Zune Thoughts: Microsoft Sidesight

"Many of us are pretty happy with touchscreen implementation in products like the iPhone or HTC Touch. But Microsoft (teaming with HTC hardware, at least in this photograph) has developed a new sort of touchscreen that doesn't involve touching the screen at all. Instead, IR beams shoot out from the sides of the phone and track your gestures on any surface. The beams are arranged in two rows and spaced 10 millimeters apart, aimed horizontally preventing overhead light sources from interfering. Users can then operate the device using both hands without even touching the phone, scrolling with vertical or horizontal movements, rotating an object on the screen by twisting or even scrolling on one side wile writing with a stylus on the other."

This seems like an absolutely brilliant idea. I've never been a fan of touchscreens, especially on small devices since your fingers end up blocking the view and you get fingerprints all over the place. The only downside I see is that it would not be overly practical to use while holding the device. Otherwise, nice to see an outside the box idea for user input.