Physical buttons on phones will be completely removed by 2020

Tram Ho

The benefits of not using physical buttons, including the water resistance and durability of the device, will be much higher, at least according to a startup called UltraSense – who are expected to realize it. This interesting idea.

Currently, when you need to press the power button or increase the volume, you will have to press a physical button, and this button will sink to activate the corresponding feature. However, that will soon be a thing of the past with the first UltraSense product: a microchip, measuring just 1.4 x 2.4 x 0.5mm, capable of producing sound waves that the ears who can't hear.

The sensor, called TouchPoint, will be performing at CES next month, able to detect your button-pressing action by analyzing the dispersion or reflection of the said sound waves. It also knows when no response is needed, such as when water splashes or other objects accidentally touch – in the words of UltraSense Sales Director Dan Goehl.

The top five phone companies are currently evaluating and deploying the use of TouchPoint sensors, and the first phones to use this technology will appear in mid-2020. by using it means they do not have to make holes in the phone body to put physical buttons into it, and then have to use pads to prevent water from seeping into the phone. And the UltraSense sensors cost about the same as the physical buttons, about $ 2.

It's still not clear whether UltraSense's sensor will be included in flagship phones or lower-end phones, where manufacturers are willing to take more risks. But the current trend in the computing industry is clear: moving and mechanical components are disappearing.

" Consumers like real buttons because our subconscious likes feedback," said Avi Greengart, an analyst at Techsponential. " But sometimes the benefits like water resistance, cost, durability, design … are more dominant."

Nút bấm vật lý trên điện thoại sẽ bị loại bỏ hoàn toàn vào năm 2020 - Ảnh 1.

UltraSense's TouchPoint sensor compared to a penny

The disappearance of physical components

There are many examples of physical control buttons disappearing. Apple's original iPod had a spinning wheel, which was later replaced by a touch surface that senses when you're spinning your finger. More recently, Apple has removed the home buttons on iPhones and iPads, leaving room for bigger screens and taking the industry as a whole in the direction of swiping gestures.

Hard disks with turntables are also disappearing from personal computer systems, replaced by solid-state drives. The MacBook's trackpad no longer has a hinge, instead simulating the tap of a finger with a small motor. Today's devices are cool enough, don't need cooling fans anymore, thus using less power, being quieter, and no longer having errors because these components are degraded. And the physical keyboard, which is the soul of BlackBerry smartphones, cannot escape the fate of being "swept away".

The key to UltraSense's success is whether their solution will replicate what percentage we are familiar with, like a button sticking out of the body so we can find it by touching it. on, and we feel that we have pressed it strongly enough to activate a feature. UltraSense says the phone's outer frame can be engraved with textures so that we can identify the position of the sensors, and the touch feedback motors can generate vibrations or other types of sensors. Another feeling is to let us know when a click on the virtual button has reached enough levels to activate the feature.

UltraSense's sensor is also sensitive enough to distinguish between your finger and something else, and will work even if you're wearing gloves. It also works under a variety of temperature conditions. At the same time, the sensors need a very small current – only 20 milliamps – so they still work when the phone is off, and you need to press to turn on the phone.

Of course, when it comes to virtual buttons, there are a few other mechanisms that can be used. UltraSense's sensor is smaller and easier to calibrate than a strain gauge, says Goehl. Another common mechanism is capacitive sensors, but they do not work with gloves or under surfaces such as wood or metal.

Cars and refrigerators also work

UltraSense started with phones, but other consumer electronics that use TouchPoint sensors will soon appear in 2021, Goehl said. These sensors work with a variety of materials, including metal, wood, plastic, leather and mirrors, and operate across surfaces of considerable thickness.

Next are cars, and medical equipment. Nobody likes bacteria sticking to dials or heart rate monitors, and UltraSense sensors can be placed beneath clean, easy-to-clean surfaces.

The company also expects the TouchPoint sensor to work with gestures. A set of buttons will be able to detect swipes, and a row of 5 buttons can be used as a navigation table. The company is also working on many other improvements to apply this sensor to the trackpad for PCs, which can be integrated into the chassis.

Reference: CNET

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Source : Trí Thức Trẻ