News Chemistry

Long nails don’t work on touchscreens. An experimental polish could help

The polish registers as touch by disrupting the screen’s electric field

A woman with long nails uses her phone's touchscreen

An experimental nail polish could make it easier for people with long nails to use touchscreens.

BongkarnThanyakij//iStock/Getty Images Plus

By Skyler Ware

A newly formulated nail polish could one day let people activate touchscreens with their fingernails.

When pressed to a screen, the polish disrupts the screen’s electric field, which the device registers as touch.