RIM's no stranger to playing different tricks with touchscreens, and it looks like it may have another up its sleeve, with a recent patent application revealing some plans for a hybrid capacitive / resistive touchscreen. As you might expect, the idea here is to take the best aspects from each and form one super touchscreen, which would have the general usability and "goodness" of capacitive displays, and the added benefits of a resistive screen, like better support for stylus-based input. Of course, such a screen would also likely eliminate one of the biggest advantages of resistive displays -- their cost-effectiveness -- so it seems safe to assume that it'd be reserved for higher-end phones to start with.

[Via Unwired View]

It looks like Motorola isn't about to let Apple have the goofy, non-existent product spotlight to itself, with a recent patent application of its revealing some plans of its own for a head-mounted display. As you can see above, however, this one is no ordinary HMD, with it also able to be folded up into an apparently over-sized cellphone for times when you want to look slightly less conspicuous. Of course, the chances of such a product actually making it off the drawing board are pretty slim (thankfully), and no doubt even less likely given the recent cuts to Motorola's research division.

It looks like your future digital camera could have considerably more wireless options than built-in WiFi or an Eye-Fi card, at least if Sony Ericsson has its way. As Unwired View reports, the company has filed a number patent applications that detail its plans to add various wireless connectivity options to digital cameras, including GSM, CDMA, and WiMAX, in addition to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. That would apparently come both in the form of wireless cards built into the cameras themselves, and in the form of wireless adapters or docks that would attach to the camera, with some dedicated flash memory also thrown in for storing settings for Flickr and the like. Of course, there's no indication as to when we can expect to see such cameras and, as Unwired View points out, the idea itself may not be the most patentable, but you can sign us up for any connectivity option that doesn't involve a tangled mess of cords in our gadget bag.

You'll have to take this one with the usual patent application caveats but, as Unwired View reports, one of Apple's recent filings seems to indicate that it has at least considered the possibility of an iPhone flip phone of sorts, among other dual-screen possibilities. The application itself is for what's described as a "dual sided trackpad," which would be translucent and boast touch sensitive panels on each side, allowing it to be used both when it's opened or when it's covering the main display. In the case of the iPhone, that would seem to offer yet another option for the oft-discussed iPhone nano, but the patent application doesn't stop there, with it also offering up possibilities for laptops and tablets based around the technology. In the former case, the touchpad would open up a small window on the main display, allowing it to work like a SideShow display, while the tablet would boast a touchscreen encompassing the entire display. Needless to say, we wouldn't recommend getting your hopes up for any of that just yet but, if you want to whet your appetite a bit further, you can get a rough idea of what they might look like by hitting up the read link below.