Augmented Reality with a Touch of Multitouch

The New York Times published an article at the end of March called, "Thinking of Going Blond? Consult the Kiosk First". It's about a new type of retail kiosk concept developed by Intel and Frog Design that allows shoppers not only to self checkout, but - in the case of other concepts also in development - to see what they look like with different apparel and even different hair color.

Actually, this is more about augmented reality than multitouch but the device includes a multitouch horizontal surface as well as a vertical screen (how could they not include touch?).

What's really cool about this article, for me anyway, is that its right smack in the middle of what we are doing at CSG. We are using Surface units in retail and other industries to drive stronger sales and to "close the deal" with the customer at the moment of strongest desire. CSG is working on self-identification, a big part of the kiosk idea addressed in this article, multitouch (of course), and we've even begun to experiment with augmented reality as well as a number of other technologies.