Force Touch

Apple launches 15″ MacBook Pro with Force touch, refreshes 27-inch iMac while bringing down price

Christian Zibreg ∙ May 19, 2015

Apple on Tuesday launched a new 15-inch MacBook Pro model with Force Touch trackpad, Intel's faster fourth-generation Haswell chip and other features

In addition, the Cupertino firm has refreshed its 27-inch iMac with 5K Retina screen while making the system more affordable than before.

The new baseline iMac configuration has a slower 3.3GHz chip (previously 3.5GHz) and the traditional 1TB hard drive instead of the Fusion drive. More importantly, it now starts out at just $1,999, a much appreciated discount from the previous asking price of $2,499. In addition, the top-end iMac configuration is now available at a lower price of $2,299.

12.9″ iPad Pro rumored to feature stylus, NFC, Force Touch input, USB-C connector and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

Apple's rumored 12.9-inch iPad Pro is understood to include a number of interesting hardware features, including a Bluetooth stylus accessory, support for Force Touch input and a USB-C connector, AppleInsider has ostensibly learned from a person familiar with Apple's future product plans.

Dubbed by the press 'iPad Pro,' the device believed to be in the works should feature a larger 12.9-inch display, as rumored many times before. The timetable for release for this device is unknown at this point and AppleInsider is adamant that a number of changes are in tow to the iPad lineup.

Apple testing two Force Touch pressure sensing designs for iPhone 6s

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 16, 2015

Apple is reportedly testing two different designs for incorporating Force Touch pressure sensing into the screen of the next iPhone, according to a supply chain report Thursday published by DigiTimes, a hit-and-miss Taiwanese trade publication.

In considering how to best add the Apple Watch-style Force Touch technology to the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, which should debut this fall, the Cupertino firm could either place the pressure sensor underneath the touch panel backlighting layer or between the outermost protective screen cover and the in-cell touch panel.

Force Touch could be exclusive to iPhone 6s Plus

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 5, 2017

If a new report out of Taiwan is an indication, Apple's pressure sensitive Force Touch technology should make an appearance later this year on an iPhone, but exclusively on a bigger 'iPhone 6s Plus'. Prior rumors have called for pressure-sensitive screen on both 'iPhone 6' and 'iPhone 6 Plus' this fall.

Pressure sensing marketed as Force Touch was first announced on the Apple Watch last fall, making its way later into the trackpad of the newly rolled out twelve-inch MacBook and updated MacBook Pro notebook. On the Watch, the feature taps tiny electrodes positioned around the screen which distinguish between a tap and a press.

This app turns your Mac’s Force Touch trackpad into a drawing tablet

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 24, 2015

Apple's improved Force Touch trackpad on the new 12-inch MacBook and early-2015 MacBook Pro models has pressure sensors that make possible all sorts of new interactions, among them pressure-sensitive drawing with your finger.

In OS X Yosemite, for example, you can press lightly on the trackpad for a thin stroke or harder for a thick one when marking up a Mail attachment or creating a signature for forms in Preview.

And now, a Mac application called Inklet has been refreshed with superior pressure-sensitive drawing capabilities, basically turning the Force Touch trackpad in your Mac notebook into a powerful drawing tablet.

How Apple’s Force Touch trackpad with Haptic Engine elevates video editing experience in iMovie

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 14, 2018

The iMovie 10.0.7 update, released earlier in March, contains some nifty features for owners of Apple's new 12-inch MacBook with Force Touch trackpad.

As first noticed by Final Cut blogger Alex Gollner, Apple's Taptic Engine inside the notebook's new trackpad (advertised as Force Touch) provides a nuanced video editing experience in iMovie.

The Taptic Engine can provide physical feedback in iMovie based on context. For example, when dragging a video clip to its maximum length, you’ll get feedback letting you know you’ve hit the end of the clip.

WSJ: Next iPhone to get Force Touch, distinguishing between light and deep taps

Jake Smith ∙ March 10, 2015

The Wall Street Journal reports on Tuesday that Apple will include Force Touch technology on its next line of iPhones, being able to distinguish between a light tap and deep press, like on the upcoming MacBook, MacBook Pro, and Apple Watch.

Furthermore, the publication reports Apple may include a pink option of the next iPhone, believed to be called the "iPhone 6s", that will keep the same design of the current iPhone 6.

Poll: should the next iPhone implement Apple Watch’s Force Touch pressure sensing?

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 14, 2018

If you believe recent reporting by Tech News Taiwan and UDN, Force Touch, one of the technologies behind the Apple Watch, could make its way into this year's refresh of the iPhone 6, likely to be referred to as an ‘iPhone 6s’.

To get you quickly up to speed on Force Touch, it's a handy feature that relies on a bunch of tiny electrodes around the Watch's display that recognize the difference between a tap and a press, thereby providing the user with quick access to contextually specific controls.

But would Force Touch make sense on the iPhone, do you think?