NEW DELHI: One of the distinguishing features of Samsung's Galaxy Note range of smartphones and tablets is the stylus and arch rival Apple may be looking to 'copy' it.
The iPhone maker has been granted a patent for stylus orientation detection by the US Patent and Trademark Office. The new patent describes means of detecting orientation when the stylus makes contact with surfaces like touchscreens and then calculating relative orientation between the two.
This is, however, not the first patent for a stylus that Apple has been awarded. According to a report by Patently Apple, the company already holds patent for recording the text written using the stylus, pressure and texture input, gesture recognition etc.
The focus on a stylus for mobile devices gives more credence to rumours of Apple making its first big-screen smartphone, with display measuring 5.7-inch. It is also said to be working on a 12.9-inch iPad, and a stylus may be a useful tool for professional-grade tasks.
Samsung made the stylus popular among smartphone users in 2011 with the launch of its Galaxy Note phablet. The model was a hit and was later followed up by two more phablets; the South Korean manufacturer also added tablets to its Note range.
Steve Jobs - Apple's iconic founder and former CEO - once famously dismissed the stylus as an input tool, saying that the human finger is a much more accurate medium of interacting with a touch-enabled display. Though Apple devices do not come with styluses, there is a huge market for third-party styluses - mainly for the iPad - as writing or drawing on a big screen becomes more convenient.
The iPhone maker has been granted a patent for stylus orientation detection by the US Patent and Trademark Office. The new patent describes means of detecting orientation when the stylus makes contact with surfaces like touchscreens and then calculating relative orientation between the two.
This is, however, not the first patent for a stylus that Apple has been awarded. According to a report by Patently Apple, the company already holds patent for recording the text written using the stylus, pressure and texture input, gesture recognition etc.
The focus on a stylus for mobile devices gives more credence to rumours of Apple making its first big-screen smartphone, with display measuring 5.7-inch. It is also said to be working on a 12.9-inch iPad, and a stylus may be a useful tool for professional-grade tasks.
Samsung made the stylus popular among smartphone users in 2011 with the launch of its Galaxy Note phablet. The model was a hit and was later followed up by two more phablets; the South Korean manufacturer also added tablets to its Note range.
Steve Jobs - Apple's iconic founder and former CEO - once famously dismissed the stylus as an input tool, saying that the human finger is a much more accurate medium of interacting with a touch-enabled display. Though Apple devices do not come with styluses, there is a huge market for third-party styluses - mainly for the iPad - as writing or drawing on a big screen becomes more convenient.
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