Talk:Synaptics

Synaptics is a publicly owned San Jose, California-based developer of human interface (HMI) hardware and software, including touchpads for computer laptops; touch, display driver, and fingerprint biometrics technology for smartphones; and touch, video and far-field voice technology for smart home devices and automotives. Synaptics primarily sells its products to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and display manufacturers. Since its founding in 1986, the company's notable innovations include the first ever computer touchpad, touch technology for the click wheel on the classic iPod, touch sensors used in numerous Android phones, Touch and Display Driver Integrated chips, and biometrics technology for fingerprint sensors. All touch and fingerprint technology was based on capacitive sensing up until the introduction of optical fingerprint sensing in late 2016.
Approvable.
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Scientists and engineers Federico Faggin and Carver Mead founded Synaptics in 1986, inspired by their interest in neural networks and how technology might imitate neural networks and function more like the human brain.
  Clarification needed.^{[note 1]}
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Faggin and Mead applied their research and discoveries on neural networks and transistors on chips to build pattern recognition products.
Not approvable.^{[note 2]}
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The name of the company is a portmanteau, blending synapse and electronics.[5] In 1991, Synaptics patented a refined "winner take all" circuit for teaching neural networks how to recognize patterns and images.
Approvable.^{[note 3]}
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During Synaptics' early years, the laptop industry was struggling to make devices thinner because the spherical trackballs included in them required thicker device builds.
Not approvable.^{[note 4]}
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Synaptics' founders recognized this issue and in 1992, used the pattern recognition techniques it developed to build the world's first touchpad.[7] By 1994, Twinhead and Epson America had adopted Synaptics' touchpad for their computers,[8] followed by Apple in 1995.[9] The touchpad was subsequently adopted by other leading computer manufacturers of the time, including Compaq and Dell.
Partly approvable.^{[note 5]}
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As integration of the touchpad grew, Synaptics continued to refine its technology, intending to integrate it with other products and expand the company with a range of human interface technologies.
Not approvable.^{[note 6]}
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The company had an initial public offering in 2002.
Approvable.
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In 2004, Apple debuted the iPod Mini and fourth-generation iPod, both of which featured a scrolling click wheel enabled by Synaptics' capacitive touch technology. The company also provided a similar, vertical solution for the click wheel of the Creative Zen Touch portable media player.
 Unable to mark as approvable.^{[note 7]}
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In 2005, Synaptics sensors were featured in the Samsung B310, the first mobile phone to use capacitive-touch technology.[9] (As of early 2017, Samsung and many other Android phone manufacturers continued to use Synaptics sensors in their phones.)
Approvable.^{[note 8]}
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In October 2006, Synaptics revealed the Onyx, a concept smartphone with a color touchscreen enabled by its ClearPad touch controller technology. The Onyx's touch sensor could also tell the difference between a finger and a cheek, preventing accidental inputs during calls.[14][15][16] In 2007, LG launched its Prada phone featuring Synaptics' touch sensors, which was the world's first capacitive-touchscreen mobile phone.
Not approvable.^{[note 9]}
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Synaptics' touchscreen technology was also featured in Logitech's Harmony line of universal remote controls with capacitive-touch capabilities, which debuted in 2008.
Approvable.
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In 2009, Synaptics showcased the Fuse concept smartphone, which included several features that are now standard in modern smartphones. The Fuse offered touch sensitivity on the back of the phone, the ability to interact with the phone by squeezing, animated icons, a user interface sensitive to the phone's orientation and tilt, and haptic gestures.
  Clarification needed.^{[note 10]}
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In 2011, the company appointed Rick Bergman to succeed Francis Lee as CEO.
Approvable.
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In 2012, Synaptics introduced the world's first full-function capacitive-touch product to incorporate pressure recognition (force sensing), enabling multi-finger and variable-force input.[22] (Apple introduced Force Touch, a similar technology, in 2014.
Partly approvable.^{[note 11]}
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In late 2013, Synaptics acquired Validity Sensors, a fingerprint sensor vendor based in San Jose, for $255 million. The acquisition added Natural ID capacitive fingerprint sensing to Synaptics' portfolio.[24][25] Synaptics acquired Renesas SP Drivers Inc., a Japanese company specializing in chips that manage LCD displays, in 2014. Synaptics purchased Renesas SP for ¥48.5 billion ($475 million). The acquisition enabled Synaptics to integrate offerings of touch and display driver technologies into a single "TDDI" (Touch and Display Driver Integration) chip.
Approvable.^{[note 12]}
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With its growing portfolio of touch, display, and fingerprint offerings, in 2015 the company began to expand into additional markets, including automotive, wearables and PC peripherals.
Not approvable.^{[note 13]}
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In July 2015, Synaptics debuted a unique “match-in-sensor” fingerprint authenticator for laptops and other devices. Unlike traditional match-on-host products, match-in-sensor authenticates the finger within the chip itself, adding greater security.
Partly approvable.^{[note 14]}
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The company debuted the Clear ID FS9100, its first optical-based fingerprint sensor, in December 2016.[33] The company continued to improve the technology, and the sensor went into full production a year later.
Partly approvable.^{[note 15]}
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In January 2018, the Chinese company Vivo announced the X20 Plus UD, a smartphone featuring Synaptics’ Clear ID optical fingerprint sensor. This was the world’s first full-production smartphone with fingerprint authentication directly in the OLED display.
Approvable.
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In June 2017, Synaptics announced it was acquiring Conexant Systems, an Amazon Alexa partner that creates voice and audio software and silicon products for smart homes, for $300 million in cash and 726,666 shares of stock.
Not approvable.^{[note 16]}
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At the same time, Synaptics acquired Marvell Technology Group's Multimedia Solutions unit, which creates video and audio processing technology, for $95 million. The two acquisitions were intended to aid Synaptics' expansion into the Internet of things market.
Partly approvable.^{[note 17]}
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As of July 2017, Synaptics held more than 1,900 granted or pending patents for human interface technologies.
Approvable.
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Many Synaptics products are based on capacitive sensing technology, as opposed to resistive touchscreen technologies. Capacitive touch sensing works by sensing the electrical properties of the finger(s) touching the sensor; a resistive touchscreen senses direct pressure between two clear electrical layers that are separated by a small space, requiring an amount of force.[39] Capacitive touch sensing products are solid state, making them more robust than resistive products.
 Unable to mark as approvable.^{[note 18]}
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Synaptics' capacitive touch technologies include active pens, force sensing, position sensing, fingerprint sensing, and transparent position sensing.[2] Synaptics also offers products based on optical sensing technology.[33] An optical sensor uses light, rather than electrical current, to obtain its readings.[40] Synaptics' optical sensing technology includes fingerprint sensing.
Partly approvable.^{[note 19]}
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Everything under the "Products" section.
Approvable.^{[note 20]}
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The FIDO Alliance is an industry consortium that aims to make authentication stronger and simpler, and to reduce reliance on passwords.[61][62] USI is an organization of leading OEMs, stylus and touch controller manufacturers driving industry standards to promote interoperable active styluses with touch-enabled devices such as phones, tablets and computing and entertainment platforms.
Not approvable.^{[note 21]}
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Synaptics is a founding member of the FIDO (Fast ID Online) Alliance and the Universal Stylus Initiative (USI).[60] Synaptics also partners with many global ecosystem market makers, including Google, Microsoft,[65] Baidu,[66] and Amazon.[67][68]
Approvable.^{[note 22]}
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These ecosystem partnerships help third parties work on developing new products more efficiently.
Not approvable.^{[note 23]}
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1. [1]

