Acer is working on a frameless laptop with touchscreen keyboard that uses the back of the panel’s glass substrate as the cover – with potential release in the second half of 2010.

Coupled with a touchscreen keyboard, the rumored device should be impossibly thin by traditional laptop comparisons. Keep in mind that we’ve already seen this Frame Zero concept from Fujitsu and Acer’s arch-rival ASUS has been showing off its dual-display laptop prototype with touchscreen keyboard for months. Even the OLPC XO-3 plans to eschew the clickity keyboard in favor of a touchscreen version.

The design will help reduce the thickness of the ultra-thin notebook and can also reduce material costs.
Acer will also adopt a touch keyboard to allow the notebook to be even thinner.

Apple’s touch-screen iPad tablet will go on sale in the UK in “late April”, the company has revealed. The late April launch date applies to both models of iPad – the wi-fi only and wi-fi plus 3G – in the UK.

Apple’s UK website still gives a March launch date for the wi-fi only iPad with the 3G iPad stated to arrive in the UK in April. However, according to a press release from the company today, both devices will now arrive at the same, albeit slightly later, time.

CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the iPad back in January. The touch-screen tablet device resembles a giant iPod Touch and is designed for web browsing, playing games and reading e-books.

The news coincides with Apple’s first iPad advert, which featured during the Oscars. You see the airbrushed hands of a man at home picking up the iPad to check out videos, read the New York Times, flip through book pages, check his private mail, and that sort of thing… See for yourself.

With the proliferation of kiosks, especially in retail outlets, businesses now have a new weapon in their branding arsenal.
According to the latest version of Summit Research Associate Inc.’s annual report, “Kiosks and Interactive Technology — Global Statistics and Trends,” 1.85 million kiosks were projected to be in use by the end of 2009, with each seeing an average of 94 users per day. Summit forecasts that number to grow to 1.9 million by the end of 2010 and to 2 million in 2011.

Branding is a powerful tool that can be integrated into almost any kiosk, and when done well can significantly increase its effectiveness and value. The branding of today’s retail kiosks carries a tremendous amount of influence when it comes to a customer’s purchasing decision.

Kiosks deliver a range of services 24 hours a day, and what customers experience while using the machine can shape their perception of the product or service offered by the kiosk and the environment in which it is located.

“When it comes to a retail self-service kiosk, 70 percent of the buying decision is made at the point of purchase,” said Ronald Bowers, senior vice president of business development with Grafton, Wis.-based Frank Mayer & Associates. “Media advertising, the identity influence and out-of-store promotion account for 30 percent of the consumers’ decisions.

Those who find the touchscreens on their ever shrinking gadgets too fiddly to handle, will be glad to hear scientists are developing a new touch surface… your own arm.

Developers at Microsoft Research and Carnegie Mellon University are working together to create an armband that projects an interface directly onto your skin.

They have combined a mini projector which creates a changing display with a sophisticated sensor that can tell which part of your arm is being tapped.

The researchers showed Skinput can be used to control audio devices, play simple games like Tetris, make phone calls and navigate simple browsing systems.

The gadget effectively turns your arm into a touchscreen surface by picking up various ultra-low sounds produced when you tap different areas.

Different skin locations are acoustically distinct because of bone density and the filtering effect from soft tissues and joints. The team then used software that matched sound frequencies to specific skin locations. The prototype then uses wireless technology like Bluetooth to transmit the commands to the device being controlled, such as a phone, iPod, or computer.

In April, the researchers plan to present their work at the Computer-Human Interaction meeting in Atlanta, Georgia.

2010 is the year of 3D television and theatrical film, but do not forget about still photography. Fujifilm is planning a spring shipment of its 3D camera station kiosks that are designed for spots where people are likely to take photographs, such as tourist attractions, parks, and special events.

No pricing details are known, but Fujifilm’s camera can print out 4 different size photos, which can also be altered and enhanced with 3D graphics from various templates. The company claims that to enjoy the effect, no 3D glasses are necessary. The stations are 50kg each, so do not even think about lifting one.

Self-service solutions seem to be available everywhere these days. You can find eye exam kiosks in convenient locations such as chemists, some parts of town are using kiosks to enable bike sharing, and even some bars and nightclubs are using kiosks to determine if late-night revellers have had one to many to drive home.

One of the fastest growing verticals for self-service screens has been libraries. Many are installing kiosks to help streamline a variety of processes – in the hopes of reducing costs and improving the customer experience. Customers may use the kiosks to place holds on books, to pay fines, and to check out books. Some locations are even closing smaller libraries and replacing them with vending kiosks that actually dispense books. The face of the traditional library is changing, and its long-term viability may be at stake.

