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Google gobbles Toronto-based BumpTop |
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The acquisition of Toronto-based BumpTop appears
to give Google the upper hand in 3D touch screen technology.
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Last week's BumpTop
acquisition shines new light on where Google could be taking their
mobile operating system Android. Toronto's BumpTop specializes in
creating 3D desktop
environments for Mac and PC. A 3D desktop environment combined with
touch screen technology would create an entirely new way of using our
mobile phones, which could rival some of the industry's giants such as
Ericsson, Apple and RIM.
BumpTop's technology allows users to physically interact
with the icons on their desktop. Users can drag and drop files, crop and
resize photos, as well as hang them on the 'walls' of their 3D desktop
environment, simply by using their fingertips. The software is also compatible with files
on external drives, which appear on your 3D desktop as soon as the
device is connected to the computer.
The ability to organize and categorize documents and emails in a
clean way could give Google the advantage over RIM's Blackberry in the
business sector. The user-friendliness of the touch screen along with
the 3D interface will simplify the act of having to scroll through
emails and documents on a Blackberry.
With the BumpTop software, users will be able to flip through
their folders like pages through a book. The company calls this action
'piling' folders, rather than 'filing' folders on traditional 2D
desktops. This would simplify the task of going from application to
application in order to find the right one with a specific document.
The same software could also be integrated
into a new tablet device from Google, which could rival Apple's iPad.
Users were able to download the BumpTop for free for a limited time last week but it has since been become unavailable, however, this acquisition means that it most
likely won't be long before we see BumpTop's 3D environment software on
our latest mobile phones.
To view a
software demo, click here
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