I wouldn't say they are any more hackish than trying to extrapolate a single pixel line through a path of sensors that only respond to conductive elements that are about .2" diameter
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The ones I've tried were quite good and allowed 5 touch points at a time, gesture use and stylus. They were retrofitted into industrial HMIs, meant for use where the operators wore gloves, so yes, the multi-touch gestures had to be a little more pronouced than with a capacitive touch screen. I was very impressed with them.