Now Introducing…Windows 7 and the Multi-touch Netbook

Many people associate the word “multi-touch” with Apple’s iPhone, but Microsoft has been taking advantage of this concept as far back as 2001. It is rumored that some of the newest netbooks that are released with the Windows 7 operating system will also be released with multi-touch screen displays. Rumor also has it that this will happen sometime later this year.

Since netbook screens are relatively small, the ability to physically tap on the screen to scroll and zoom will be a godsend. It is predicted that even though Windows 7 and the multi-touch display will make the netbook unit more costly for consumers, these consumers will be nonetheless willing to pay extra for these features.

Touchscreen netbooks already exist, but for the most part, these are single-touch computers. Some examples of these are the Dell Latitude 2100 and the Gigabyte Touchnote. The Lenovo S10 doesn’t offer a touchscreen, but it does offer a multi-touch trackpad as an upgrade option.

A multi-touch display has great potential to expand the capabilities of a netbook, and as soon as such devices hit retail stores, we may see a trend of people selling their old netbooks and buying up these new ones.

Via PCWorld.