![]() ![]() Low-end MBPs, MacBooks, MacBook Airs, iMacs and Mac Pros have no access to the interface, not even via an accessory. Apple limits the Touch Bar to a subset of a single line of computers, the MacBook Pro. Sure they iterated on it, but outside of the Shuffle, the traditional iPod’s all shared that interaction design. Imagine if they included the scroll wheel on only one generation of iPod. ![]() It’s no wonder it doesn’t work all that well.Īpple further exacerbated this by making it an extremely limited interface. This is by definition a compromise on the idea of touch interaction. The Surface tablets have adjustable hinges and detachable keyboards to make the touch experience more native. Microsoft’s response to this was to create a line of devices that were “lapable” tablets. Personally I think Apple just doesn’t want fingerprints smudging up their pretty displays. With the introduction of the redesigned MacBook Air in 2010, Steve Jobs said a laptop touch screen is “ergonomically terrible.” This may be a bit of exaggeration, but it’s not ideal on a typical laptop some of the time. I am of course speaking of the Touch Bar.Įven as touch screens have become fairly standard in the Windows world, Apple has purposely resisted the tide for at least the past eight years. But it seems fair to say their attempt at a more reasonable touch interface for laptops hasn’t gone well. The jury is still out if the “digital crown” will carry a similar impact on wearables. When Apple makes interface decisions, there’s a track record of success. Most famously, their choices around multitouch gestures for iOS have come to define touchscreen interactions for more than a decade. They were pretty early on in being bullish on mice for navigating GUIs (albeit with a steadfast hatred of multiple buttons) and they came up with a unique paradigm to make the iPod a one-handed device. Historically, Apple is pretty good about choosing interfaces for their devices.
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