   Although it may have been used as the headline for a New York Times article (referenced elsewhere) the claim to "Function more like the human brain" is not really what this source states, which compared "the power consumption and computing power of a typical desk-top computer with that of the human brain."^[1] Debatable comparisons of this type are often made, and in any event, have more to do with the founders of the company, than with the company itself.
2. [2]

   This sentence is unreferenced.
3. [3]

   The term "winner take all" ought to be either clarified or omitted.
4. [4]

   This sentence is unreferenced.
5. [5]

   Procedural decline: The language about the founders "recognizing the issue" would not be included, as the claim regarding "the issue" was not referenced. If the claim regarding the issue was referenced, it would be approvable. The second part of this proposal (By 1994, Twinhead and Epson America had adopted Synaptics' touchpad for their computers, followed by Apple in 1995. The touchpad was subsequently adopted by other leading computer manufacturers of the time, including Compaq and Dell.) is approvable only so long as the two sentences are combined into one.
6. [6]

   "Continued to refine its technology" does not actually describe the refining process, and as a prose style, reads more like it were telling a story than simply describing an occurance.
7. [7]

   This is unable to be marked as approvable because it contains approvable elements, but with a key component missing. The missing component is that the first part of this two-part sentence is unreferenced. If the reference for the first part lay with the second part, then these sentences should be combined, and the two combined sentences would then be approvable.
8. [8]

   These two sentences ought to be combined into one, for brevity.
9. [9]

   The first sentence of this proposal is unclear on the meaning of "revealed". The second part of this sentence is insufficiently paraphrased from the source material.^[2]
10. [10]

