Over the past years, sensor technology has been actively replacing the buttons that were previously familiar to the user. Looks like she's the clear favorite in this fight. People quickly got used to the lack of buttons and the fact that any action can be performed with an elementary touch.
Practically everyone paid attention to the fact that some devices respond to touch, and some only to pressing. The latter are equipped with just a resistive touch screen, and among all devices existing today, the resistive sensor has the largest share.
What is the peculiarity of this technology? The resistive screen consists of two main parts: the upper hard layer and the lower soft one. The inner surfaces of each side are made of a resistive material capable of conducting electric current. The edges of each layer are equipped with electrodes.
When you press the screen, the top layer bends and interacts with the bottom one. The microcontroller instantly determines the touch point, after which it transmits voltage to the electrodes of both plates. Thus, in a fraction of a second, the controller is able to determine the given coordinates hundreds of times. The described principle of operation underlies the operation of four-wireresistive sensors. There is also a 5-wire and 8-wire resistive shield, which has better performance.
What does this technology give the user? The resistive screen instantly responds to pressing by any hard object. It can be a finger, a pencil, a keychain, etc. That is why devices equipped with a resistive screen are often equipped with a stylus. It provides high accuracy in screen control - they can get to the right point, which is not always convenient to do with a finger. However, the resistive screen does not differ in high resistance to mechanical stress, so the use of pointed objects should be avoided.
Advantages and disadvantages
As for the advantages, it is, first of all, a relatively low price. The technology described above is simple and has long been used in the production of smartphones, e-books, etc. In addition, the new devices are equipped with a completely durable screen, which is not afraid of even a break in the outer membrane.
Next about the shortcomings. Resistive screens are characterized by less bright and contrasting images (even the thinnest and most transparent membrane will be inferior to glass). Also, the resistive screen cannot boast of the ability to implement multi-touch technology.
The niche of the resistive sensor is quite clearly outlined, devices of this class successfully solve the tasks assigned to them. Cheap in this case does not mean poor quality. Rather, it is an opportunity not to overpay for features,the presence of which is not initially required by the buyer. The question of choosing a capacitive or resistive screen is a matter of consumer taste. Each technology has both advantages and disadvantages, and what exactly the buyer needs from the device, only he himself can know.
