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I can hardly tell the difference between my razer stealth linux touchpad and my workprovided macbook. How much of the surface of the Linux touchpad is clickabl

I can hardly tell the difference between my razer stealth linux touchpad and my workprovided macbook. How much of the surface of the Linux touchpad is clickable? I.e. how much of it depresses when you press on it, vs. the MacBook? I’ve never seen a non-Apple touchpad that didn’t have a big dead zone in the back (closest to the display) 1/4 to 1/3 of the surface.

viseztrance 6y ago
Well, I'm using tap to click which is what I prefer. On the macbook pro I'm using clicks because tapping doesn't work as well as reliably, for example tap and drag. Later edit - I tried comparing the clickable area, and indeed, the upper region is not clickable on my razer (TIL). I realized this only just now, because this not how I usually use touchpads.
abrowne 6y ago
Do you click with your "aiming" finger? I usually have tap-to-click turned on and do tap that way, but on any touchpad, MacBooks primarily until recently, I always click with my thumb on the bottom quarter, where older touchpads had a separate button. Is this only because I started on those old-style touchpads?
- abhorrence 6y ago
  I started on trackpads with the separate buttons, but now click with my index finger. I’ve found that the longer I’ve used the MacBook touch pads (and especially since they went fully non-mechanical) the more I dislike other touch pads.
ubercow13 6y ago
That's a physical limitation because the touchpad hinges from the back. No new touchpad driver is going to fix that.
- duskwuff 6y ago
  And the Apple touchpad doesn't hinge at all! The "click" reaction you get when you press it is simulated by a set of force sensors and an actuator that vibrates the trackpad to simulate a click.
  - dsego 6y ago
    Apple trackpads used to hinge 10 years ago.
    - saagarjha 6y ago
      Actually, they used to sell a trackpad that did that until last year!
      - chacha2 6y ago
        iPad pro still does.
        shadowfacts 6y ago
        The trackpad on the Magic Keyboard doesn't have a hinge at the back, there's a single button under the center and a lever that runs under the sides which actuates the button and makes the physical click movement: https://www.ifixit.com/News/41291/dang-the-ipad-pro-magic-keyboard-looks-cool-in-x-rays https://www.ifixit.com/News/41291/dang-the-ipad-pro-magic-ke...
wiml 6y ago
Testing my (several years old) XPS 13, perhaps the back 1/4 is noticeably harder to click than the rest, and the very back 5-7 mm is unclickable. I have to say I've never noticed that before. I always use tap-to-click (whether on macs or non-macs) and most of the time I click using the front 1/2 of the pad anyway. If I weren't using tap-to-click the dead zone would probably bother me though.

viseztrance 6y ago

Well, I'm using tap to click which is what I prefer. On the macbook pro I'm using clicks because tapping doesn't work as well as reliably, for example tap and drag. Later edit - I tried comparing the clickable area, and indeed, the upper region is not clickable on my razer (TIL). I realized this only just now, because this not how I usually use touchpads.

abrowne 6y ago

Do you click with your "aiming" finger? I usually have tap-to-click turned on and do tap that way, but on any touchpad, MacBooks primarily until recently, I always click with my thumb on the bottom quarter, where older touchpads had a separate button. Is this only because I started on those old-style touchpads?

abhorrence 6y ago
I started on trackpads with the separate buttons, but now click with my index finger. I’ve found that the longer I’ve used the MacBook touch pads (and especially since they went fully non-mechanical) the more I dislike other touch pads.

ubercow13 6y ago

That's a physical limitation because the touchpad hinges from the back. No new touchpad driver is going to fix that.

duskwuff 6y ago
And the Apple touchpad doesn't hinge at all! The "click" reaction you get when you press it is simulated by a set of force sensors and an actuator that vibrates the trackpad to simulate a click.
- dsego 6y ago
  Apple trackpads used to hinge 10 years ago.
  - saagarjha 6y ago
    Actually, they used to sell a trackpad that did that until last year!
    - chacha2 6y ago
      iPad pro still does.
      - shadowfacts 6y ago
        The trackpad on the Magic Keyboard doesn't have a hinge at the back, there's a single button under the center and a lever that runs under the sides which actuates the button and makes the physical click movement: https://www.ifixit.com/News/41291/dang-the-ipad-pro-magic-keyboard-looks-cool-in-x-rays https://www.ifixit.com/News/41291/dang-the-ipad-pro-magic-ke...

wiml 6y ago

Testing my (several years old) XPS 13, perhaps the back 1/4 is noticeably harder to click than the rest, and the very back 5-7 mm is unclickable. I have to say I've never noticed that before. I always use tap-to-click (whether on macs or non-macs) and most of the time I click using the front 1/2 of the pad anyway. If I weren't using tap-to-click the dead zone would probably bother me though.