I believe as usual an inventor mind never rests and always find a way to widely apply, so as apple being the pioneers with IPhone and the multitouch screen phone, Microsoft went the extra mile and adopted the idea, A new windows with new gadgets that actually can take multitouch screen to another dimension.
By now you know the Windows 7 line, but in case you've somehow missed it: it's the first major computer operating system to support multitouch, meaning it (like an iPhone) can read more than one finger press at a time. Of course, in order to take advantage of touch, you need to upgrade your hardware -- for a premium price, naturally.
Microsoft Applied Sciences Mouse Concepts (from left to right: FTIR Mouse, Arty Mouse, Orb Mouse, Side Mouse)
FTIR (Frustrated Total Internal Reflection) Mouse: A infrared camera shines through a curved plastic sheet on which your fingers rest to track your finger ticks (like pinching and scrolling) while a regular mouse sensor under the palm rest tracks movement.
Orb Mouse: This design also uses an IR camera to see how your hand moves, but instead of only tracking your fingers, it keeps an eye on your whole hand underneath its dome. Gestures are tracked through a mirror that reflects movement onto the camera lens.
Cap Mouse: Short for "Capacitive Mouse," the Cap uses a curved multitouch surface on the front half of the mouse, essentially morphing it into a curved touchscreen.
Side Mouse: More palm rest than mouse, the Side mouse doesn't have any touch sensors, but follows your fingers with a projected laser, thus turning your desktop into the defacto touch surface. Of the concepts, this one creates the largest multitouch area overall; the laser can see directly in front of the rest and up to 60 degrees on either side.
Arty Mouse: The so-called "Articulated Mouse" tracks your index finger and thumb on separate pads, which makes it ideal for more minute tasks, like manipulating 3D rendering (or CAD) software.
To see how these mice are seriously alive
Check this link: http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid3924348001?bctid=43608088001
