Microsoft's hover gestures for Windows phones are magnificent

• By Tom Warren
 
• on May 5, 2016 05:09 am
 

82

Microsoft had been planning to introduce a unique 3D Touch feature with a flagship Windows phone back in 2014. While the device was canceled, the work behind Microsoft's Kinect-like gestures lives on. In a new Microsoft Research video, the software maker is revealing some of the features it was working on under the guise of "pre-touch sensing for mobile interaction."

Microsoft had been planning to use a number of sensors on the sides of a device to detect how a phone is held by grip, allowing 3D Touch-enabled phones to block an orientation switch when you're lying down in bed. In the Microsoft Research video you can also see features allowing additional gestures to be unearthed as a users' finger gets closer to the screen. Video controls are used as an example, but Microsoft was also using the same concept to allow Windows Phone users to hover over Live Tiles (MixView) and reveal information relevant to a particular app.

MICROSOFT'S 3D TOUCH WORK IS SERIOUSLY IMPRESSIVE

All of this work would have enabled Microsoft to have a truly unique interaction model, but The Vergeunderstands the company canceled its flagship Windows phone as developers found it difficult to build compatible apps. Both Sony and Samsung have tried similar floating touch features for various Android apps, but nothing quite like this. Apple has also enabled its own 3D Touch technology, but the interactions are based upon holding your finger on the screen to reveal additional features. Apple's 3D Touch is often confusing as you're never sure how an app is going to react when you hold down, but Microsoft's 3D Touch appears to anticipate and sense interactions and provide contextual features.

It's not clear whether Microsoft will ever bring its 3D Touch work to the market. The software giant is largely retrenching from its Lumia Windows phones, and rumors suggest the company is focusing on a "Surface Phone" launch for next year. While Windows Phone might not have a competitive advantage on the app side, this type of 3D Touch interaction is truly innovative and unique. We just might never get the chance to test it in reality to see if it works as well as Microsoft's concepts.

Google's Gigapixel Camera Reveals Minute Details in Famous Works of Art

By Kacey Deamer, Staff Writer | May 18, 2016 04:23pm ET

•  41
 
•  17
 
•  1
 
•  1
 
•  46
 
• MORE

Google's Art Camera captures works of art in gigapixel images that contain more than 1 billion pixels, which can reveal details otherwise invisible to the naked eye.

Credit: Google

The beauty of the world's greatest works of art can be found in the tiniest details, from brush strokes to hidden signatures — like the miniscule dabs of paint that create the impression of light reflected on turbulent water in "The Port of Rotterdam" by Paul Signac.

The Google Cultural Institute recognized this and developed the Art Camera, a custom-built robotic camera that can produce ultra-high-resolution images. Capturing works of art in gigapixel images that contain more than 1 billion pixels can reveal details otherwise invisible to the naked eye.

Advertisement

Google announced yesterday (May 17) that, in celebration of International Museum Day, the company will be donating these Art Cameras to museums around the world. [Faux Real: A Gallery of Forgeries]

"Many of the works of our greatest artists are fragile and sensitive to light and humidity," Google representatives said in a blog post announcing the project. "With the Art Camera, museums can share these priceless works with the global public while ensuring they're preserved for future generations."

Steered via a robotic system, the camera moves from one small detail to the next. Laser and sonar help the camera focus on each brushstroke by measuring the artwork's distance using high-frequency sound. By taking hundreds of close-up, high-resolution images, Google's software pieces the images together to create a digital copy of the art.

Advertisement

Mini-Drone 'RoboBee' Uses Electrode Patch To Stick To Surfaces | Video

The Harvard Microrobotics Lab that developed the insect-sized drone has given it the ability to perch. This allows it to conserve energy. Small drones have been hampered by power supply issues in the past and the new tech helps alleviate the issue.

credit : Harvard Microrobotics Lab/Harvard SEAS

- See more at: http://www.livescience.com/54804-mini-drone-robobee-video.html#sthash.3MLrj3bf.dpuf