    Please clarify "showcased".
11. [11]

    This needs to be reworded to remove excess verbiage (e.g., incorporating, enabling, introducing etc.).
12. [12]

    This paragraph requires minor editing, for brevity. Specifically, the price of these acquisitions ought to be omitted.
13. [13]

    "Beginning to expand" describes a state of affairs as the expansion begins. Only certain concrete events, such as actual expansion, contraction, etc., should be mentioned. In other words, "Beginning to do something" is story-like in its re-telling, and should be excised for brevity.
14. [14]

    This sentence should be reworded for brevity.
15. [15]

    This sentence should be reworded for brevity.
16. [16]

    This may have been only a choice of words used here, but announcements of partnerships are not as important or as central to the article as are actual partnerships which describe their concrete output. Announcements may cover any number of things that a company plans on doing, but only the concrete occurrences which happen after the announcements are made ought to be germane here.
17. [17]

    These sentences should be combined into one sentence, for brevity.
18. [18]

    Most of the information here concerns the technology itself, and goes into too great of a detail elaborating upon it. There are some details which may be approvable, but the size of the proposal, with too much information on the technology, prevents this proposal from being marked as approvable. If this were to be included, it should be drastically reduced in size, mentioning only the main details of the technology.
19. [19]

    This information should be combined into one sentence, for brevity. (And yes, three into one sentence can be done. I can help with this if needed.)
20. [20]

    The information presented in the "Products" section is in a bulleted list (which just so happens to be my preference for company minutiae of this kind) and is thus readily approvable.
21. [21]

    This covers information about the FIDO alliance, thier goals, and their actions, which is not relevant enough to the Synaptics article.
22. [22]

    This information could be added to the bulleted list above it. This bulleted list could then be retitled "Products and partnerships". Or else, a "Partnerships" bulleted list may be made. Please advise as to your ideas on this. Thank you.
23. [23]

    This assertion is too vague (i.e., making things more efficient) or else is boasting about an ability, per: WP:PEACOCK.

References

1. [1]

   Fisher, Lawrence M. (1990). "Technology; A Pioneer is Out on a Limb Again". The New York Times.
2. [2]

   "MaryGaulke sandbox: Synaptics mockup version No.# 836939758 as compared to: news.engin.umich.edu". Earwigs Copyvio Detector. WMFLabs.org.

Scientists and engineers Federico Faggin and Carver Mead founded Synaptics in 1986, inspired by their interest in neural networks and how technology might imitate neural networks and function more like the human brain.
Revised per above.
___________

Faggin and Mead applied their research and discoveries on neural networks and transistors on chips to build pattern recognition products.
A less accurate version of this sentence is already in the article, unreferenced, as the marked up version of my edits makes clear. However, I've updated with a ref to a source already used in the next paragraph.
___________

The name of the company is a portmanteau, blending synapse and electronics.[5] In 1991, Synaptics patented a refined "winner take all" circuit for teaching neural networks how to recognize patterns and images.
I've added clarification of the meaning of "winner take all" in this context.
___________

During Synaptics' early years, the laptop industry was struggling to make devices thinner because the spherical trackballs included in them required thicker device builds.
Again, this sentence already exists in the article without a citation. However, I did add a ref.
___________

Synaptics' founders recognized this issue and in 1992, used the pattern recognition techniques it developed to build the world's first touchpad.[7] By 1994, Twinhead and Epson America had adopted Synaptics' touchpad for their computers,[8] followed by Apple in 1995.[9] The touchpad was subsequently adopted by other leading computer manufacturers of the time, including Compaq and Dell.
I combined the last two sentences and added a ref for "the issue."
___________

As integration of the touchpad grew, Synaptics continued to refine its technology, intending to integrate it with other products and expand the company with a range of human interface technologies.
Again, this is already in the article, but I've revised in my mockup.
___________

In 2004, Apple debuted the iPod Mini and fourth-generation iPod, both of which featured a scrolling click wheel enabled by Synaptics' capacitive touch technology. The company also provided a similar, vertical solution for the click wheel of the Creative Zen Touch portable media player.
Yes, both sentences have the same reference. If you ask me, combining the two sentences makes it a bit of a run-on, but so be it. I've revised.
___________

In 2005, Synaptics sensors were featured in the Samsung B310, the first mobile phone to use capacitive-touch technology.[9] (As of early 2017, Samsung and many other Android phone manufacturers continued to use Synaptics sensors in their phones.)
I've combined the sentences.
___________

