Touchless controls are making waves in the tech world, bringing unique hand gestures to new products. But there’s a learning curve.
Startup Humane Inc. has introduced a $700 lapel wearable called Ai Pin. Users need to learn a set of gestures to interact with it. The device projects a laser interface on your palm, and tilting your hand scrolls through buttons while tapping your thumb and index finger together acts as a click.
Other companies like Apple and Meta are also exploring floating gestures, hoping to replace traditional keyboards, mice, or touchscreens. However, past attempts have faced challenges. Microsoft’s Kinect, released in 2010, was an initial hit but proved to be a fad due to glitches and imprecise recognition.
Leap Motion Inc., another startup, aimed to replace the mouse with gesture sensors but encountered similar problems. Air gestures, historically, haven’t been very useful, as seen in Google’s Pixel smartphones in 2019, where motion sensing features were uninspired.
Apple and Meta are working to make gestures more intuitive. Apple’s recent tutorial for its Vision Pro mixed-reality headset focuses on compensating for the lack of sensory information. However, the biggest challenge is the guesswork involved, with each company creating its own variations of swipes and pinches, adding a learning curve for users.
Until these gesture controls become more consistent and user-friendly, some might prefer sticking to the familiar comfort of pressing buttons.
