Sam
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Registered: 24th Dec 99
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Must have or completely pointless gadget?
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Jambo
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Registered: 8th Sep 01
Location: Maidenhead, Drives: VXR Arctic
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What OS do they run ?
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Sam
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Registered: 24th Dec 99
Location: West Midlands
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Nothing ATM 
Just an idea I had, thinking of building a prototype but then I wasn't sure if anyone apart from possibly CSI or Star Trek fans might want one!
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Fro
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Registered: 20th Jun 06
Location: Rainham, Essex Drives: A3 2.0TDi Sport
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Would be fecking cool, but dont think your average joe would buy one.
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Sam
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I know Microsoft are doing something like this:
http://www.microsoft.com/surface/en/us/purchaseprocess.aspx
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Eddx14xe
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Registered: 12th Jan 10
Location: Hertfordshire
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You can already get them, think HP make them
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Munchie
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Registered: 17th Jul 01
Location: I swap goats for mobile phones
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^^ £?
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AlunJ
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Registered: 3rd Apr 07
Location: Newport
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funky but why?
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dannymccann
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Registered: 9th Aug 06
Location: Doddington, Lincolnshire
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Yea I saw a video on t'interwebs where they were going to market them in bars where you could watch videos and stuff like that on the table.
It would be super cool but probably too expensive for normal people. As for coffee table in domestic environment, how would you about powering it? I certainly wouldnt want a wire trailing across the lounge floor to the socket, and fook ripping carpets / floors up to make space for it...
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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What Danny said. Microsoft Surface is very cool, but you'd hardly have one in your living room.
Where would you dump all your crap, isn't that the whole point of a table
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Marc
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Registered: 11th Aug 02
Location: York
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What would it be used for?
Can already get internet tv's, couple that with a laptop/iPad and what would the table offer?
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A2H GO
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Registered: 14th Sep 04
Location: Stoke
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quote:
Originally posted by Marc
What would it be used for?
Can already get internet tv's, couple that with a laptop/iPad and what would the table offer?
A massive touch screen I suppose, internet TV isn't very intuitive using a standard remote say for browsing and iPad is pretty small for watching films. I don't get how you would use/watch it though, would you have to all stand up around it.
As for having them in bars, can't see that going down well with glass and drunken chavs.
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Dom
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Registered: 13th Sep 03
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Plenty of homebrew multitouch table tops about as they aren't that hard to make (did it at uni with a PS Eye - not terribly accurate mind), although it gets costly very quickly. Seth Sandler did a decent table - http://sethsandler.com/multitouch. And NUI Group is worth looking at, especially as they do the CCV drivers. Hak5 had a reasonable episode on multitouch tables as well - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFmvM_yw72o
As for building it into a coffee table, main issue is getting it to look decent without it being a box; which is what usually happens with homebrew tables due to the required space between PJ/LCD, camera and surface. Only other option is to use touch screen monitors but they are pretty pricey for anything decent and of a decent size (plus I’m not sure if they are sealed which could an issue).
Be interested to see if you knock up a prototype though as you can do some impressive stuff, especially if you get it to be multitouch.
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Sam
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Registered: 24th Dec 99
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I'm just wondering whether there would be people out there interested in a touchscreen coffee table that would be willing to pay a few hundred quid for it (as opposed to say a few thousand which Microsoft and other big boys will be charging).
But yes as some people have said, how well would this actually be used in a domestic environment? Hmmm...
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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I'm sure theres a market out there if the price is right, but coming up with a compact stylish product does not equal couple of hundred quid.
A decent coffee table could cost you £500/600 anyway, never mind with a massive touchscreen built into it.
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Dom
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Registered: 13th Sep 03
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quote:
Originally posted by Sam
I'm just wondering whether there would be people out there interested in a touchscreen coffee table that would be willing to pay a few hundred quid for it (as opposed to say a few thousand which Microsoft and other big boys will be charging).
But yes as some people have said, how well would this actually be used in a domestic environment? Hmmm...
It's not going to be a few hundred as that wouldn't even buy you a decent camera, pj/lcd and PC to put in it. And as said, design of the table will be the most difficult part. You also have to decide what the functionality of the table is - is it full blown OS, multitouch style desktop (there is a MT desktop for Windows), custom OS/App with limited function etc etc
I certainly think there is a market for this type of product but it's a huge project to undertake.
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Sam
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Well with anything Dom, buying power dictates what you pay so say for argument's sake if this was some must-have gadget and I could pretty much guarantee how many would be bought I can always negotiate decent pricing on the parts from manufacturers to bring the retail costs down as low as possible.
I've seen examples of these touchscreen tables in commercial environments, but I'm just not convinced that is something people like you and me would want in our living rooms or whatever (hence why I thought I'd throw the question out to you lot).
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Gary
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Registered: 22nd Nov 06
Location: West Yorkshire
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Touch screen Decks would be far cooler.
Has kinda been done on a big screen but not as 2 separate decks that connect to a mixer. Or even a touch screen mixer.
Hmmm anyone a .net wiz?
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A2H GO
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Registered: 14th Sep 04
Location: Stoke
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quote:
Originally posted by Gary
Touch screen Decks would be far cooler.
Has kinda been done on a big screen but not as 2 separate decks that connect to a mixer. Or even a touch screen mixer.
Hmmm anyone a .net wiz?
Djay for iPad? 
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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I'm pretty sure there were some touch-decks on the gadget show a few weeks back.
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Dom
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Registered: 13th Sep 03
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quote:
Originally posted by Gary
Touch screen Decks would be far cooler.
Has kinda been done on a big screen but not as 2 separate decks that connect to a mixer. Or even a touch screen mixer.
Hmmm anyone a .net wiz?
Nothing NEEDS to be created, just grab a touch screen monitor and use Traktor/Virtual DJ. Or use the >Emulator< frontend.
Anyways, back on topic.
quote:
Originally posted by Sam
Well with anything Dom, buying power dictates what you pay so say for argument's sake if this was some must-have gadget and I could pretty much guarantee how many would be bought I can always negotiate decent pricing on the parts from manufacturers to bring the retail costs down as low as possible.
I've seen examples of these touchscreen tables in commercial environments, but I'm just not convinced that is something people like you and me would want in our living rooms or whatever (hence why I thought I'd throw the question out to you lot).
As said, main issues are functionality (ie: what is the table for, what will it do; browsing/IM'ing/gaming perhaps control surface for home automation gear, X10 etc, comes to my mind) and design ie: something that looks like a sleek coffee table (example 1 / example 2 / example 3) rather than the usual commercial touch screen box.
I certainly think there could be a market for this sort of thing although it'd probably be at the top end of things.
Edit - Few people have knocked them up -
http://elitechoice.org/2010/03/08/a-coffee-table-with-multi-touch-screen-could-just-be-what-the-doctor-prescribed/
http://www.gadgetfeast.com/2011/03/21/touchscape-multi-touch-screen-coffee-table/
http://www.bestofremodeling.com/blog/products/high-tech-coffee-tables
[Edited on 14-06-2011 by Dom]
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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Personally I think a computer in a table is far too complicated and unnecessary.
A simple reactive table would be much better. Something that lights up when you put something on it and give a load of colour and motion. Doesn't actually do anything, just looks cool.
Some of Doms examples do just that and I think work better for it.
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Gary
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Registered: 22nd Nov 06
Location: West Yorkshire
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I like the idea of a glass table lighting up where you place an object.
Would be very very cool.
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AndyKent
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Registered: 3rd Sep 05
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http://www.i-bar.ch/en/video/ 
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3CorsaMeal
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Registered: 11th Apr 02
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would give people neck ache imo
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