Quote of the day by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs on touchscreens: "After an extended period of time, your arm wants to fall off"

Date:
Sat, 24 Oct 2026 22:00:00 +0000

Description:
Apple had resisted releasing a touchscreen laptop for years despite the technology seeing plenty of success in the PC market

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter The late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs had a reputation for being ahead of the curve. At the time, Microsoft
was heavily pushing touchscreen computing in an attempt to innovate and embrace new possibilities when interfacing with machines; Jobs dug his heels in and refused to take Apple down that same path. "Weve done tons of user testing on this, and it turns out it doesnt work. Touch surfaces dont want to be vertical. It gives a great demo, but after a short period of time you
start to fatigue, and after an extended period of time, your arm wants to
fall off. It doesnt work. Its ergonomically terrible. Touch surfaces want to be horizontal." Steve Jobs, October 2010 Swimming against the tide Steve
Jobs was speaking during the 'Back to the Mac' media event at Apple's corporate headquarters while introducing Mac OS X 10.7 Lion. Quote of the day This article is part of TechRadar Pro's QOTD project to provide an insight into the minds of the brightest and most recognized figures in the technology industry today and in years gone by. Read the full series here . Instead of adding a touchscreen to the MacBook, which Jobs saw as something of a
gimmick, Apple focused on multi-touch gestures using the trackpad and mice instead of adding a touchscreen into the fabric of the display. The reason, according to Jobs, was simple: using this technology would quickly lead to strain, fatigue, and the loss of precision the longer a user was navigating using touch. Latest Videos From TechRadar Watch full video here:

He put his foot down despite immense industry pressure at the time in the
form of the emergence of new kinds of devices such as the HP Touchsmart family. Times are changing With Windows continuing to introduce new touchscreen devices and 2-in-1s to the market, Apple stood firm on its
resolve over the next few years but the manufacturer experimented with
bridge technologies like the touchbar, which was eventually phased out. You may like 'It doesn't work': Steve Jobs on why there was never a touchscreen MacBook and why I think he'd totally love what's coming next Apple Pencil support could be the iPhone Duos secret weapon Quote of the day by Bill
Gates: "There's nothing on the iPad I look at and say, 'Oh, I wish Microsoft had done it'."

There has since been renewed pressure on Apple to embrace touchscreen and embed this in its devices with the company now expected to break its stance for the first time and introduce a new touchscreen MacBook Pro with an OLED panel, according to rumors . Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/pro/quote-of-the-day-by-apple-co-founder-steve-jobs- on-touchscreens-after-an-extended-period-of-time-your-arm-wants-to-fall-off-sa vaging-a-bitter-rivals-pc-pivot


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