A dual-touchscreen is a computer or phone display setup which uses two screens, either or both of which could be touch-capable, to display both elements of the computer's graphical user interface and virtualized implementations of common input devices, including virtual keyboards. Usually, in a dual-touchscreen computer or computing device, the most persistent GUI elements and functions are displayed on one, hand-accessible touchscreen (changing with the software application in use) alongside the virtual keyboard, while the other, more optically-centric display is used for those user interface elements which are either less or never accessed by user-generated behaviors. This approach is similar to that of the

Nintendo DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in t ...

handheld game console's construction, in which user-generated actions are initialized on the lower resistive touchscreen while the resulting graphical displays are executed in the upper screen. The same approach was adopted on its successor unit, the

Nintendo 3DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo. It was announced in March 2010 and unveiled at E3 2010 as the successor to the Nintendo DS. The system features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS video games. As an eighth-generati ...

and a similar concept was created for Nintendo's eleventh home console, the

Wii U The Wii U ( ) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo as the successor to the Wii. Released in late 2012, it is the first eighth-generation video game console and competed with Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4. ...

, with its controller's resistive touchscreen used in the same fashion as the lower part of the DS/3DS, and the secondary screen connected to the console.

Use in products

* In 2004, Italian design firm V12 Design designed a prototype dual-touchscreen

laptop A laptop, laptop computer, or notebook computer is a small, portable personal computer (PC) with a screen and alphanumeric keyboard. Laptops typically have a clam shell form factor with the screen mounted on the inside of the upper li ...

known as the Canova. * In 2007, Pennsylvania-based company Estari released its 2-VU laptop, initially for the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

before a public release. * In 2008, the OLPC XO-2 was announced to use a dual-touchscreen setup. * In May 2009, The Asus Flipbook was first demonstrated, at

CeBIT CeBIT was the largest and most internationally representative computer expo. The trade fair was held each year on the Hanover fairground, the world's largest fairground, in Hanover, Germany. In its day, it was considered a barometer of cur ...

as a dual-touchscreen laptop with the ability to optionally display user interface elements in both screens both horizontally and vertically; the concept design was renamed as the Asus "Eee Reader", rebranded as an

e-book An ebook (short for electronic book), also known as an e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. A ...

reader A reader is a person who reads. It may also refer to: Computing and technology * Adobe Reader (now Adobe Acrobat), a PDF reader * Bible Reader for Palm, a discontinued PDA application * A card reader, for extracting data from various forms of ...

, and scheduled for launch in Q4 2009. The device was finally renamed as "Eee Book" and scheduled for a June 2010 release at

Computex COMPUTEX Taipei, or Taipei International Information Technology Show (), is a computer expo held annually in Taipei, Taiwan. Since the early 2000s, it is one of the largest computer and technology trade shows in the world. The last COMPUTEX was ...

Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...

. * In March 2010, the

EnTourage eDGe The enTourage eDGe is a dual-panel personal device, combining a tablet computer on one screen and an e-book reader on the other. Since 2011 it has been developed by Pleiades Publishing, Ltd. The device runs Google's Android OS. At present Foxcon ...

was released, also directed more as e-reader than as computer. One of the two touchscreens is monochrome

E Ink E Ink (electronic ink) is a brand of electronic paper (e-paper) display technology commercialized by the E Ink Corporation, which was co-founded in 1997 by MIT undergraduates JD Albert and Barrett Comiskey, MIT Media Lab professor Joseph Jacobson ...

, the other is color

liquid crystal display A liquid-crystal display (LCD) is a flat-panel display or other electronically modulated optical device that uses the light-modulating properties of liquid crystals combined with polarizers. Liquid crystals do not emit light directly but ...

(LCD). * In January 2010,

Micro-Star International Micro-Star International Co., Ltd (MSI; ) is a Taiwanese multinational information technology corporation headquartered in New Taipei City, Taiwan. It designs, develops and provides computer hardware, related products and services, including l ...

(MSI) showed a prototype of a dual-touchscreen netbook at

Consumer Electronics Show CES (; formerly an initialism for Consumer Electronics Show) is an annual trade show organized by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). Held in January at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Winchester, Nevada, United States, the event t ...

(CES). * In June 2010,

Toshiba , commonly known as Toshiba and stylized as TOSHIBA, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Its diversified products and services include power, industrial and social infrastructure systems, ...

released the Libretto W100 dual-touchscreen notebook running

Windows 7 Windows 7 is a major release of the Windows NT operating system developed by Microsoft. It was Software release life cycle#Release to manufacturing (RTM), released to manufacturing on July 22, 2009, and became generally available on October 22, ...

