Help Build the ultimate iPhone feature request list
Posted by Dr. Macenstein
We’ve had the pleasure of using the iPhone for a couple days now, and while we certainly view it as a technological marvel, there is always room for improvement.
Since Apple itself has said there will be future software updates to add new functionality to the iPhone, we thought we would compile a list of things we’d personally like to see in the iPhone, and we’d like your help.
We invite you to add your ideas in the comments below, and we’ll add the ones we think are the best to the master list. (And if anything we bring up here actually is already possible in the iPhone, please let us know. We don’t claim to be iPhone experts yet). We’re not really looking for things like “add more storage” or “add a faster network”. We’re more looking for things that can be added via software/firmware to improve the way the current iPhone functions.
The list will be updated periodically as we continue to test the iPhone.
-The Doc
Add Copy and Paste – this should be a no-brainer. The question is of course, how would it work given the touchscreen interface? I think the iPhone needed one extra multi-function “physical” button somewhere on the exterior which could be programmed to handle different functions based on the app. This would be one scenario where I could see that button handling a selection/copy text motion when held down and the cursor was dragged across. But there could be other methods of doing this using the existing interface.
Display should have an auto-dim/off function to conserve battery life (I am aware of the auto-lock feature, and this is not what I mean). Since battery life is a concern with an all-in-one device, I don’t see why there is not a setting to control the screen brightness during inactivity. For example, if you navigate to the iPhone’s main menu, and then put the iPhone on the desk and walk away, an hour later the main menu screen will still be shinning brightly (perhaps even damaging the screen!). If you leave it charging over night with that screen showing, it will have been on all night. Similarly, if you are playing tracks in iTunes, the screen will not dim either (I paused a music track over 25 minutes ago, and the screen has been using full power the entire time). A “regular” iPod’s screen will dim after a certain amount of time. Laptops have a similar function. On the iPhone, the only way to set this is to set up the auto-lock to go on, which is not always ideal. I would like to see the screen dim or go black after a user-defined time period, and be able to be woken by a touch, not a physical button press. [UPDATE: I noticed if you have the iPhone plugged into a wall outlet charging, and have your auto-lock turned ON, the phone will not lock, and will instead dim the display after the set time (depending on what you are doing, this is not consistent throughout the iPhone. The iPhone display dims when on the main screen, or while playing a song with the “iPod” screen up, but if you pause a song while charging, it will lock, not dim).
Not sure if this is intentional, but it is an example of what I want the iPhone to do when inactive and auto-lock is NOT turned on.
Drag URL onto “new page” icon to open a link in a new page – If you press and hold on a link in Safari, the link’s the url appears. Since there is no “right click” to open the link in a new tab (page), I think it would be cool if you could drag that “pop-up” link onto the New Page icon to open it in a new page.
Safari Password Storing – I understand mobile phones are particularly susceptible to theft and the iPhone perhaps even more so due to it’s “hot gadget” status, but I would love for Safari to be able to remember website passwords. The way see this working would be a “Keychain” type of functionality where one password could unlock them all. Have it timeout periodically for security (optional 5, 10, 30 min settings). Even entering the same password every half hour would be preferable to having to remember 30 others. Macenstein reader Kendall adds “I want Keychain on the iPhone as well, but also some kind of interface for reviewing and adding to the contents of Keychain – I’d like to be able to add other account codes there as well to be held securely.”
Widescreen keyboard should be an option for EVERY app that handles text, not just Safari. It’s just easier to type on a larger keyboard.
EVERY app should rotate when the iPod rotates. Mail and Notes especially, but maps would be cool too.
Add a master “Address Book/ Contacts” button to the main interface
Add an iTunes/Music controller to the top menu bar The top of the menu bar displays a little “play” icon when iTunes is playing music. When in any other app, you should be able to tap that triangle once to pause, and again to play. It is annoying to have to tap the “main menu” button, then “iPod”, then “pause” if you need to quickly and briefly pause the music.
Flash and Java Support Obviously this will be tricky, but it will go a long way toward allowing developers to code more “app-like” applications for the iPhone, and should open up games to the iPhone as well. The problems are of course these will likely be crippled in some way by Apple/AT&T to discourage VoIP apps from being written. Rumors are Flash support will be added sooner than later, so perhaps we’ll get an idea of Java’s future when we see how Flash is handled.
Add “Disk Mode” like standard iPods I can’t tell you how many times I use my iPod to move files to and from work. Let’s get this going on the iPhone. After all, it is meant to help limit the number of devices we carry around. I don’t want to keep my old iPod or a thumb drive handy.
