Albatron monitor supports Windows 7 multi-touch interface

A new monitor from Albatron offers low-cost support for the multi-touch user interface being introduced with Microsoft's Vista successor Windows 7.

The Optical Touch Monitor (OTM) uses infra-red sensors and reflection bars instead of the usual resistive or capacitive layer to register touch. It works cheaper and has many other advantages, according Albatron:

• It requires no recalibration and is more robust because there is no sensor layer to wear away.
  
• The lack of a sensor layer means the cost is largely independent of screen size. It also means the display is brighter, because light does not have to penetrate the layer.
  
• There is no constraint of screen size, whereas most touch monitors tend to be small.
  
• The monitors will be available in Taiwan in March but the is no information on UK availability or price.

There is nothing new about using infra-red sensors for this type of task. At least one smart clipboard product has used a similar system for digitising whatever you write or draw on a paper pad.