Aspen touch solutions.

• Author: Peterson, Eric
• Position: Tech Startup of the Month

INITIAL LIGHTBULB

A group of touch-screen veterans came together to start a new company and make a better product--at a lower price.

Aspen Touch President Jim Nations and Vice President of World Wide Channel Sales Steve Greer met as co-workers at the touch-screen market leader, Fremont, Calif.-based Elo TouchSystems, where each worked for more than 15 years; Aspen Touch's five-person management team has logged a total of more than 75 years in the industry. As Greer put it, "Anyone that's involved in touch in any significant way is likely to know one of us." Greer said the founders saw "a better way of doing business" in the touch-screen market. "The major companies ... are restricted because they're owned by large corporations. They demand high margins and are slow to react," he said. Aspen Touch was designed to "be more adaptable, more flexible, more creative and operate on lower margins."

Added Nations: "What we're doing more than any other touch company is just listening to customers."

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IN A NUTSHELL

Aspen Touch debuted three 15-inch touch-screen monitors in May as its key products. Upcoming products include 12-inch and 17-inch versions. These initial products are resistive screens, the most prevalent of four touch technologies on the market. In the fall, Aspen Touch will venture into another segment by releasing an infrared-based monitor.

Greer described the products as "more feature-rich at a lower price." The monitors boast a unique sensor that gauges the light and automatically dims or brightens the monitor to match. Another key selling point that defies the touch industry's status quo: Every Aspen Touch product has both a USB and a serial interface. Competitors offer monitors that have either a USB port or a serial port, but not both.

Greer said Aspen Touch's price point is about 5 to 10 percent below the market norm; resellers list them for about $640, while comparable products usually run $700.

Beyond the headquarters in Evergreen, Aspen Touch's manufacturing operations are based in Asia, where Nations has moved five product lines in the last decade...