Ability to assign more than one signature in Mail It took Apple a long time to being this feature to the “regular” version of OS X’s Mail, but now that it’s there, why didn’t they carry it over to the Mail settings? The “signature” option should be located under each mail account’s prefs, allowing you to assign a different signature to each sending address
I should be able to decline a call when the iPhone is “locked” If you manually lock your iPhone (or it auto locks after a set time) and you receive a call, you are presented only with the option of “Slide to unlock and answer phone”. I cannot decline the call and stop it from ringing without answering it. This is potentially embarrassing in a meeting situation where you want to silence your phone’s ringing without taking the call (I know there is a silent mode switch, but that is not the same. I want to be able to send people right into voicemail, instead of having everyone listen to my phone vibrate until they are sent to voicemail). Unlocking a ringing iPhone should NOT auto answer it (unless you set it in a preference). It should merely unlock it and then give you the answer/decline button it normally shows if it. again, this is just another option that you should be able to set in a $600 cutting edge phone. [UPDATE: Apparently you can decline a call by pushing the wake/sleep button twice. I still think it should work with the touch button, but at least it is possible]
Add “Games” Fairies, would be an awesome one for the touchscreen.
Add “Rules” to iPhone’s Mail This would go along with adding folders, most likely, but it would be useful in deleting junk mail (unless Apple decides to let the iPhone respect Junk Mail headers (see below)).
User defined custom ringtones I KNOW this must be a feature Apple will eventually add; they must have just not had time for everything. But NO phone calling itself a “music phone” limits this feature. One of us here at Macenstein has already said this is the sole reason he is holding out on buying an iPhone. I understand that perhaps Apple wants to start selling ringtones via iTunes, but let’s not get greedy Apple. There’s room for both.
Let us browse the device via Bluetooth I’d like to be able to get the photos I took with the iPhone onto my computer without having to e-mail them back and forth. Similarly, I’d like to be able to perhaps pull off notes. [UPDATE: A few people have pointed out iPhoto will try to import your iPhone pics when attached to your computer. I have 2 problems with using iPhoto as the conduit for photos. 1) I want to also be able to drag photos ON to the iPhone without adding them to my iPhoto library. For instance, many site have started making iPhone sized wallpapers of various subjects. I don’t want a picture of Mr. Sparkle from the Simpsons or some Suicide girls in my iPhone library, but i MIGHT want them on my iPhone as wallpaper. 2) Anyone know what Windows users do?
Time stamping on SMS messages. There is none. What’s up with that?
Add a “period” key to the main keyboard.
Directory access, or at very least, access to the photos folder So you can upload iPhone photos to websites that support that like flickr.
A “multiple delete” key for e-mail Right now you have to delete each message individually. (Maybe add a “checkbox” system, like many webmail clients use to perform bulk actions).
Ability to remove Application icons from the main menu screen I’m sure as Apple adds apps this will become possible. It bothers me that a slot is taken up by the “Clock” app right now. While it is somewhat convenient to know what time it is in Tokyo at the moment, my current time is right at the top of the iPhone. The Clock seems like it was turned into an application just for the sake of filling a hole.
Add audio output option to alarms and ringer Similar the iPod’s options for the clickwheel sound to be heard in the “headphone”, “speaker”, or “both”, I think ringtones and alarm reminders should have these options. Putting the phone in “silent mode” will not make the alarm silent, or play only via headphones. There are times when I use the timer to time something, like when a DVD or set of video dubs is scheduled to finish. I’d like to have the option of me being the only one who hears my alarm go off.
Let us use an iTunes song/playlist for our alarm. – While we’re on the topic of the alarm, Macenstein reader Ryan says “I know I’m probably one of the 7 people who use their iPhone as an alarm clock, but the oversight of actually selecting from the music library is beyond me. I don’t want to wake up to a ringtone, i want to select from the 1,000 songs i put on the iPod. Come on, Apple, that’s easy. Step it up.”
Add Cover Flow view for contacts. – Macenstein reader Daniel
Video Out like 5G iPod – Macenstein reader Tracy
Ability to send text messages to multiple recipients – Macenstein reader David
Ability to open a link in a new page Maybe a two finger tap?- Macenstein reader Michael McLean
iChat Built in chat functions like AIM or MSN – Macenstein reader Kris Snow
A way to email the full 2 Megapixel pictures taken from the camera At current it only emails a 640X480 picture. – Macenstein reader SeanG (We agree. We only noticed this behavior ourselves this afternoon. Disappointing).
