iPad 3 might use E-sense technology that gives texture to its touchscreen
Before we begin, we strongly recommend you to file the following under wild speculations. According to The Guardian and The Next Web, which researched the matter independently of each other, the iPad 3 might have a touch feedback technology that we have yet to see implemented in an Apple device; a technology that would allow the user to "feel" the touchscreen's surface as if it had texture.
Sounds unlikely, we know, but it is claimed that a clue hidden in the invitation to the Apple event points at that direction. "We have something you really have to see. And touch." – that is what the text in the said invitation reads, and the "touch" part is the clue they have in mind.
Still, we will not dismiss the above speculation as utter nonsense as we know that such technology already exists. A few months ago, a company called Senseg demonstrated its E-sense technology, which used electrostatic fields that could simulate different levels of friction, thus creating the sensation of texture. Furthermore, the technology was demonstrated on a tablet, of all devices. And to make things even better, it is known that implementing E-sense in a device does not require any alterations of its display. However, a Senseg representative suggested that seeing the technology in a consumer product was not likely to happen in the near future, which does not bode well for the possibility of the iPad 3 taking advantage of it.
The next iPad, which is rumored to be called the iPad HD or iPad 3, will be announced later today at 10:00AM Pacific time, or 1:00PM Eastern time. Of course, we will be reporting all about it, so stay tuned!
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