The multi-touch technology that Apple pioneered with its iPhone is now everywhere in the modern world - but Microsoft is about to pump up the technology to a new level.
The next generation of its "Surface" table is a 40-inch touchscreen that can feel 50 "touches" at once - and can also "feel" pens, pointers or anything else placed on the table. Screens on gizmos such as iPhone can only feel fingers.
The Full HD screen has a high-powered Windows PC built in - and is just four inches thick.
The screen works by shining light upwards through the screen, which bounces back to a layer of sensors behind the screen.
It can detect not only fingers but objects on the table - whereas other touchscreen technologies are limited in what they can detect.
For instance, touching an iPhone screen with a pen will have no effect.
With that in mind, the tablet ships with apps allowing children to paint or draw directly on screen - or even edit photos and upload them to Facebook.
The screen can hang on a wall, be built into a wall, or comes with standard leg supports. If that doesn't fit with your home, you can choose your own legs.
The gizmo was named a 2011 "Best of What's New" award winner by Popular Science magazine.
The Surface SUR40 is available for pre-order now for £7499.




据英国《每日邮报》11月18日报道，苹果公司以iPhone手机开创的多点触控技术目前在现代世界随处可见，但微软公司即将把这一技术提升到新的水平。

新一代的Surface桌面电脑配有40英寸(约100厘米)的触摸屏，可同时感应50处 "点击"，除了感应手指点击外，该屏幕还能感应笔、指针或任何可以触碰电脑桌面的物体点击。而诸如iPhone手机一类的触摸屏只能感应来自手指的点击。
这款高清画质触屏电脑内置高性能的Windows PC，厚度仅有4英寸（约10厘米）。

该触屏电脑的工作原理是--电脑内部发出闪光穿透屏幕，遇到物体时再反射回电脑屏幕后的传感器。
该屏幕不仅能感应手指点击还能感应桌面上的物体点击。然而其他的触摸屏技术却在这一点上受限。
例如，用笔来点击iPhone屏幕是没有用的。

考虑到这一点，这款平板电脑装有应用软件能让孩子们直接在屏幕上图画，或编辑照片并上传到Facebook。

这款平面电脑可以挂在墙上、镶嵌在墙壁里，或者用标准的桌腿来支撑。如果配套的桌腿不适合你家的格局，你还可以选用自家的桌腿。
该项发明被美国《大众科学》杂志冠以2011年"最佳新产品" 称号。
这款Surface SUR40目前的预售价格为7499英镑(约7.5万人民币)。

• generation [,dʒenə´reiʃən] n.发生；世代；同龄人 (初中英语单词)
• screen [skri:n] n.银幕 vt.遮蔽 (初中英语单词)
• whereas [weər´æz] conj.鉴于；因此；而 (初中英语单词)
• instance [´instəns] n.例子，实例，例证 (初中英语单词)
• available [ə´veiləbəl] a.可用的；有效的 (初中英语单词)
• detect [di´tekt] vt.发觉；侦察 (高中英语单词)
• limited [´limitid] a.有限(制)的 (高中英语单词)
• tablet [´tæblit] n.碑；牌；匾额 (高中英语单词)
• upwards [´ʌpwədz] ad.=upward (英语四级单词)
• touching [´tʌtʃiŋ] a.动人的 prep.提到 (英语四级单词)
• winner [´winə] n.胜利者，得奖者 (英语四级单词)