Customizable Dictionary – Macenstein reader Doug Hardman
Safari bookmarks syncing should work like music/video playlist syncing. I don’t need my iPhone to have every bookmark that my desktop Safari has – there should be an ‘iPhone folder’ or an option to mark certain bookmarks with a ’sync to iPhone’ flag. – Macenstein reader El Payo
Pseudo GPS since there is not GPS chipset inside the iPhone, have google maps jump to the cell tower that you are currently logged on to – Macenstein reader john95127
Mail client should respect the mail server’s junk mail headings and not download junkmail (We personally think this is a great idea!) Macenstein reader JTK
Ability to use the iPhone as a wireless modem Wireless modem for my laptop via Bluetooth, via serial (to save power), Wireless modem for my laptop via WiFi. (mini WAP). – Macenstein reader BusinessGuy
MMS Seems a next gen phone should support this current-gen feature. – Macenstein reader Ferna
A true RSS reader RSS almost makes more sense on an iPhone than a computer. – Macenstein reader Michael McLean
Get Groups working in iPhone’s Mail Groups within address book do not retain their functionality in Mail. In Mail on OS X, inputting a Group Name into the To: field will automatically add all the email addresses you have stored in that group. Mail on the iPhone does not seem to support this feature. – Macenstein reader ScooterD
Video recording We’re not sure if this is possible or not via software/firmware, but we’re listing it anyway. Again, this is just one of those things found in clunkier, cheaper phones that an iPhone should be allowed to do. – Macenstein reader Florian Vanthuyne
Video uploading to YouTube and while we’re at it. let’s make it possible to upload those iPhone-shot videos to YouTube – Dr. Macenstein
Private photo gallery in Photos app I’d like a password protected album in the photo app. That’s the place where friends seem to go first to check out pictures and I’d love to have pictures that are my own private jokes and memories that are protected from being pawned through by others asking questions: ex-girlfriends/parents that kind of thing. People who are into mobile porn would probably like this too. – Macenstein reader Patrick
Support for Bluetooth GPS devices with Maps integration Bluetooth GPS devices are relatively inexpensive, have decent battery life, and wouldn’t have to add any bulk to the phone itself, since they’re external. – Macenstein reader ClunkClunk
Call duration We should know how long a call lasted. At the moment there is no way to see how long was a call. – Macenstein reader Jptolife
We actually can see this being useful to those who require time billing, like lawyers and such who charge for phone calls.
Support for AirTunes Since this is the first iPod with WiFi, I think support for AirTunes would be a welcome addition. Currently, you can only stream iTunes music to AirPort Express speakers from a computer. AirTunes directly from an iPod would eliminate need to use a computer for this. Just sit on the sofa with your iPhone, stream music to your speakers over WiFi. – Macenstein reader bky (We’re not sure if this is possible with the iPhone’s current hardware, but it is a cool idea).
Voice Dialing Hard to understand why on earth they left this out, but I would have waited to buy had I known it did not have it. I make alot of calls from my car (via bluetooth headset), and voice dialing is essential. – Macenstein reader Erik Olsen
How about a To Do list tool that syncs with iCal/Outlook? – Macenstein reader Laszlo
E-book reader (eReader) – Macenstein reader Chris
Ability to turn pictures off when browsing on safari with edge for faster load times. – Macenstein reader chris miles
Rearrange & Reorder I Googled for an hour trying to find out how to reorder my email accounts, stock lists & photo albums NADA, lemme drag & drop everything, please. – Macenstein reader Brett L
Add a search feature in the contacts bar When somebody like me has 1200 contacts they will get mixed up in different letters. An optional search bar should be included. – Macenstein reader Anonymous
Add a voice recorder I used this function constantly on my old phone. whether it be an idea for a song, or a spoken idea i couldn’t type out while driving, this was indispensable. – Macenstein reader lonelysandwich
Spotlight all over the place Mail, contacts, music, calendars, it should be everywhere. – Macenstein reader Allison
GPS via Dock connection I would like if there was an gps that could use the 30 pin connection at the bottom of the phone so it uses less battery life than blue tooth. – Macenstein reader Chris
Wi-Fi only mode How about letting me turn off the phone but not WiFi. I’ on vacation in a place with no cell coverage, but we do have WiFi here. My battery lasts only a day with the phone searching for a signal it is never going to find. – Macenstein reader John
iTunes Store I’m shocked you can’t buy things directly from iTunes on Apple’s first iPod + internet device, it seems ridiculous. And weird, cause they could make so much money from that. – Macenstein reader Allison
Allow all Application icons to display info Weather and clock icons should update continuously like the Calendar. Also, the calender should have notification buttons on it when you have an event within a specific time frame..for example if i have a meeting today one hour before the meting a “1″ notification button should appear on the calender- Macenstein readers Corey Gomel and Drew Russell
Add “dialed” and “received” to Call Lists Currently, the call lists are for All and missed. How about dialed and received as well? – Macenstein reader Seth Tepfer
Custom Dictionary I would like to add that I wish there was a way to teach the keyboard/dictionary words. I have used the “notes†features extensively to keep track of my day and find myself retyping some of the same words all the time and they are words that my phone doesn’t know yet. – Macenstein reader Kathleen
Turn the volume up to 11 Better volume while on calls and speakerphone. Louder ring tones. – Macenstein readers ballyhoo and Jamie
Mail fodlers Since I only use the POP email feature (currently) I would like the way to make a new folder to put mail into. They have the option to move a message to another folder, but only options are Inbox, OutBox, Sent, Trash. I would like to be able to make a new folder such as *save* so I can move emails (such as an email with my resume) into it so I can have it at all times without always seeing it in my inbox. – Macenstein reader Clint L
Contact Categories i got used to having categories in my Treo. Now I miss it. I want to be able to see filters for restaurants, family, doctors, co-workers. – Macenstein reader Bret L We agree. iTunes should have the option to sync only selected groups from the Mac’s address book. I do not want something like drugstore.com added in my iPhone’s address book just because I had them in My Mac’s “stores” addresses used to perform a rule.
