Work Ongoing on Pinch Zoom for Xperia X10

有り難う！！(Thank you very very very …. much!!!)
by Japanese Xperia user

We love XPERIA!! and SE!!

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From XDA user

Originally Posted by Al-B
Hi, my first post here, but I’ve been following this topic for some time, with some amusement, and now you’re getting close to the truth, I finally feel compelled to register and shed some light on the subject.

Firstly, a bit about myself; I’m a software developer with an electronics background. I work in embedded systems development; a mobile phone is an embedded system although I’m in a very different market, but the principles are very similar. More specifically, I develop all the low level code for our systems, the first instructions that execute after power on are the ones I write in machine code. Reading and interpreting HW datasheets is my day job, so I’m in a pretty good position to explain a few things.

Anyway, enough about me and onto the X10 and multitouch debate

Firstly, thanks to Utking for providing the key info to finding the controller. I’m pretty much with you on this one, looking at the numbers on the chip and your magnified view it seems we know the controller chip. There is an ‘A’ missing from the chip number, but that is not so unusual, so it seems that the X10 is fitted with a CY8C20466A-24LQXI device.

For those that are interested, you can find the datasheet here:
www cypress com /?docID=24157

To break down the part number
CY = Cypress
8 = PSoC (I’ll get to this in a bit)
C = CMOS technology
20 = Family Code
466A = Part Number
-24 = Speed (=24MHz)
LQX = Packaging (LQX=QFN Package [matches the posted image])
I = Industrial applications

So from this info, we can determine a few specifics about the device, namely:
- It has a 32-pin QFN package
- It has 32KB of FLASH memory
- It has 2KB SRAM
- It has a single CapSense block
- It has 28 IO pins configurable as Digital I/O or Analogue Input
- It has an XRES pin (whatever that does )
- It does not support USB
- It has a built in Analogue to Digital converter.

You can all argue day and night about different part numbers if you like, it only changes a few of the parameters above but doesn’t really change anything about what the device can or can’t do!

But does it support multitouch I hear you all cry? Well that’s where you have to look a little deeper (and understand) a bit more about what the datasheet is telling us!

Firstly we need to understand what this device actually is! The general assumption that has been made so far on these forums is that the touch screen controller is some magical chip that you just connect up to the touchpad and it just works and either does or doesn’t support MT depending on the type of chip you installed! WRONG!!!

This device is very different; it is a very generic capacitive touch controller device that can be configured (n.b. programmed) for each specific application. The same chip can be used for controlling mobile phone touch screens, the little mouse pad on your laptop, simple capacitive touch buttons, basically anything that changes its capacitance when you touch it. The key give-away here is that it has 32KB FLASH and 2KB RAM – Dedicated controllers don’t have FLASH and RAM (at least not that you would care about).

Basically, this is a programmable device, that MUST be programmed by the HW developer (SE in this case) for it to do anything. So during the manufacturing stage, in the same way that the latest FW is written to the main FLASH memory, all programmable devices on the main circuit board (there are probably others) are also flashed with their programs.

This is where I get back to that 8 digit in the device number and PSoC. The Electronics Guru’s that make the HW, generally don’t do software, so for devices like this they are provided with PC applications to configure and program the devices for their specific needs. In the case of this device, the application they use is called PSoC. Basically with this application, the HW guys use a GUI interface to drag and drop functional blocks which can then be tied together and where necessary, assigned to HW pins. Have a look here for some info on PSoC:

www cypress com /?id=2522&rID=40632

So… THE BIG QUESTION!

CAN THIS CONTROLLER DO MULTITOUCH?

The answer is YES ….If you want it to!

To elaborate; if the SE HW guys dragged and drop the multitouch handling block into their GUI window, then it can do multitouch. If they dragged the single touch block, then no it can’t! Its all down to the way it was programmedin the factory!

Without so detailed info from the SE hardware guys who did the device programming, it’s unfortunately impossible to tell if the X10′s hardware does or does not support MT. All we can say, is that the X10 is fitted with a controller that COULD support MT if so desired!

But can’t the devs just re-program it?

Unfortunately that’s not so simple. Flashing these devices can’t normally be done remotely, rather they have to be connected to a special HW programmer and the board powered on in such a way that the device enters its programming mode (usually with a different voltage). That means it can (probably) only really be re-programmed in the SE factory. Also the devs here would have to get their hands on the original PSoC design in order to produce a compatible program.

