3D Touch: What is it?

3D Touch: What is it?

The world was first introduced to the touch screen with the introduction of the first iPhone in 2007–and since then the technology (on the consumer front) has remained virtually unchanged. Touch screens could sense multiple touches (one, two, three fingers, etc) which allowed users to swipe, pinch, and pan their way around the screen.

The 3D Touch display found in the iPhone 6s is the next evolution of the multi touch display. Not only can it sense multiple points of input, it can sense how much pressure the user applies to the screen. Press lightly and get one action, press harder and get another. It is this act of pressing harder that produces pressure and on a microscopic level allows the finger to press into the display–hence interacting with it in three dimensions.

The 3D Touch display also works hand in hand with a Taptic engine in the iPhone. This is a small motorized engine that is similar to the motor that creates vibrations in your iPhone already. When the 3D Touch display senses pressure is being applied to it it provides you haptic feedback via tiny pulses or vibrations that are generated in the Taptic engine.