Keep the suggestions comin’ folks!
[UPDATE: WOW. This list is growing fast! Thanks so much for all your comments. If Apple adds even a quarter of these suggestions in the coming months they will have the most revolutionary handheld device to date. And thanks for keeping (most of these) actually feasible! ]
[UPDATE 2: I have sent this link to Apple via their iPhone feedback page.]
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I would like to see a movie theater widget added to the iPhone. Perhaps Apple is waiting until the widget demoed at WWDC is released with leopard, but I would like that functionality now, not in October.
MY LIST
2. Safari constantly just exits and takes me back to the home screen
with out me pressing the home button.
3. I can’t send a text message to multiple recipients (something I
could do on my old phone).
4. I can’t send (text or email) someone contact information, like a
phone number. Again, something I can do on my old phone (p.s. – my
old phone was a Motorola SLVR and Palm Treo 650)
5. The keyboard should definitely work in landscape mode, especially
in text applications (SMS, Email)
6. When you are writing SMS, the “return” button should be the send
button. Since when o you use a “return” button when you are writing a
text message. It is much easier to just have the send button there,
instead of having to reach up. Otherwise, at least put a period.
7. MMS!!
8. Cut and Paste! – I constantly want to email someone a hyperlink.
9. Games!!! – What cell phone out there doesn’t have games?
10. Wireless syncing – It should work just like my .mac account:
constantly syncing my contacts, calender etc.
11. Push email
12. Removable battery – the iPhone is much more a Mac than an iPod.
It therefore deserves a removable battery.
I’d like the ear piece volume on the phone itself to be louder. I find I need to use the headset to really carry on a conversation without pressing the phone to my ear to block all sound, especially outdoors.
Speaker phone volume should also be raised (maybe I am just going deaf) 🙂
Not sure if those can be changed in firmware or not.
Manual management of music. I HATE that I have to sync to iTunes, because that means that I have to keep all of my Apple Lossless files (what I listen to on the go and at home via my Airport Express), and my compressed music (AAC @ 256). That is a HUGE waste of hard disk storage, and makes it so that I have to use playlists to hear a song if I don’t want to hear each song twice. It’s very inconvenient.
“Let us browse the device via Bluetooth I’d like to be able to get the photos I took with the iPhone onto my computer without having to e-mail them back and forth.”
You don’t have to email photos to get them on your Mac, just open iphoto and it treats the iPhone as a digital camera and is ready to import the photos from the iPhone.
Solutions:
You can get your photos with iPhoto. You don’t need to email them.
Really you’ll be able to type a period as easy as any key on the main screen with some practice. See “Pogue’s Awesome iPhone Period-Typing Shortcut”
You can upload iPhone photos to Flickr via email for the time being.
David:
iPhone jumps from Safari to home when Safari crashes. This should be fixed soon.
Yahoo! offers push mail for the iPhone.
Requests:
I’d like to see voice over VoIP. T-Mobile’s move might even make this a possibility.
PDF, DOC, and XSL syncing w/ preview as an app.
A way to open a link in a separate page (maybe a two finger tap?)
A way to wipe the information or lock a stolen iPhone remotely.
How could we have forgotten Flash?
How about a true feed reader.
It seems, for some bizarre reason, that Groups within address book do not retain their functionality in Mail. In Mail on OS X, inputting a Group Name into the To: field will automatically add all the email addresses you have stored in that group. Mail on the iPhone does not seem to support this feature. Seems like it’s just an oversight, but I’d love to see that fixed.
Flash and additionally Adobe AIR runtime for development
How about a “Finder”?
What about syncing over WiFi? It’s certainly fast enough for it. While we’re on the subject… while the Edge network has performed “okay” for us in our test, 3G and 802.11n … sure it’s a lot to ask, but this is Apple.
oh yeah… one more thing. What about having the mail client on the phone trust the mail servers’ junk mail headings and not download junkmail.
Video recording would be something I hope it can handle when it arrives here in Belgium.
