Word that Sony is going to take touch pads to the next level. They’re working on a new tactile panel to use in its PDAs that could potentially replace keyboards:
new type of touch panel that creates a tactile sensation in users. These sensations range from that of clicking a button to that of writing on a pad of paper with a pencil… The panel creates tactile sensations by exploiting the piezo effect, applying voltage to make a quartz material vibrate. Piezo-effect vibrations normally require voltages of around 300 volts, which the batteries of a portable digital device cannot supply. But Sony EMCS has developed a low-voltage drive mechanism that can operate on just 10 volts.
