Tapping Into A New Kind Of Communication

A lot of people have a lot of questions about what on earth Apple Watch is actually for. Since there isn’t any straightforward answer (or, more aptly, since there are literally thousands of them), one of the most obvious initial use cases for Apple Watch concerns the simple aggregation and management of iOS notifications. Unfortunately, most folks still aren’t sold on the added value of something so seemingly superfluous as a “second screen.” But that’s only because they’re looking at it the wrong way. In fact, that’s the whole problem: They’re looking at it in the first place!

See, the visual aspect of this new notifications paradigm is, at most, merely half of Apple’s intended experience. And because of Apple Watch’s revolutionary Taptic Engine, that half will dwindle down to nearly nothing in the weeks and months following the device’s April availability. For perhaps the first time ever, Apple is asking you to take your eyes off the screen.

Apple is making this possible — and, more importantly, practical — through the science of haptic feedback.

This Is Haptics!

To understand the potential for such a system, you’ve first got to understand what the term “haptic” actually means. Derived from the Greek word haptikós, “haptic” translates variously as “pertaining to the sense of touch” and “able to come into contact with.” Haptic technology, then, simply refers to all the electronic gadgetry out there that conveys some intentional, meaningful sense of extra touch to its users. You’re almost certainly acquainted with the concept already; even if you don’t remember Nintendo 64’s game-changing Rumble Pak, I’d bet good money that your last several cellphones had vibrating alert modes. Your iPhone’s had them for years.

This Is Taptics!

Stop right there — I know what you’re thinking. Yes, haptic feedback is old-hat. Decades old, in fact. So it’s very important to rid yourself of any pretense that iPhone’s familiar vibration motor is “more or less the same thing” as the Taptic Engine inside Apple Watch. While the two each represent valid examples of haptics, they aren’t even close to commensurate. Comparing iPhone to Apple Watch in this sense is like comparing VHS to DVD. No, scratch that — It’s like comparing VHS to 4K 3D. It’s all about impression, detail, and fidelity. Yes, iPhone can vibrate with alerts and calls and notifications, even modifying its rhythm to fit predefined scenarios. But iPhone’s haptics aren’t actively variable in scope or intensity or position, and they certainly aren’t what anyone would consider intimate.

That’s because, to achieve the requisite intimacy, a haptic module needs to be in firm contact with the user’s own haptic apparatus — It has to be in firm contact with the user’s skin. Per our current concepts of wearables, the only area of the human body where this is natural, convenient, and feasible is at the wrist. There’s simply no better place on your person to experience the full gamut of what haptics have to offer. If Wired’s prognostications about our impending transition to wearable technology are correct (and they mostly seem to be), Apple Watch clearly comprises the first big step over the threshold of the “Neo-Sensory Age.”

How existing apps and services will use the Taptic Engine is as open-ended as the rest of Apple Watch seems to be. One extremely basic use case, highlighted by Apple in last year’s September reveal, involves Apple Maps: When your pre-planned route comes to a fork in the road, Apple Watch will nudge you in the proper direction. And we’re not talking “one tap for left, two taps for right,” here. We are talking two completely different directional, physical sensations that let you know what’s up. Are you down?

Aside from that tidbit, however, Apple’s own PR on this groundbreaking piece of kit is intentionally thin. (We really wish Apple would be a little more off the cuff with this stuff.) Still, it hints at the possibilities for launch and beyond, as Apple Watch will let you “feel a tactile sensation that’s recognizably different for each kind of interaction” as it simultaneously “enables some entirely new, intimate ways for you to communicate with other Apple Watch wearers.” Amusingly (if not disconcertingly), the small research team behind the TACTILU haptic bracelet seems to have demonstrated the emotive intrigue of the idea much better than Apple has. This short video should give you a general feel for the technology:

Macworld explains the concept further:

With surprisingly little fanfare, Apple has embraced a new user interface. When you pay with Apple Watch, you will both hear and “feel” a confirmation. A “gentle tap” on the device can be sent to another Watch wearer, who will feel the touch on their wrist. Is this a reminder? A nag? Longing? Answer: this is an entirely new form of human-to-human communications. It’s no surprise that Apple Watch “taps” can be customized for different people and different interactions.

That last bit’s the really interesting part. Just imagine what it’ll be like to feel the digital representation of a word or picture or color or shape as it comes fluttering silently across the top of your wrist. Apple’s developed a platform to give us all a taste of technological synesthesia. With its Taptic engine, Apple Watch represents a futuristic sort of Braille shorthand, a kind of 1337 5p34K for Morse code, a new way to tell your old lady that you still love her. It means you can keep your eyes on the road, or on the ball, or — heaven forbid — on your date through an entire dinner without digging out your handset and causing some kind of major disaster. With Apple Watch, you won’t just be able to feel that you have a message. You’ll be able to feel what that message actually is.

Like iPhone, “Reach out and touch someone” is no longer an AT&T exclusive. That philosophy now belongs, quite literally, to an entire industry of new and exciting interpersonal possibilities.

Once again, Apple’s sure to make their presence felt.