Also mms would be great, because you can ‘t expect everyone to check their mail every hour at least when you want to mail them something important.
I’ll post again if something else crosses my mind 🙂
Send a SMS message to multiple recipients, MMS and a volt with PIN number for personal Info.
I would like to be able to edit and add contacts while I am on the phone. Also mass deletion of emails, and when I send an email would love to be able to change who I am sending it from without changing the default Mail account for my phone first.
Not a software update, but I’m hoping they add GPS in the next version. I’m stuck with Verizon till October anyway, though I doubt it’ll be added by then.
Yeah, the gamne Fairy would be nice! Great idea!
Ability to save attachments, specifically PDFs and Photos, from email messages.
MMS! For some reason this weekend more times than I can count, I was asked to snap a pic and send it to person X via MMS. I could not — instead I had to email.
One more thing — iPod games should work with the iPhone. This seems like a no-brainer.
And back to the MMS thing — Apple, I was really embarrassed about my $600 purchase when I had to tell people on many occasions that I can’t send a photo to someone else’s phone via MMS…
Let’s also beef up the bluetooth stack — there’s no reason I should have to email content to and from my Wife’s phone when she’s standing right next to me.
Default full screen brightnesss when iPhone is plugged in- like the Mac’s power saving settings, it would be nice that if the iphone has full power, it doesn’t worry about saving it, as it’s recharging. I like the screen somewhat dimmer when carrying around in my pocket, but when it’s on my desktop, it’d be nice, since it’s farther away, that it would beam at full quality.
Make multiple contacts possible to be added to one SMS message – I’d like to be able to send the same message to multiple people, or even a address group on the contacts page. I sometimes like to send the same info to multple folks.
Institute double tap access for main icons- I use SMS a lot. I’d like easy access at the bottom of the screen. An easy way to do that would be a double tap of the phone icon for the SMS model. A double tap of the mail icon could take you to a compsoe message, a double tap of the safari message could take you to your bookmarks folder, a double tap of the iphone icon to take you to your videos
Ability to change the default email sending address- I have an IMAP yahoo account that I’m using to accumulate all my iphone important emails via forwarding. I’d never like to send from that address, I’d like to be able to set my main email address as the smtp server address, when replying to messages from the yahoo account.
Private photo gallery in photo app- I’d like a password protected album in the photo app. That’s the place where friends seem to go first to check out pictures and I’d love to have pictures that are my own private jokes and memories that are protected from being pawned through by others asking questions: ex-girlfriends/parents that kind of thing. People who are into mobile porn would probably like this too.
I would love it if Apple included support for bluetooth GPS devices and integrates that with the built in Google Maps. Bluetooth GPS devices are relatively inexpensive, have decent battery life, and wouldn’t have to add any bulk to the phone itself, since they’re external. I’d probably keep mine in the car, and use it there 90% of the time, but drop it in my pocket for those times I wanted my GPS on person. You can do it with Windows Mobile PDA phones, and I’d hate to have to get one of those to do what I want.
Here’s the feedback I sent to Apple on the iPhone:
There should be some modal tools located in the upper left corner of the screen that change the context of the finger input. These would include the ‘pointer’ tool (pointing finger icon), which is the default which behaves like the current iPhone interaction mode, an ‘info’ tool (lowercase ‘i’ icon), which would initiate a hover action on something you point to on the screen, and display any tooltips info on the selected interface element. If you click a second time on that element when in info mode, it returns to ‘pointer’ mode and initiates the standard click action. If you click on a different interface element, it will display the info for that. This will also provide a workaround for mouse-hover-dependent web site interfaces in Safari. The third modal button would be a ‘text’ or ‘selection’ tool (with the classic text selection cursor icon), which can select some text, image, or other element on the screen. With this tool active, the area you click on is the start of the text selection (in the case of text being clicked on), and the next points you point to or drag your finger to extend the text selection. In the case of an image or other element being selected, the first click selects the entire object you point to. If you click on the currently-selected text or object, it changes back to ‘pointer’ mode, and allows you to drag your selection to the edge of the screen. You can then change to whatever window or application you want to paste it to, and drag it back from the edge of the screen to where you want to paste it. You might allow application developers to make their own modal interaction buttons and parameters.
A white iPhone.
Just so you know, Apple release a video on how to decline a call on a manually locked iPhone. The top on/off button has “tap to decline” and “double-tap” to send to voicemail functionality.
Thanks Adam, we actually just updated that entry about a second ago!
-The Doc
We should know how long a call lasted. At the moment there is no way to see how long was a call.
Multiple Recipient Text messaging for sure!
I want a
1. 80GB flash iPhone and ready to pay $400 for it.
2. Voice-dialing
3. Easily replaceable battery
4. Shorter in size – but not smaller screen.
5. Can be ‘unlocked’ so that it can be useful in world-travel.
support flash and also be able to send pictures and media via txt message.