For those who continue to utilize the library, there’s great news! Thanks to technology investments, it’s becoming much easier – the self-service kiosks make the trip more convenient than ever. And, thanks to the kiosks enabling less complex tasks, librarians will have more time to spend with customers who need specialized services.

Content strategies and discussions will dominate the launch of new networks and the re-thinking of older networks. Content began to rise to the top of the agenda in 2009 and now in 2010 it takes a front and centre seat.

No matter what shape or size the display is, content is the fundamental element which ultimately leads to the very success, or failure, of a digital signage deployment. Some of the greatest success stories for brands in 2009 have been achieved by creating content that is relevant to the experience and activities that the consumers are engaged with at the time of interaction.

Keith Kelsen, author of “Unleashing the Power of Digital Signage” and CEO of the 5th Screen, says:

“Any team that is operating a digital signage network or is planning a network has a unique opportunity to bring excellence to this emerging industry and set some precedents. We can see this already in the work of some networks that have focused on research with innovative approaches using content as the source and cause for relevant messaging that is useful, helpful and provides a positive experience for the viewer.

“Content for DOOH will stand alone during its creative production, but content will have more continuity in 2010 with the other four screens (cinema, TV, PC and mobile) to echo its message across the digital landscape of screens. As for every screen that is put into this new landscape, it will be the experience that the consumers will take away, and what better way to impact that experience than with great content.”

South Africa’s Southern Sun Hotels’ Sandton City is launching what it bills as “Africa’s very first hotel self check-in and check-out kiosks,” according to the chain’s Facebook page – nicely timed for the 2010 World Cup that begins in June.

The touchscreeen-enabled kiosk allows guests to check-in and out and to perform certain in-house hotel functions within the hotel environment. Guests can check in by identifying themselves by reservation number or credit card, and then the kiosk integrates with the hotel’s operational system, allocates a room, authorizes a debit or credit and dispenses a room key card. Check-out follows a similar identification process.

“Our guests already use self check-in facilities at airports and the movies, and at economy, economy plus and brand hotels overseas. Generally, they welcome technology that enables them to ‘do it themselves’ – not to mention quickly,” said Southern Sun managing director Graham Wood.

For those seeking a human interaction, Garden Court Sandton City hostesses will continue to provide check-in services at reception, and will also be available to assist customers with the self check-in terminals if needed.

Microsoft has been working on touch technology for a while. The big drawback was the hardware interface. But that is no longer the case. Here are some of the enhancements that Microsoft has done to improve the user interaction with their touch screens…

Easier grasp on PC’s.
Microsoft has enlarged icons in Windows 7 for the Start Menu, Taskbar and Windows Explorer. This makes it easier to grasp the PC. So in place of the mouse, you can open and shut programs by directly tapping or double-tapping with your fingers. You can also summon a virtual onscreen keyboard, too, though it’s nowhere near as natural as typing on a physical keyboard.

Multi-touch operations
You can also zoom in on a picture by spreading two fingers apart, or zoom out by pinching them back together. You can “right-click” by holding down one finger while you tap the screen with a second finger.

100 Point Support
Windows 7 can support up to 100 touch points, Microsoft says, though there are hardware constraints (screen size) and the genetic reality of having just so many fingers with which to perform gestures. The behavior on the screen changes depending on how many fingers you use.

More than 80 percent of wine and spirits shoppers would use a self-service kiosk for product information such as tasting notes, food pairing recommendations and cellaring guidelines, according to early results in an ongoing survey being conducted by RetailCustomerExperience.com.

The survey found that while 74 percent of shoppers have asked for assistance and more than 70 percent rated the service as “excellent” or “good,” the majority of shoppers (82 percent) would “absolutely” or “probably” use such a kiosk for information and that more than 53 percent would “absolutely” or “probably” purchase a greeting card from the kiosk with this information on it.

“With over 98 percent of respondents saying they have shopped for wine or spirits to give as a gift or take to a dinner party, a self-serve kiosk supports the need for accessible product information with the convenience of providing a greeting card all at once,” said David Weinberg, president of the survey’s sponsor, Curiosk Marketing Solutions Inc.

Respondents made their wine or spirits purchases in various store types, with the top four being privately owned or government-run specialty wine and spirits shops (95 percent), grocery stores (68 percent), winery tasting rooms (65 percent) and mass merchants (44 percent).