For all that is good about the iPhone’s capacitive touch screen, the need to touch it with your actual finger does mean that there are a lot of people walking around in this weather with hands like frozen blue claws.
Perhaps concerned at the possibility of “My iPhone gave me frostbite” headlines, APple has filed a patent application for a “High Tactility Glove System” – basically, a pair of gloves that are conductive enough to work a touch screen.
The – ahem – Glove System consists of an inner lining that has low thermal conductivity but good electrical conductivity. This lining will extend out through the outer glove at various points (e.g. on fingertips) to allow operation of the phone.
Yes, it does sound a lot like the DOTS iPhone Glove but apparently the extra layer makes Apple’s design unique enough to be considered patentable. They should at least be better than those fingerless efforts we featured last year.
