A new Apple patent filing (number 2020200004337) dubbed “laptop computing device with discrete haptic regions” that hints at a Mac laptop with more touchscreen features, though not a touchscreen on the display itself.
Instead it would offer more haptic (relating to touch) in addition, or perhaps in lieu of, the Touch Bar some current Macs. In the patent filing, Apple notes that recent advances in portable computing have included providing users with a haptic feedback to indicate that a touch or a force has been received by the portable computing device. Examples of haptic feedback include a vibrating cover on a mobile phone, or a vibration or “click” output from a trackpad on a laptop computing device.
As electronic devices become more compact and sophisticated, the surface area available to provide input and output shrinks. Likewise, Apple says that the ability of a user to distinguish between haptic outputs on compact devices is diminished, especially when haptic outputs are provided to an entirety of the device’s housing, cover, or the like.
The tech giant seems to feel that a “laptop computing device with discrete haptic regions” could be the answer