. * In January 2011,

NEC is a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics corporation, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. The company was known as the Nippon Electric Company, Limited, before rebranding in 1983 as NEC. It provides IT and network soluti ...

announced the LT-W Cloud Communicator, a slate with dual touchscreens that unfolds like a book and runs Android 2.1. * In March 2011, Acer released the Iconia 6120 dual-screen touchbook notebook running

. * In April 2011,

Kyocera International is a Japanese multinational ceramics and electronics manufacturer headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It was founded as in 1959 by Kazuo Inamori and renamed in 1982. It manufactures industrial ceramics, solar power generating systems, telecommuni ...

released the

Kyocera Echo is a Japanese multinational ceramics and electronics manufacturer headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It was founded as in 1959 by Kazuo Inamori and renamed in 1982. It manufactures industrial ceramics, solar power generating systems, telecommunic ...

smartphone running Android 2.2 Froyo. * In April 2011,

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

announced the code-named S2, since renamed

Sony Tablet P The Sony Tablet P (former code name ''Sony S2'') is a tablet computer that was manufactured by Sony as part of the Sony Tablet series. Description It was released as the Android version of the Sony Vaio P who also had a wide screen. It has tw ...

, running Android 3.1 Honeycomb, and scheduled for release in autumn 2011. *In April 2013,

released the Medias W N-05E smartphone running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. * In October 2017,

ZTE ZTE Corporation is a Chinese partially state-owned technology company that specializes in telecommunication. Founded in 1985, ZTE is listed on both the Hong Kong and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges. ZTE's core business is wireless, exchange, op ...

announced the ZTE Axon M smartphone running Android 7.1 Nougat. * In 2018,

Lenovo Lenovo Group Limited, often shortened to Lenovo ( , ), is a Chinese multinational technology company specializing in designing, manufacturing, and marketing consumer electronics, personal computers, software, business solutions, and related se ...

released the Yoga Book C930, featuring one IPS display and one

display. * In February 2019, LG announced an optional second screen for the

LG V50 The LG V50 ThinQ, commonly referred to as the LG V50, is an Android phablet manufactured by LG Electronics as part of the LG V series. It was announced in February 2019 and is the successor to the LG V40 ThinQ. Specifications Design and Hardwar ...

. * In March 2019,

Samsung Electronics Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (, sometimes shortened to SEC and stylized as SΛMSUNG) is a South Korean multinational electronics corporation headquartered in Yeongtong-gu, Suwon, South Korea. It is the pinnacle of the Samsung chaebol, acc ...

announced a dual-touchscreen foldable smartphone: the

Samsung Galaxy Fold The Samsung Galaxy Fold is an Android-based foldable smartphone developed by Samsung Electronics. Unveiled on March 20, 2019, it was released on September 6, 2019 in South Korea. The device is capable of being folded open to expose a 7.3-inch ...

. * In October 2019,

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washi ...

announced two dual-screen devices: the

Surface Duo The Surface Duo is a dual-touchscreen Android smartphone manufactured by Microsoft. Announced during a hardware-oriented event on October 2, 2019 and officially released on September 10, 2020, it is part of the Microsoft Surface series of touc ...

and

Surface Neo The Surface Neo is an unreleased dual-touchscreen 2-in-1 PC that was unveiled by Microsoft on October 2, 2019. Slated to be part of the Microsoft Surface family of devices, the Surface Neo was designed to be used in various "postures" for diff ...

. The Surface Duo launched on 10 September 2020. *In October 2020, LG released the

LG Wing The LG Wing 5G is an Android-based phablet manufactured by LG Electronics. The device features a swivel design where the main display can be rotated to form a T-shape, revealing a smaller secondary display. On April 5, 2021 LG announced it will ...

running

Android 10 Android 10 ( codenamed Android Q during development) is the tenth major release and the 17th version of the Android mobile operating system. It was first released as a developer preview on March 13, 2019, and was released publicly on Septembe ...

. *In September 2021,

released the

Surface Duo 2 The Surface Duo 2 is a dual-touchscreen Android smartphone manufactured by Microsoft. Announced during a hardware-oriented event on September 22, 2021, it is the successor to the original Surface Duo. Specifications Hardware The Surfac ...

running

Android 11 Android 11 is the eleventh major release and 18th version of Android, the mobile operating system developed by the Open Handset Alliance led by Google. It was released on September 8, 2020. The first phone launched in Europe with Android 11 ...

References

{{reflist

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20130329203541/http://touchscreenlaptopsite.co.uk/
Annotated bibliography of touchscreen computing
Touchscreens

Use in products

See also

References

External links