In October 2006, Synaptics revealed the Onyx, a concept smartphone with a color touchscreen enabled by its ClearPad touch controller technology. The Onyx's touch sensor could also tell the difference between a finger and a cheek, preventing accidental inputs during calls.[14][15][16] In 2007, LG launched its Prada phone featuring Synaptics' touch sensors, which was the world's first capacitive-touchscreen mobile phone.
Replaced "revealed" with "provided a live demonstration of". Tweaked the wording re: the Prada phone.
___________

In 2009, Synaptics showcased the Fuse concept smartphone, which included several features that are now standard in modern smartphones. The Fuse offered touch sensitivity on the back of the phone, the ability to interact with the phone by squeezing, animated icons, a user interface sensitive to the phone's orientation and tilt, and haptic gestures.
Updated "showcased" wording to reflect sources more precisely.
___________

In 2012, Synaptics introduced the world's first full-function capacitive-touch product to incorporate pressure recognition (force sensing), enabling multi-finger and variable-force input.[22] (Apple introduced Force Touch, a similar technology, in 2014.
This was a bit tricky, but I attempted to reword so it could be more plainly understood.
___________

In late 2013, Synaptics acquired Validity Sensors, a fingerprint sensor vendor based in San Jose, for $255 million. The acquisition added Natural ID capacitive fingerprint sensing to Synaptics' portfolio.[24][25] Synaptics acquired Renesas SP Drivers Inc., a Japanese company specializing in chips that manage LCD displays, in 2014. Synaptics purchased Renesas SP for ¥48.5 billion ($475 million). The acquisition enabled Synaptics to integrate offerings of touch and display driver technologies into a single "TDDI" (Touch and Display Driver Integration) chip.
Edited for brevity, including removing prices.
___________

With its growing portfolio of touch, display, and fingerprint offerings, in 2015 the company began to expand into additional markets, including automotive, wearables and PC peripherals.
Replaced "began to expand" with "expanded".
___________

In July 2015, Synaptics debuted a unique “match-in-sensor” fingerprint authenticator for laptops and other devices. Unlike traditional match-on-host products, match-in-sensor authenticates the finger within the chip itself, adding greater security.
Combined and shortened sentences.
___________

The company debuted the Clear ID FS9100, its first optical-based fingerprint sensor, in December 2016.[33] The company continued to improve the technology, and the sensor went into full production a year later.
Combined and shortened sentences.
___________

In June 2017, Synaptics announced it was acquiring Conexant Systems, an Amazon Alexa partner that creates voice and audio software and silicon products for smart homes, for $300 million in cash and 726,666 shares of stock.
Updated with date acquisition was finalized (the next month), reworded accordingly, and added source.
___________

At the same time, Synaptics acquired Marvell Technology Group's Multimedia Solutions unit, which creates video and audio processing technology, for $95 million. The two acquisitions were intended to aid Synaptics' expansion into the Internet of things market.
I'll ask you to reconsider your suggestion that these sentences be combined, since the second sentence refers to both the Marvell and Conexant acquisitions, not just the Marvell acquisition.
___________

Many Synaptics products are based on capacitive sensing technology, as opposed to resistive touchscreen technologies. Capacitive touch sensing works by sensing the electrical properties of the finger(s) touching the sensor; a resistive touchscreen senses direct pressure between two clear electrical layers that are separated by a small space, requiring an amount of force.[39] Capacitive touch sensing products are solid state, making them more robust than resistive products.
Cut and combined several sentences. I think this section is now about half of its original length.
___________

Synaptics' capacitive touch technologies include active pens, force sensing, position sensing, fingerprint sensing, and transparent position sensing.[2] Synaptics also offers products based on optical sensing technology.[33] An optical sensor uses light, rather than electrical current, to obtain its readings.[40] Synaptics' optical sensing technology includes fingerprint sensing.
Cut/combined into one sentence.
___________

The FIDO Alliance is an industry consortium that aims to make authentication stronger and simpler, and to reduce reliance on passwords.[61][62] USI is an organization of leading OEMs, stylus and touch controller manufacturers driving industry standards to promote interoperable active styluses with touch-enabled devices such as phones, tablets and computing and entertainment platforms.
Deleted extraneous information about the organizations.
___________

Synaptics is a founding member of the FIDO (Fast ID Online) Alliance and the Universal Stylus Initiative (USI).[60] Synaptics also partners with many global ecosystem market makers, including Google, Microsoft,[65] Baidu,[66] and Amazon.[67][68]
To me this still makes sense as prose rather than bullets, but open to changing it if you think doing so would better adhere to WP:MOS.
___________

These ecosystem partnerships help third parties work on developing new products more efficiently.
Deleted.