Nexus One Multitouch video

Since its launch almost two weeks ago there has been lots of discussion about the Nexus One and whether or not it supports multitouch. There seems to be some confusion about multitouch, it’s believed that Google/HTC did not implement multitouch on the Nexus One out-of-the-box due to some kind of patent related legal wrangle with Apple. Not sure if that’s true or not but sure sounds plausible.

The Google Nexus One

As most will know, the Android OS itself certainly supports multitouch and we we’re pretty confident that the Nexus One hardware supported it. Rumour had it that multitouch support had been removed from the US version of the Nexus One, the version that’s shipping now, all together and that we would have to wait until a UK or European version was launched, possibly by a carrier, to see multitouch added.

However, I can confirm that the Nexus One hardware and Android OS on the Nexus One definitely supports multitouch! As you can see from my little video demo below it’s simply that the apps pre-installed on the Nexus One are not multitouch capable, so the pre-installed maps and web browser for example do not support it. BUT, if you want a multitouch web browser there is an option, check out the video below:

So if you are looking for a multitouch web browser you can grab the Dolphin Browser from Android Market, it’s even a free app and not a bad little browser either and not only offers pinch to zoom but also allows you to configure some of your own gesture based swipes.

The Dolphin Browser

Now the hope is that we’ll be able to get our hands on a multitouch enabled version of Google Maps that we can install on the Nexus One and hopefully an image browser too.

Thanks to my mate Paul from MoDaCo for letting me know.

Don’t forget to also check out my extended Nexus One unboxing and demo video. It’s a pretty long one so grab a cup of coffee before you start! 🙂

Posted by: Matt