Everything You Can Do With A Touch Screen Computer or Laptop

Everything You Can Do With A Touch Screen Computer

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Touch Screen Laptop, Computer: The touch features of Windows go far beyond its handling in tablet format, thanks to the introduction of the digital pen. Laptops with this feature are a powerful tool to enhance productivity and creativity.

Although it is not presented as a star functionality by Microsoft, the reality is that we have been enjoying touch technology on the screens of our Windows operating system laptops for many years. Many users have become accustomed to enjoying its many advantages.

Since Windows XP, back in 2002, we could already use a version known as Tablet PC Edition. At that time, we not only had a tactile interface as such, they also gave us support for the use of a digital “pen” that opened the doors of a more precise interaction.

The most important evolution came with version 10 of the system and the introduction of Windows Ink, a software suite with applications and functionalities focused on the use of a digital pen .

In the last major update, Windows 11, the focus has been on making the touch screen usable like any mobile device. We can interact with the system as if it were a tablet, with gestures that take advantage of multi touch support .

All this would not have been possible if the different hardware ingredients of laptops had not evolved at the same pace. From the introduction of screens with greater sensitivity to touch, to the development of pens with greater pressure pressure, through the power provided by the hardware of the Intel Core processors of each generation .

WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF THE TOUCH SCREEN?

Once you introduce touch interaction into your workflow, it’s hard to go back. Some advantages that we can easily recognize:

  • Greater Versatility : Since it is a complementary way of using the computer, in which the keyboard and mouse are still there.
  • Navigation and interaction with elements becomes more natural. It is much more comfortable to be scrolling the screen as we do with a tablet or mobile phone.
  • The appearance of accessories such as Pens for touch screens, with which you can write by hand, draw or sign documents with comfort.

MULTITASKING: ESSENTIAL FOR AN OPTIMAL USER EXPERIENCE

We re-emphasize that implementing a touch screen is not just introducing a new type of component. From the point of view of the process, it implies much higher demands , and that is where the latest generation of Intel Core processor hardware and its video acceleration functions come into play.

An interaction with delays or “jerks” while we write or scroll the screen, would break the user experience. To the refined operation of these interactions, we must add the ability to perform them in multitasking: use a web browser with several windows while capturing elements from different pages, copy and paste them on the whiteboard while making notes. All this while using applications like Photoshop.

We are talking about fluently performing any type of task on laptops, until recently limited to desktop computers. Professionals, creatives and the most demanding users, who want to work on the move, will find in the family of Intel processors – from the Core i3 to the powerful Core i9 – the ideal brain to achieve that difficult balance between power and autonomy .

THE DIGITAL PEN: A PRECISION INSTRUMENT

In terms of precision, digital pens provide an experience close to freehand writing or drawing, thanks to the use of highly sophisticated sensors with support for thousands of pressure levels and even tilt detection.

Each stroke feels natural and provides the results we would expect using a pen and a piece of paper. We are going to discover different ways and applications with which we can improve our productivity thanks to the digital pen :

  • Turn any place into your work area. Doing without the keyboard and mouse for many activities saves us time and space.
  • The most efficient reminders. From the shopping list, to the items of our career project. Using a quick, handwritten note is the best way to remember things. The content can be synchronized between devices.
  • A magic wand for Microsoft 365. Edit Word documents, enhance PowerPoint slides with bullets and graphs, or solve math equations.
  • Unleash your creative potential. Design and content creation applications are the main beneficiaries of digital pen support, and consequently the artist. There is no lack of support in Adobe’s Photoshop and Lightroom, or in Microsoft’s own applications, such as Photos and Paint 3D.
  • A powerful tool for students. When it comes to taking notes in class, the digital format is much more useful for making sketches, diagrams and lists. Even handwritten summaries
  • Create fully digital collaborative spaces. The Microsoft Whiteboard application offers us a digital collaboration canvas through Microsoft 365. It allows us to hold effective meetings thanks to the visualization of ideas, as well as achieving more attractive and creative distance learning.

A WINDOWS COMPUTER CAN BE YOUR BEST TABLET

We put aside the pencil to delve into the other interaction that touch screens allow us, which is none other than the action of our fingers . Since Windows 8 it has been an important feature for Microsoft, but until the last two versions we have not received a gesture system that offers us truly alternative control.

Computers with Windows 10 and 11, with touch screens, can be used as if they were a tablet. Manufacturers have given prominence to this possibility by creating a new category of equipment called convertibles, in which we can rotate the keyboard so that the screen comes to the fore.

The interface does not really change its design, at any time we can touch the elements and interact with them. We can select them, hold down on them to perform the action of the right button, or drag them across the screen.

When it comes to full screen content, we can scroll just like we do on a phone or tablet. 

The same goes for two-finger zooming on images or items that allow it. But the real innovation is in the gestures :

  • Sliding a finger from the left side frame towards the center we open the widget panel. If we do it from the right side frame, towards the center, we open the latest notifications.
  • To see all open windows, we make a gesture with three fingers up.
  • If we want to show the desktop we make a gesture with three fingers down.
  • In the case of wanting the last open application: three-finger gesture from left to right, and if we want to go back, we have to perform the movement in reverse.

All these actions allow us to interact with the entire system without the need for a mouse, but we lack the possibility of entering data comfortably. For this, Windows 10 and 11 have a virtual keyboard on the screen , in the purest style of those used by mobile devices.

HOW TO CALIBRATE THE TOUCH SCREEN IN WINDOWS 10?

The touch screen is one more component and therefore it is susceptible to failures, in the vast majority of cases it will not be a hardware problem, so a restart can solve the situation.

If it continues to respond incorrectly, it is possible to try the calibration that Windows itself offers through the control panel:

  1. Press the Windows button and enter “Control Panel” in the query bar.
  2. Once open, click on “Hardware and sound”
  3. In Tablet PC settings, click on “Calibrate screen for pen or touch input”.
  4. Click on “Calibrate” and follow the instructions on the screen.

FAQ

What are the main types of touch screen?

The main types of touch screen used are:

  1. Resistive: A touch screen that consists of two layers of conductive material separated by a gap. When pressure is applied, the layers touch and create a circuit.
    Surface.
  2. Capacitive: This is a touch screen that has a conductive coating on the surface and electrodes at the corners. When a finger touches the screen, it creates a change in the electric field.
  3. Projected Capacitive: A touch screen that has a grid of conductive material embedded in the glass. When a finger touches the screen, it creates a change in the capacitance of the grid.
  4. Surface Acoustic Wave: A touch screen that uses ultrasonic waves on the surface of the glass. When a finger touches the screen, it absorbs some of the waves and changes the signal.
  5. Infrared: A touch screen that uses infrared light beams on the edges of the screen. When a finger touches the screen, it breaks some of the beams and creates a contact point.

Which company touch screen laptop is best?

Some of the best touch screen laptops in 2023 are:

  1. Samsung Galaxy Book2 Pro 360
  2. Dell XPS 13 Plus
  3. Microsoft Surface Laptop Studio
  4. Lenovo Yoga 9i Gen 8
  5. HP Spectre x360 14

Does touch screen laptop last long?

The lifespan of a touch screen laptop depends on several factors such as the brand, model, usage, and maintenance. However, touch screen laptops can last as long as non-touch screen laptops if they are well-maintained and used properly. Big tech brands like Microsoft and Apple have advanced in touch screen technologies, which allow for touch screen devices to stand and last longer.

They are so refined now that, in many cases touchscreen laptops and other devices can work on their own without needing to be plugged in for more than 12 hours. Their batteries and very robust and efficient.

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