One of the biggest features of the iPhone 6s and the 6s Plus has to be 3D Touch, Apple's mobile version of force touch. As expected, a similar feature is going to make its way to Android. Synaptics is working on this and Samsung could be using the technology in its next flagship smartphones.
The patent application by Samsung has been made public and it looks like the South Korean technology giant has been working on this feature since April 2014. The patent describes a way in which software reacts, based on the pressure applied on the smartphone display.
The amount of pressure applied to the display is measured through the corresponding voltage. So if a user wants to type a capital letter, all he needs to do is press the letter a little harder and it will display the upper case of the letter. One more example of the new tech is if a user presses “C” harder, the selected content will get copied, so on and so forth.
What remains to be seen is how Samsung implements its own variant of 3D touch. Will it mimic the features of iOS or will app developers have the freedom to do something different. We are also waiting to see how games implement the 3D touch technology to provide a more immersive gaming experience on the mobile device.
Another lingering question is whether this tech will make its way to tablets as well and how will this affect the price of the devices.
We spent some time with the iPhone 6s and the iPhone 6s Plus and the 3D touch does take a bit of getting used to. Once you understand the difference between 3D touch and long press, it works like second nature.
The iPhone 6s and the 6s Plus may be the best iPhones yet, but it boasts of features that have debuted in other smartphones. So it’s safe to say then when one company innovates, everyone else apes.