Microsoft's 3D Jedi phone explored A never-released Microsoft phone has surfaced, providing a glimpse of how Redmond's designers proposed to evolve touch-based user interfaces. The "McLaren" phone, which was cancelled just months before its scheduled launch in 2014, responded to 3D "Jedi"-like gestures, which subsequently surfaced in the "Mix View" patent …
You mean this bit?
"A loud clatter of gunk music flooded through the Heart of Gold cabin as Zaphod searched the sub-etha radio wave bands for news of himself. The machine was rather difficult to operate. For years radios had been operated by means of pressing buttons and turning dials; then as the technology became more sophisticated the controls were made touch-sensitive--you merely had to brush the panels with your fingers; now all you had to do was wave your hand in the general direction of the components and hope. It saved a lot of muscular expenditure, of course, but meant that you had to sit infuriatingly still if you wanted to keep listening to the same program. "
I was going to comment "Cue relevant Douglas Adams comment, you know the one" but you beat me to it. Maybe we should have an index to save time. I think this should be number three or four after the bit about the whale and the marketing department of the Sirius Cybernetic Corporation and whatever that other one is that you happen to like.
This is *exactly* the sort of innovation that used to happen all the time at Nokia.
Some of it would see the market, some would go through several iterations before getting to market. We were always trying and testing out ideas.
The point wasn't to capture massive market share, but to capture "mindshare" - spark interest, see where it goes, use the halo to flog other things, see if the market caught up or if it was a niche curiousity.
Today, we are still waiting for a new, true innovation to hit the market. There's been nothing new for years. The iDroid duopoly just serves up warmed over ideas from the past two decades and not very well warmed either. Neither duopolist is striking out into unexplored territory, which McLaren clearly is. No one is pushing new paradigms into the market.
I think the concept was already being experimented with in 2012, so this would have been the first productised version.
Satnad probably asked how many would be sold. Answer: "Doesn't matter - its a flaming torch in the dark wilderness, lighting the way for future stuff."
Yep. I thought it was funny when I recently saw a test drive of the newest S-class M-B (or was it the 7-series BMW?), that uses gestures to control the radio (to change the radio volume you twirl your index finger in the air clockwise or anti-clockwise).
I think it is silly to replace functional knobs that have been working excellently for many decades, with air-controls. In fact, it went silly when rotating knobs were replaced by buttons that you have to hold down in order to change volume or the frequency; it can take a long time to manually find a station, and the volume is almost always never exactly right. It is either too soft, or too loud at the next step up.
As far as that is concerned, I think the most usable radio is the one in my wife's VW Caddy; it is electronic, but has actual manually operated knobs that you can turn to change the volume or station, if need be.
That'll be the BMW I would have thought.
Exactly the same thought went through my head when I was test driving a few. The 5 and 7 series have it (or as an option) but you should still have the same physical controls as before.
I think the same of ripping out all of the main console and replacing it with a single large touchscreen. When driving you rely on tactile feedback. As you rightly point out, switching a station or changing the volume can be done without even moving your eyes with traditional dials and buttons. Soon as you need to press a precise small section of a 8" plastic screen you're going to need to take your eyes off the road ahead. Same if wiggling a finger in the air at the right place - but now it's in 3D rather than the 2D touchscreen.
How that's progress I have no idea. Hardly a technical innovation, just a gimmick in the more expensive cars as far as I'm concerned.
All of that said, I would have liked the OPTION of what this phone appears to have on my phone. Seems like a nice optional extra. The last two words in that sentence are key.
OOO ERR ! But plus 1 for knobs!!!.
I HATE most modern car radios, millions of tiny buttons labelled in even tinier writing; the perfect way to crash and kill yourself!!
My old Clarion had it right, push, click and twirl a single know for all the most commonly used functions.
Of course current Clarions are useless, mine cant even switch to a traffic announcement without taking a few minutes* lie down to read the USB device and start playing it again, something the Chinese can manage in a £28 ICE unit (just a pity the sound output is shite).
*Yeah, I said MINUTES; it takes about 2 seconds per GB and my in-car USB device is a 128GB thumb drive. The cheap Chinese unit will start playing at once, and catalogue the file list in the background.
I've got a caddy and the radio is indeed relatively easy to control - if you dont have two early teen girls who delete your settings and a misses who seems to think traffic news from the whole world should interrupt the funny bits on r4!
Is has recently taken to showing a star in between a couple arrows. It was never there before and is not mentioned in the manuals and is really getting my OCD ccts overloaded. I may have to drill a whole in that bit of the screen to get rid of it!
I think samsung killed those in newer phones.
I have 2 note 3s (using one now). Those were one of many features that has stayed off the whole time inhave owned them. (Note 3 is the only android smart phone I have owned. Before that was webos and before that blackberry)
When the note 5 came out I went out and bought another note 3.
Since the Metro/ModernUI plague Microsoft has been unable to design a usable good UI.
And this proves it once again.
All their UIs just plain suck. The flat thing for them is just a way to go ultra cheap than not even an alpha prototype crap software should look so bad.
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