Creative desktops

Creative desktops

From its origin as a dull white box, the desktop has become a hub of creativity and imagination, with technologies like depth-sensing cameras and 3D printing spinning off a variety of innovations. One example is HP's Sprout, which looks like a normal all-in-one PC, but packs the latest imaging and collaboration technology. At the base of Sprout is a giant touch pad called a Touch Mat, which is a dual-purpose digital canvas on which images can be scanned and also manipulated. A 3D depth-sensing camera lodged in Sprout scans the objects placed on the Touch Mat -- for example, if a coffee mug is placed on the canvas, the 3D camera will scan it to depth and size. A projector on top of Sprout can then reflect the scanned image of a coffee mug on the Touch Mat, which artists can then manipulate by touching the digital canvas. HP says the scanning and manipulation could be useful for creating objects that could be 3D-printed. But at $1,899, Sprout is considered an expensive experimental desktop.

Otherwise, Dell has developed a "smart desk," with an all-in-one PC beaming a virtual keyboard onto a desk on which users can type. It's an interesting concept, but a proper keyboard may be a better idea