparently you guys who want a glass trackpad haven't spent enough time with the iphone or ipod touch, the glass is NOT slick AT ALL it takes quiet a bit of pressure to slide your finger across it, its great for tapping but thats ALL the current trackpad is WONDERFUL its very easy to glide your finger across and works just FINE
 
squeeks said:
Apparently you guys who want a glass trackpad haven't spent enough time with the iphone or ipod touch, the glass is NOT slick AT ALL it takes quiet a bit of pressure to slide your finger across it, its great for tapping but thats ALL the current trackpad is WONDERFUL its very easy to glide your finger across and works just FINE
Click to expand...

Exactly. A smooth glass surface provides a lot of friction to a fingertip. High humidity makes it even worse. They could grind the glass to make it easier to glide your fingers on it, but then you couldn't have a display underneath. If there is no display, then there's no point in using glass. Concerning longevity, the current trackpad should last a long time if you keep it clean, so that's not a reason to use glass either.
 
valvehead said:
Exactly. A smooth glass surface provides a lot of friction to a fingertip. High humidity makes it even worse. They could grind the glass to make it easier to glide your fingers on it, but then you couldn't have a display underneath. If there is no display, then there's no point in using glass. Concerning longevity, the current trackpad should last a long time if you keep it clean, so that's not a reason to use glass either.
Click to expand...

Word. Glass will provide much more friction. Grinded glass would've been quite nice.. but then again: why do it in the first place?

I'm not really a fan of this idea. I want a touchpad with really low friction, especially one with the same amount of friction at any given time.
 
bolen said:
Word. Glass will provide much more friction. Grinded glass would've been quite nice.. but then again: why do it in the first place?

I'm not really a fan of this idea. I want a touchpad with really low friction, especially one with the same amount of friction at any given time.
Click to expand...

well , I've just run my finger across the glass crt screen in front of me & it was smooth :confused:
 
bolen said:
Word. Glass will provide much more friction. Grinded glass would've been quite nice.. but then again: why do it in the first place?

I'm not really a fan of this idea. I want a touchpad with really low friction, especially one with the same amount of friction at any given time.
Click to expand...

Yeah, and me. All it takes is a tiny bit of sweatiness - and given the heat of the MBP, that isn't exactly unlikely - and you're bumping and stumping along the thing.

I really like the current trackpad on the MBP. Even something with the smoothness and sensitivity of the pad on my four-year-old Fujitsu Siemens would be fine!
 
Mr Nice Guy said:
I have to see it before I can decide wether it's a good or a bad idea
Click to expand...

Same, plus some reviews from some REPUTABLE sources aka MacRumors, PCWORLD, CNET, ...

alphaod said:
It adds to the weight.
Click to expand...

... That would be bad. :|

marbles said:
It would be the first thing to break ...? and unfortunately knowing Apple will take ages for them to admit an issue

*ducks
Click to expand...

Agreed.

Tingaling said:
It would all depend on the build quality of the glass trackpad, which would be hard to make it stable
Click to expand...

Also agreed.

squeeks said:
Apparently you guys who want a glass trackpad haven't spent enough time with the iphone or ipod touch, the glass is NOT slick AT ALL it takes quiet a bit of pressure to slide your finger across it, its great for tapping but thats ALL the current trackpad is WONDERFUL its very easy to glide your finger across and works just FINE
Click to expand...

Yes, I just found out today that it DOES take quite a bit of pressure... Thats bad, considering that MacBook pros are supposed to have MULTI-TOUCH features.
 
Tingaling said:
It would all depend on the build quality of the glass trackpad, which would be hard to make it stable
Click to expand...

Agreed. As much as I'd love an iphone-like screen/touch suface underneath, I also suspect that there will be lots of trouble durability. I already think that the the macbook pro is too fragile and that kind of trackpad would just make things worse.

Maybe I'm being too pessimistic, but I don't think so.
 
The trackpad in my MacBook Pro which I've used constantly for a year and a half isn't woren in any way. Still feels brand new.
 
The only reason I put an anti-glare screen cover on my iPhone is so that there is far less friction when sliding my fingers across, whether the humidity is high or not.

Without it i think i'd rub off my fingerprints.

Anyway...why glass in particular? Can't we have the full-multitouch without the glass? All we need is the layer of capacitance/resistance detection later.
 
Kilamite said:
The trackpad in my MacBook Pro which I've used constantly for a year and a half isn't woren in any way. Still feels brand new.
Click to expand...

same here, keep the current one, its quite nice, prolly the best trackpad ive ever used

marbles said:
well , I've just run my finger across the glass crt screen in front of me & it was smooth :confused:
Click to expand...

have you ever used an iphone or ipod touch? totally different than running your finger across a CRT screen...
 
I wouldn't mind a screen under it, but they are right about the glass not being as slick / nice to use when dragging. I have had the 1st gen iphone since day one, but when I got the 3G I put on a antiglare screen protector and even though it does not make the screen as crisp I can't believe I did not use one on my first phone. Your finger slides so much easier with it, just like on the macbook pro touchpad. I gave my old phone to my son and when I use it I can tell a big difference when moving your finger across it.
 
MysticMage said:
Even if everyone did want it, the source that said we were going to get it was wrong about the release date anyway.
Click to expand...
Rumored release dates do get pushed back from time to time. A miss on the release date doesn't necessarily make the rest of the rumor wrong.
 
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