"Other potential uses include as a navigation device, an interactive menu or point of sale attraction."

and playing Asteroids down the pub?

She'll wipe her damp cloth over the surface and accidently erase all your files.

One point to note, we looked into possibly buying a MS Surface. Only trouble is, they only sell them for special installation in hotels or shops or wherever for an expensive showcase item. After a while MS marketed them semi-properly, announced at some US developers conference to anybody who filled in a simple form, provided the recipient is based in the US that is!

So we were kind of locked out.

Is anything about the Epson thing at all different from MS Surface? I can't see any difference. Surely MS has patents? That said, I like the idea of the technology, regardless of the provider. Any competition can only be good for the customers, if nothing else by driving down the price, even if the features are identical. Now scale that down to half an inch thickness so it doesn't have to be a coffee table (think of the neck and back pain after sitting hunched over one of those for a couple of hours) and you have a winner.

I knew David Kurlander, who started the work on Surface many years ago. Nice work. Although the iPhone is a much smaller form factor, it's likely that Kurlander's work had a bit influence on its interface as well.

I don't understand why Epson didn't just partner with Microsoft and run the Surface software on their device. Now they face probably patent violation action.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZrr7AZ9nCY

a bit like a smart board - only laid out flat?

.. Epson had the contract to build Microsoft Surface hardware, and now they've got a contract to provide maintenance for the seven or so that MS have sold, and to dispose of 90% of the remaining 9993 hardware sets any way they can.