GPS chip built in. This should be a killer app in itself. Imagine getting into your car and fixing your phone into the built in iDock integrated with a down loadable gmap.
Built in chat functions like AIM or MSN.
Ability to record video.
GPS can fit in a razr, why not in an iPhone?
I thought that all phones will have to support gps..
So why does it not have gps.
Java and Ajax support.
Hello, web 2.0 is here. and your not answering the call.
Anodized colored case options (black and pink, obvious first choices)
Laser engraving
If a virtual keyboard works… Simple solution to “how to do” on a touch screen is a virtual two button mouse. Or corners of the screen can be assigned function….
Flash support! C’mon now.
Two presses of the Home button automatically takes you to Favorites in the Phone app.
Unlocked iPhone that can be used in prepaid plans.
Here’s my list…
#1 – Save photos/docs sent in email (so I can re-send/save.)
#2 – Customizable Dictionary. ( I miss my BlackBerry where I could hit the spacebar twice and have a “. ” entered…or type “sig” and have it put all my info at the end of an email.)
#3 – Dedicated Period Key (As noted above.)
#4 – Add Contact info to the “locked” screen. (If I have my phone stolen, I’d love for someone to know hot to get ahold of me.)
1. Wireless modem for my laptop via Bluetooth.
2. Wireless modem for my laptop via serial (to save power).
3. Wireless modem for my laptop via WiFi. (mini WAP).
4. VPN client for my particular company — Checkpoint.
5. Blackberry and/or Goodlink application.
6. Keychain-sync with my laptop for my web passwords.
7. WiFi server, so I can copy files to/from via sFTP.
I tried to figure out how to create custom folders in Mail but I couldn’t seem to figure it out. Maybe I’m missing but if not that should be something to add.
Also I agree with most of the commenter’s here…there should be an accept or decline button when the phone is locked.
Yes, a prepaid version of the iPhone.
Come on now! No one has mentioned the lack of support for PUSH MAIL or IMAP IDLE? How about OTA support for Exchange?
Cal
My wish is a variation of the “Ability to remove Application icons from the main menu screen”. I’d like the home screen to be completely customized… put the widgets under a widget sub menu, and allow me to put shortcuts to any screen (For example, you could put a contact on the home screen, for speed dialing). That way, I could remove the widgets I don’t use (Clock, calculator, etc), and add items I do use (Speed dial for pizza, Digg, etc)
1. Bang for the Buck (the iPhone is $500-$600 + 2yr contract, my X01HT was $450 shipped, duties, taxes, basically to my door, my phone is completely unlocked and I can use it on any provider I wish with NO CONTRACT)
2. Missing high security password (I can use either simple or adv on my X01HT, that’s letters AND numbers)
3. Voice Dialing (either pre-recorded or full voice command, this is a safety concern, you should not occupy both hands while driving on anything other than driving the car/holding the steering wheel, without voice dialing and tactile feel, you need both hands to do ANYTHING with the phone, on most phones you hit the MFB button on my Bluetooth headset, say Call “persons name†and confirm, why did they leave this out)
4. Voice Digit Dialing (even the Razr V3x has this)
5. Crippled 3rd party support (websites are not an application)
6. No MMS (some phones don’t support HTML email which is the majority, and i’m not remembering everyone’s full 10 digit number as well as the email domain name from their carrier, I cant even copy and paste the address)
7. No built in instant messaging or 3rd party support (this is ridiculous, even the business oriented blackberry has support for ALL popular protocols, just who exactly is the iPhone marketed towards?)