So, the long and short of it is, we technically have HW support for MT, but the actual configuration of the HW may be such that we have no MT. Only SE can tell us if it does or does not support MT, and they are saying it doesn’t, so the chances are IT DOESN’T

We can only hope that some nice SE HW engineer who really does know, will magically appear and tell us that it does support it…. well, here’s dreaming

One thing that is for sure, we can stop arguing about what controller is fitted and if it supports MT because its a dead end!

I hope you enjoyed my first post here and are not too disappointed by it

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Why are people prising them.
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This is a standard feature even on the cheapest of cheap phones. This should have been implements from the start, as promised.
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My guess they used cheap digitizer components, in a attempt to save a few ££. And by the time they noticed, it was too late and well into the production stage.
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So shame on Sony Ericsson.
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They have done the same with the x12 going off reviews, will you ever learn Sony Ericsson!

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X-10 mini too???

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Great news:

Only MT in:
- Pinch/Zoom in the web browser.
- Pinch/Zoom in Google Maps.

And, in the PhotoGallery (Mediascape)???

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That’s wonderful news, Rikard. It’s great to hear that SE finally has given in and decided to enable multi-touch for the X10 series.
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Rikard Wrote:
> What has happened is that some brilliant
> engineers actually was able to change the
> driver and firmware for the touch digitizer
> to make some multi touch gestures work.
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I love the “cover your asses” element of this statement. I really don’t believe it had anything to do with brilliant engineers, and instead had everything to do with a decision from the top to enable the feature that was previously 9and purposefully) locked out by SE.
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I also find it interesting that this announcement comes as the developers over on XDA are releasing the first pre-alphas of their own custom ROMs that run on the X10 series.
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Despite these comments though, again I am happy to see SE has reversed their view in regards to multi-touch on the X10. Now if you can get it to us sooner than “Q1 2011″, that’d be great, as we all know that in corporate speak that means the last day of March.

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Allow me to translate from Rikardese into English; “We put cheap components into the X10, including a digitizer that was never meant to support multi-touch, but since customers won’t stop bitching about it, we’re gonna implement a half-assed workaround and tell you it’s a great feat of software engineering.

After 4 frustrating months, I put my X10 back in its box, and went back to using my 2 year old iPhone 3G, which still provides a better user experience than SE’s sad attempt at an Android phone.

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great news !

thanks SE to listen our comments

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@ Harry Topper

Thnx for your help B-) didn’t understand that widget right :-S But you are right the midle one is auto! Ciao

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@Rikard – Hi Rikard, I seem to have identified a regression defect. In 1.6, high resolution images when used as contact images appeared in high quality both during the incoming call experience and when viewing individual contact experience. In 2.1, the SAME images have been immensely downgraded. This detracts from the lustre of the high resolution screen. Please consider this for your regression testing. I am certain that it is a result of incorporating low resolution images from Facebook. It’s a huge detraction that images from the beautiful onboard camera don’t look as nice anymore.

Please create an area where willing users can report on these defects, without complaining about things constantly.

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And yes, i want you to try “toon Warz” on your Multitouch enabled Xperia X10. Please?
P.S.
Did you use another white X10 to make this video?

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[...] Confira um vídeo onde um engenheiro da Sony Ericsson explica a implementação do Multitouch no aparelho e confira o post completo no Blog da Sony Ericsson Global. [...]

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Rikard Skogberg, please hear me
-please give x10 16M colour!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
-multitouch
-froyo,,,
please, and delete moxier app, wisepilot, createtouch, user support…these app make my x10 laggy,, zzz
improve media and timescape

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[...] Let me know if you have specific multi touch enabled apps you want me to test! منبع خبر : Work Ongoing on Pinch Zoom for Xperia X10 | Product Launch Blog پ.ن : یک فیلم هم ازش انتشار دادن که خودتون میتونید [...]

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This is great news!! Whooohoo

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@Rikard
beside the game (i really wish you can test some gameloft’s games), can you test the google earth? This piece of work just focusing on pinch zoom but no manual single touch zoom.

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Please test Real footabll 2010..

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Good News, while you at it why don’t you work in Supporting Arabic Language?

the sales is not so good in Middle east for Xperia X10 Family (X10 Mini & X10 Pro)… the wholesales are loosing here if you not willing to support Arabic Language then take your Stock back

Thanks for Nothing

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Real question for multi-touch is…
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Will Nesoid and such “two-button-touch” games work? Fifa on iPhone also springs to mind…
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Pinch-zoom is all fair and well, but the ability to have 2 registering points is really useful
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(Much like the end of the video I suppose…)

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Add Adobe Flash and I’ll be a happy man….

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