There are increasing rumors that the next generation of Apple laptops are going to make more use of Multi-Touch. I think it is only reasonable to speculate that it be called the MacBook Touch. This post is about what I hope this device will be. My historical record on guessing the next Apple hardware is pretty dismal, but that doesn’t stop me from thinking about what my ideal next laptop would be.
Keep your fingers off my screen
I absolutely hate when people touch my screen with their fingers. After owning an iPhone for a while I am certain that no amount of glass can eliminate finger smudges. The last thing that I want is a touchscreen laptop. I love the idea of a touchscreen media tablet, but that is not what this post is about. MacBook + touchscreen = fail.
Give me a keyboard
Having a software keyboard on the iPhone is bearable (barely); having a software keyboard on a real computer is just plaid ludicrous. I love the keyboard on the G4 Powerbooks. The MacBook Pro keyboard is a close second. I know that in all likelihood we are going to see the MacBook Touch sporting the MacBook / MacBook Air style keys. I have been using the new thin aluminum Apple keyboard for a few days and I can get used to those keys. I just wish they were backlit.
Bye bye ginormous mouse button
If the MacBook Touch is going to have MultiTouch and it is not going to have a touchscreen then it must have a MultiTouchpad for the mouse. The rumors of a glass touchpad are awesome. I think that having a nice smooth glass touchpad with advanced multi-touch capabilities could really improve the usability of laptops. What puzzles me is that if the current, non-glass touchpads are able to do multi-touch, why would the new ones be glass? Maybe there is some technical reason that I don’t know, but my dream is…
A second screen
Take the current touchpad, get rid of the mouse button, make it glass, and throw a million pixels behind it. Applications would be able to create new and dynamic interfaces that make use of the second screen. Sure, it could really suck up some battery life, but I am usually plugged in anyway.
What do you say Steve? Will you let me buy a MacBook Touch like I described sometime this Fall? Pretty please?