8. 1st Gen models don’t have 3.5G yet in a couple months European versions do? (not confirmed but still, you cant sell in Europe without 3.5G, also you are paying 3G rates for data fees as its mandatory, but you don’t get 3G, also don’t tell me that 3.6mbit Vs 250kbit is something that isn’t important and can you can look the other way)
9. Crippled video support, (only plays h.264 which NO OTHER PHONE CAN RECORD. The standard is 3gp and some others can do MP4, mine does both record and play. My X01HT can play any format I choose, even the windows media player supports multiple formats )
10. Lack of Removable battery (some blackberry users would die if they lost this ability, this is not even a feature, it should be mandatory, also what happens if you want more battery life? Buy some corded battery pack? I prefer just buying a high capacity battery for my X01HT, 10hrs talk ïŠ)
11. Self serviceable battery (Out-of-warranty battery replacement: $79 + $6.95 shipping? $80 for a battery is just a rip off. I can get an OEM battery replacement for my Softbank and it costs me $15 SHIPPED)
12. Difficult one handed use because of the lack of tactile feel (this was true for my older HTC Prophet, however the prophet had a D-PAD, menu and ok buttons, my X01HT has a jog dial, Steve jobs reason is because devices with keyboards cant change, they are static. This is strange because the devices he shows in the video had mapable buttons, this is a built in utility in WM5/6 where you can assign any task or application to launch)
13. Choice of plan – Mandatory Data fees, Mandatory Voice fees (I don’t let any company tell me what to do with my cell phone plan)
14. Choice of carrier (looks like the iPhone is REALLY locked to ATT, it maybe highly difficult to unlock at this point in time)
15. Crippled camera (no video of any kind!, no templates, no advanced options like exposure, burst, high speed shutter, panoramic mode, etc also just because some of the users out there don’t use the camera doesn’t mean its ok to turn a blind eye. I use the camera on my x01ht not to take pictures but to decode QR Barcodes, OCR business cards to pocket outlook, OCR documents, etc)
16. Themes (if the iPhone is all about looks, why cant you theme anything on it? I don’t think you can even change your icons, that’s -1 for looks)
17. Same iPod restrictions apply (apple forces you to do it their way, I would rather my phone show up as a removable drive like a USB flash drive and just drag my songs and play lists on, I don’t enjoy installing bloated garbage like iTunes, which just got even more bloated. I enjoy using my choice of audio format, FLAC, OGG, MP3, etc)
18. Lack of UMS capability (Steve jobs said in his announcement video that it’s the best iPod they have ever made, ok it may look the best but even the lowest and cheapest iPod’s are capable of UMS, UMS for those who don’t know basically means your iPod shows up as a Drive letter or removable drive so you can drag and drop files to it, with the iPhone no such thing exists, IMO this is a step back from even an iPod shuffle)
19. Streaming Radio/Audio (apparently the iPhone cant do it or it has a very low compatibility with most stations, but it can stream QT movies from apple’s website?)
20. Cannot use a screen protector since it uses capacitive touch (your skin must touch the glass) I would rather have a screen protector on my phone and when I sell it after around 1 yr, the screen will look exactly how it looked when I took it out of the box, I’ve been doing this since 4 pda’s ago, and every one I’ve sold had a perfect screen, this will also limit the options for a case)
21. Games? (These are easy to add through firmware update or patch in iTunes, but #1, I don’t install bloated software, #2 it should come with at least solitaire, or do they want people to watch you tube and waste their money on data fees? The cheapest of phones had this, my first phone, a Nokia 3360 even had 3 games)
22. Expandable memory (no expandable memory, if your internal memory fails you are HOOPED, if my MicroSD card fails, I buy another 2-4GB for $20-$65 at the most)
23. Cannot edit documents (what if i’m emailed a document that I have to make a change too, do I have to go back to my pc to do that? That alone contradicts the word “mobility†on my X01HT, not only can I edit word docs and spreadsheets, I can edit and also create power point slides, hell I can make any document I wish actually with 3rd party support. The reason why I bring this up is because in the announcement video Steve compared the iPhone with smart phones and black berries all of which support document editing)
24. no LED Flash or LED Flash light, (even that cheap garbage Nokia 2125i phone from virgin mobile has an led light, I have used the led flash to get a clearer picture for the business card OCR program I have, I’ve also used it in a really dark hall way when the power went out during a snow storm)
25. ultra crippled Bluetooth stack (apparently it does not have any Bluetooth profile except HSP, what the hell good is that going to do? You cant exchange your contact info with another Bluetooth phone or even an iPhone, you cant send pictures or documents, you cant retrieve pictures from a Bluetooth camera, you cant get on a Bluetooth network which has >EDGE speeds 1mbit and low power, you can sync wirelessly which is really handy, cant use your phone as a modem for your laptop, the BT stack on the phone is completely useless, I don’t even think it will pair with cars that require HFP, SAP and PBAP, if you are going to make the Bluetooth support WORSE than TELUS and Verizon phones then this is an automatic deal breaker)
26. Lack of A2DP (this goes with the crippled Bluetooth statement, however, not very many people know what Bluetooth really is, but many people want wireless headphones as well as wireless everything, reminds me of the people that think routers are plug and play, no security, still apple apparently markets the device as an iPod as well, well A2DP and playing Music go hand in hand)
