Touchpads

Seems to be lots of complaints about the touchpads on various models. Just wondering why PC manufacturers seem unable to match the Mac touchpad experience. Is it not possible for them to dismantle the Mac and duplicate its touchpad? What's holding them back?

 

Because Apple use pretty much the same drivers for all their laptops, and is baked into the OS. PC laptops on the other hand, usually have loads of models with different trackpads and therefore need separate drivers.

Also, you get what you pay for, sure you don't get the best specs for the price but the Macs certainly have very good peripherals.

 

IMO, the largest problems of non-Apple touchpads are biased reviewers. While there is no shortage of incredibly bad touchpads, many touchpads are just fine, it's possible to get used to them in a matter of hours and stop noticing them.

Still, most reviewers are using Macs, got used to Macs, and if anything is different - it's a bad thing.

If touchpad has physical mouse buttons (awesome, in my book) - this does not add points, for example. If there is TrackPoint - who cares. If touchpad has a dedicated scroll area on the right side - no matter. But if two finger scroll does not work the EXACT same way as in Macs, or some very rare gestures like pinch-to-zoom don't work EXACTLY the same way - it's a problem, even if fixable with drivers ( in the older days https://code.google.com/p/two-finger-scroll/ was a popular way to get scroll fixed ).

Same with keyboards: laptop reviewers rarely complain about Apple's keyboard layout, or key travel, or shape, or lack of important physical keys, or the huge distance between the keyboard and edge of the laptop (which had to be made to fit large touchpad). They got used to these to the point that having a smaller distance invokes complaints about short palmrest and issues with ergonomic (incredibly ironic)

 

^^ what @hazelwood said. The Apple trackpad experience is a direct result of Apple being able to control both the hardware and software to engineer the perfect solution. WinPC manufacturers, on the other hand, need to marry hardware/software from multiple sources, and I bet many of them value component cost as much as performance.

Then there's the desperation of WinPC makers trying ever so hard to differentiate themselves from the pack, which gives us things like the buttonless Lenovo touchpad

Personally I don't use Macs very often but when I do I am in awe at the touchpad. It's still easily the nicest implementation out there IMO. Yes, one does get used to touchpads and they eventually just 'disappear' into the background, but with Apple's I find myself stroking it just for the pleasure of the silky-smooth response

Lenovo's versions have been pretty dire up to now IMO. here's hoping the T440 version is better.

 

I am only used to Trackpoints since all I have ever used were THinkpads. With that said since this post was under Lenovo so I assume you a fan. And therefor if you have read reviews in the past few years you would know that Lenvos, while no Apple, have pretty good touchpads. But also like somepne said people just adapt also.

 

I for one am not ever going to get another notebook without a trackpoint type thing... using a touchpad with any notebook while it's on your lap is just plain awkward...

anyway .. opinions are like ........ everyone's got one

 

Am I one of the few people who can't stand this large trackpad fad and actually prefers the TrackPoint much, much more?

The main point of any mouse-like device is to be as accurate a pointer as possible, and trackpads simply can't do this. Your fingers will mever be as accurate as a decent physical mouse, or even a TrackPoint...

 

And then there's the quote just above: "Lenovo's versions have been pretty dire up to now IMO."

 

I find the TrackPoints pretty accurate to use, but after about 15 mins my finger feels like its going to explode from all the fine movements, and going back to a touchpad feels so relaxed.

 

Eh, I've never had that problem personally.

 

Then you're not using it correctly. Period.

 

I tried the TrackPoint 20 years ago, back when IBM Thinkpads cost about $5,000. Never got used to it, always preferred using a mouse. I suspect the technology might have changed a bit since then.

 

TrackPoints definitely got lighter as the ThinkPads evolved. Having said that, if you didn't buy into the experience back then, chances are that you wouldn't be enjoying it now either.

For many people, a mouse is the only appropriate solution. With touchpad-only units such as my ToughBooks, I always use a mouse, although the touchpad itself - especially on their business class - is not bad at all. It's just that the entire touchpad concept never worked for me.

Obviously, to each his/hers own.