Since Apple launched the iPhone in 2007, the touchscreen mobile phone has gone from sideshow to centre stage attraction, bringing with it a legion of copycat handsets quick to jump on the touch bandwagon.

The market is currently filled with a range of handsets at all shapes, sizes and pricepoints. Here are a few points to think about when considering a touchscreen phone.

Touch Or Not To Touch?

That is the first thing to consider when looking at buying a touchscreen phone - whether you really want one in the first place. Many have already gotten used to the phones of yesteryear, the tactile feel of a keyboard, finding physical buttons more responsive, comfortable and familiar to use.

Others find the vivid and intuitive nature of touchscreens far more appealing, taking to the gesture-based navigation and virtual keyboard like digital ducks to water.

The latest handsets offer the best of both worlds, not only boasting a full touchscreen, but also a QWERTY keyboard hidden away for when swift typing is required.

Check out a selection of touch phones which also have a keyboard here.

Touchscreen Types - Resistive and Capacitive

Despite looking similar on the surface, there are really two different types of touchscreen technology that these phones take advantage of – resistive and capacitive.

Whilst capacitive touch screens offer a faster and more responsive experience, resistive touch screens tend to be cheaper to manufacture and have a greater degree of accuracy.

Also, resistive touch screens can also be used with a stylus, which is important for handwriting recognition and writing Asian characters.

Resistive touchscreens are composed of several layers of plastic, and input is registered when two of these layers become joined by the external pressure of a finger or stylus, creating an electrical connection.

Capacitive touchscreens are traditionally a glass panel coated with a transparent conductive material. As the human body conducts electricity, any touch on the surface of the screen triggers the electric field and registers the location of the input. Capacitive touchscreens can more readily accept continuous input across the surface, and also track multiple fingers on a single display.

Haptic Feedback

Haptic feedback, a reassuring vibration upon menu or item selection, appears on both resistive and capacitive touchscreen phones. This goes some way to emulating some of the physical feedback from button presses on a real keypad, confirming choices with a light buzz.

The Future Of Touchscreens

What does the future of touch have in store? Some recently released handsets may have a resistive display, but rely on the internal processor to provide a super-responsive interface rivalling that of capacitive devices. Also, BlackBerry makers RIM have been working hard on a new hybrid interface that offering the best of both worlds.

We have also seen the touchscreen extend beyond the confines of mobile phones, going from 3.5-inch screens to the full size display of a home PC, as well as handheld touch computers - dubbed 'tablets' - in between.

There is no denying their popularity and allure, with the majority of mobiles released going down the touchscreen route. Rest assured there will still be enough handsets with full keypads to offer the choice for a long time to come.