Just caught this news story over on Anandtech. “Apple Patents Method to Create Displays that Can Take Pictures and Videos“. Okay a bit scary, but also very exciting. If it ever works, I think camerascreens could be nearly as big a change for how we build software and interact with each other and computers as was the mouse. Two potentially killer applications mentioned:
1) Video conferencing where you can actually make eye contact with someone
Just think about that for a second, imagine the changes to the way we work and live if video conferencing could go just that little bit further to have almost the same quality and immediacy of real face-to-face interaction?
2) computer screens and content therein that could recognise gestures. Imagine scrolling or clearing those windows off your desktop with a wave of your wrist. Gestures I think have enormous potential. Sure it exists today to some extent, but with a mouse gestures are a bit clumsy. With my tablet though, being able to point and “flick” links to open in a new firefox tab is a beautiful thing. I’d love to see gestures used more widely on a larger scale. Of course, nintendo is also a company that is about to show us some very cool things you can gestures.
now, just one little issue to get out of the way, are you ready for your computer to be watching you at all the times?
I’d love to see apple try to launch this another great advertisement referencing 1984…