The iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus have only been on store shelves for a few weeks but Samsung is already reportedly working on creating its own version of Apple’s innovative 3D Touch technology.
A new report sourced from Chinese micro-blogging platform Weibo indicates Samsung is preparing its own pressure-sensitive screens and that the company plans to feature the technology in its new line of upcoming Galaxy smartphones – including the Samsung Galaxy S7 – set to launch at some point next year.
Samsung is reportedly utilizing Synaptic’s “ClearForce” screen technology for its pressure-sensitive touchscreens. It’s also expected that other Android smartphone manufacturers will implement ClearForce in their upcoming devices as well, although no OEM’s have come forward to reveal their plans yet.
However, until ClearForce’s implementation becomes more widely adopted, Apple’s 6s and 6s Plus are the only smartphones available that currently feature pressure-sensitive touchscreens, opening up a wide range of new interaction capabilities, especially when it comes to gaming.
The Android-based Huawei Mate S, which was announced a few weeks ago, will reportedly come equipped with a pressure sensitive display powered by ClearForce, but it’s unclear if the smartphone will come to North America.
With Apple’s latest smartphone, 3D Touch features like “Peek” and “Pop” allow developers to show simple previews of a variety of apps. For example, pressing with a minimal amount of pressure on Apple’s Mail App now opens up a preview of recently received email.
To that end, should Samsung bring a 3D Touch competitor to the next line of Galaxy devices, it would have to work with developers to ensure third-party app support, or risk the feature merely being a line on a spec sheet. However, Samsung already has experience with pressure-sensitivity with its Note line, utilizing a thin layer of sensors beneath its AMOLED displays to detect subtle presses with its S Pen stylus.
Related link: Huawei brings ‘Force Touch’ to Android with the Mate S
