Atmel Industry-Leading maXTouch Controllers Support Windows 8

Touch interfaces have had explosive growth and are now widely adopted in a variety of devices ranging from smartphones to tablets. According to market research firm IHS iSuppli, global shipments for tablets alone are estimated to be 275.3 million units by 2015. With Windows 8, touch interfaces can be added to not only tablets but notebook PCs and all-in-one PCs.

The Atmel maXTouch mXT1386 controller for Windows 8 provides users all the same benefits of the maXTouch family including better noise immunity for noisy environments, lower power, superior touch performance and stylus support. The product also offers improved noise performance to allow the use of shieldless sensor substrates for thinner, sleeker touchscreen designs. In addition, the maXTouch controller includes a signal-to-noise ratio of 80:1, offering more sensitivity to even the lightest touches. A high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) enables the device to work well with a fingertip touch or a stylus as small as 1mm. The mXT1386 maXTouch controller offers one of the industry's fastest touch frame rates of 180Hz, for a responsive touch interface to ensure a smooth user experience.

Atmel is clearly the touch leader for mobile devices and tablets. We want to expand this seamless touch experience to notebook PCs and all-in-one PCs with our maXTouch technology, said Jon Kiachian, sr. director of touch marketing, Atmel Corporation. Our collaboration with Microsoft will help make this a reality. We are excited to be selected as one of a few co-engineering partners to enable Windows 8 with our maXTouch controllers. This selection is further proof of our leadership in the market.

The Atmel mXT1386 controller offers a first touch latency of as low as 20ms with enhanced edge detection to enable fast execution of Windows 8 touch gestures. The mXT1386 is fully compatible with Windows 8 human interface devices that are 'plug n' play' ready and do not require drivers. All these features provide users an excellent touch interface and experience.