Is spacing between touch targets an unnecessary recommendation by Microsoft?

1. What is the minimum recommended touch target in pixels?
2. What is a touch target?
3. How many pixels is a finger?

What is the minimum recommended touch target in pixels?

Consider making touch targets at least 48x48dp, separated by 8dp of space or more, to ensure balanced information density and usability. A touch target of 48x48dp results in a physical size of about 9mm, regardless of screen size. The recommended target size for touchscreen objects is 7-10mm.

What is a touch target?

The touch target is the area the user can tap on the screen in order to perform an action. The recommended size is between 7mm and 10mm. As we define our sizes in points and density-independent pixels, Android and iOS guidelines have recommended sizes in these units to get good results on the different devices.

How many pixels is a finger?

An MIT Touch Lab study of Human Fingertips to investigate the Mechanics of Tactile Sense found that the average width of the index finger is 1.6 to 2 cm (16 - 20 mm) for most adults. This converts to 45 - 57 pixels, which is wider than what most mobile guidelines suggest.