KIWIPULSE // ROCK YOUR WORLD

Microsoft Surface: My Dream Interactive Table

April 3, 2008 – 8:23 am | Written by KiwiPulse

The genius inventors at Microsoft are at it again with their high-tech innovations. They are developing the Microsoft Surface which is a new technology that allows one or many users to manipulate digital content by the use of natural motions, hand gestures or physical objects (i.e. camera, pda, cellphone, etc). The company plan to add this new technology in the hospitality businesses such as restaurants, hotels, retail stores, public entertainment venues and the military for tactical overviews.

The Microsoft Surface has five cameras inside the table that record reflections of infrared light from human fingertips. The Surface has been optimized to respond to 52 touches at a time. The most interesting features in the Surface are the direct interaction, multi-touch contact, multi-user experience and object recognition. The direct interaction allows the user(s) to launch and use an application without using a mouse or keyboard. The multi-touch contact enable multiple contact points with an interface which several people can interact with an application simultaneously.

The Microsoft Surface is a 30-inch (76 cm) display in a table-like form factor, 22 inches (56 cm) high, 21 inches (53 cm) deep, and 42 inches (107 cm) wide. The Surface tabletop is acrylic and its interior frame is powder-coated steel. The Surface runs on a custom version of Windows Vista and has wired Ethernet 10/100, wireless 802.11 b/g, and Bluetooth 2.0 connectivity.

The price of the Surface will be around $5,000 to $10,000 per unit and it will be available in 2011 for commercial purposes. However Microsoft said it expects prices to drop enough to make consumer versions feasible in 2010. This is not just a cool gadget to get people to interact and socialize, but it also is a great investment for businesses. I think it’s just a big version of the iPod Touch. What do you think?

Surface features a 30-inch tabletop display that allow several people to have unique abilities to work independently or simultaneously. All without using a mouse or a keyboard.

You can add pictures by drag and drop or edit by rotate and resize to meet your preferences.

Your friends are lost on the road? No problem, you can send them the direction!

Put your PDA on the table and you can easily add e-mail, music, pictures, etc.

You don’t know which drink to order, here a simple virtual menu that you can order and use your credit card to pay.

You can choose here the song or album you wish to listen to.

You don’t know which cellphone to buy? With this feature you can compare the cellphones and then decide which one is more appropriate for your need.

Here is what the table looks like. My dream table!

You can get more information on the website of the Microsoft Surface.

Source: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

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