All touchscreen devices support touch commands as a form of input. When you touch the display interface, the device pinpoints your precise point of contact, thereby responding with the appropriate action — at least that’s not it’s supposed to work. There are times when a touchscreen device may fail to identify the user’s precise point of contact. Maybe it registers the user’s touch in a different location, or perhaps it doesn’t register it at all. To overcome these problems, users should familiarize themselves with the following things that can affect a touchscreen device’s accuracy.
Touchscreen Technology
The type of touch-sensing technology powering the device will affect the accuracy of its touch commands. As you may know, most touchscreen devices feature either resistive or capacitive touch-sensing technology. Of the two, the latter is most accurate. Capacitive touchscreen devices identify touch commands by measuring changes in capacitance, whereas resistive devices identify touch based on pressure. Because they use electrical changes to identify touch, capacitive devices are more accurate than their resistive counterparts.
Cleanliness
A touchscreen device’s cleanliness, or lack thereof, will also affect the accuracy of touch commands. If a touchscreen device is covered in fingerprint smudges, dirt, dust and debris, it may fail to register the user’s touch command — or it may fail to register the correct point of contact. It’s important to note, however, that capacitive touchscreen devices are more affected by this phenomenon than resistive devices.
Regardless of the type of touchscreen device, though, users should take a proactive approach towards keeping it clean and free of fingerprints and debris. Wiping down the display surface with a dry, lint-free microfiber cloth should suffice for most devices. If a touchscreen device is particularly dirty, however, a special touchscreen cleaning solution may be used. Users should not attempt to clean a touchscreen device with rubbing alcohol or other harsh solvents, however, as this may strip away the device’s protective oleophobic coating.
Point of Contact
The point of contact where a user’s touch command occurs will affect the corresponding device’s accuracy. Generally speaking, touchscreen devices are most accurate when identifying touch commands in the center. When a touch command occurs on the outside or perimeter of the device, it may fail to register the command. Accuracy problems attributed to location, however, can typically be avoided by choosing a high-quality touchscreen device manufactured from a reliable and trusted vendor.
