Tech Tuesday: growing touchscreen buttons and no more bad gear shifts

This week on News 1130 radio in Vancouver, I discussed these items:

• Tactus touchscreen buttons – one of the biggest reasons people didn’t like the iPhone when it first launched was the lack of a physical keyboard. A new concept from Tactus Technology could make that a moot point with their new tech that makes physical buttons literally appear on the touch screen (you have to see the demo video) and disappear when not needed. Like a virtual keyboard, this tech isn’t limited to a preset layout either with dynamic, changeable keys and shapes for the keyboards as necessary. (source)
• New BMW patent that won’t let you shift to the wrong gear – wanting to increase the number of gears but lessen the chance of a missed shift, BMW has developed a new gear box with a special fluid that blocks the gates for the gears you shouldn’t shift into at a given moment making for a smoother driving experience. (source)