27. GPS Support? (unconfirmed if Google maps will talk to a GPS via SPP or virtual com port through Bluetooth, I don’t even think the iPhone supports SPP, my phone doesn’t have a built in GPS but I have a Global Sat BT308 which I got in 2003 and its never had a problem, that GPS device has paired with 14 different PDA’s and they’ve all recognized it, both WM and Sym)
28. choose my own ring tones (I want to use mp3’s that I made myself using Nero wav editor and audacity, I don’t want to pay for it, I already have a folder on my computer for ring tones and with my current phone I just drag and drop the folder to my PDA’s \windows\rings\ folder. I don’t want iTunes to convert it or charge me for it, I just want to use the freaking ring tone! No phone should be this difficult in getting a ring tone onto it. I prefer a different tone for each person so I can identify who is calling right away. How much money do I have to pay apple to use my own ring tones on a phone that I bought for $600)
29. Bloated OS (the OS alone takes around 700MB on your FORMATTED 4-GB partition, if you see above the iPhone is lacking so many features, what is the 700MB actually doing? I doubt the animation takes that much. On a WM5 phone the OS takes around 60MB? But has support for how many things? WM can handle literally thousands of 3rd party applications)
30. Apparently you cant change the background of the home screen ($600 and you cant change the background image? Everyone has the same home screen, way to think different!! The cheapest of Samsung or Nokia’s can change the background)
31. Compatibility with headphones, apparently there is a small plastic lip (the connector is recessed) that will prevent connectors like the one found on the Sony MDR-V300 (it has screws/threads for the larger 6.3mm audio adapter, also some SHURE and SENHEISER headphones are reported to not fit, how can they have over looked this problem? The earphones that come with the iPhone are not everyone’s cup of tea, lack of A2DP doesn’t help either)
32. Higher Resolution Videos (cannot even SYNC any video over 480p, on mine i’ve played 720p videos using the ATi Imageon driver built into TCPMP without a hitch, this means you have to re-encode all your videos)
33. Business Accounts (apparently if you have a family plan or business account already, you will be prevented from activating your phone, this is ridiculous, it shouldn’t really matter what you have because you already paid, Again, Steve compared it with phones that were meant for the business worlds, IE SMART PHONES, yet you cant use a business plan?)
34. Legacy Support (you have to BUY 10.4.10 OSX if you have 10.3.9 or earlier, and that’s over $100USD, what PHONE makes you buy a new OS? That is totally unreasonable)
35. Cannot tether phone (cant use it through Bluetooth nor can you use the USB cable to get internet connectivity on a laptop or desktop, yet you are forced into a data plan that you can only surf at edge speeds, yet every other phone will allow you to hook it up, most phones have an option to change to “modem†mode, a $600 phone that’s not capable of DUN)
36. No Java applet support (most phones have this, it allows the phone to run 3rd part applications that can give it MUCH MORE functionality, IE RAZR has a crappy built in browser, you get Opera mini for FREE and you have full HTML)
37. Lack of File Browser (my Brothers 4 year old Siemens SK65 had a FULL file browser which you can delete, copy and move things around, all Symbian and WM5/6 phones have an internal one as well, most file browsers will let you send files, email files, etc as a menu option, but the iPhone with its “massive†8GB storage has none? When I say massive I mean not a lot of phones have this much storage, but even phones with 32MB of storage has browsers to manage your files)
38. Inability to attach files to mail? (this relates to the file browser bit, you cannot attach anything to an email, there is simply just no option, but you have a “massive†8GB of storage and cant share anything really)
39. bad internal integration of applications (above I mentioned you cant attach files, not even photos, you have to open your photos to send them in an email but only one at a time? Why can’t I attach the 3 pictures of my dog in 1 email to send to my GF? I have to send 3 emails? Come on, apple should of though this out a little more, sending emails from the Photo application seems backwards to me. I admit, Resco photo viewer for WM5 has a “send to option†where you have the choice of IrDA, Bluetooth, Email and MMS. But Outlook will also let me attach the files I want, I can even select multiple files using the stylus, why can’t the iPhone do this?)
40. Cant Copy and Paste (from the points above, this is really needed to get around some of the other faults, but since this is missing too it just adds another negative to the iPhone, for the people that say you don’t need copy and paste, stop using it on your computer then)
41. weird resolution (the screen is a “higher†resolution than a lot of flip phones and such, however its not a standard resolution, 480×320 isn’t not even wide screen as Steve jobs advertised it to be, 3:2 isn’t recognized as any standard resolution, the iPod video being 320×240 is actually more compatible with PDA phones being 4:3, if you have an iPod video you need to re-encode all the videos on it to match the native resolution of the iPhone, playing a video in the native resolution of your LCD display looks best, anything else may be grainy or stretched, the argument that this screen is better than all others is false, the HTC Universal had a VGA screen 2.5 years ago as well as 3G. a lot of PDA phones now are VGA including a flip phone from I-Mate soon to be released)
42. lack of alert customization/Profiles(apparently you cannot set vibrate to things like calendar events, SMS, etc I would expect the alerts to be at least customizable in a $600 phone, most phones have profiles for Home, Office, Silent, Stealth, meeting, etc the iPhone has nothing)
43. Keyboard issues (you cannot change the keyboard into landscape mode in anything but Safari, Why? WM phones will switch orientation on command, doesn’t matter what program your in, it will switch, you can also tweak the button mapping to change orientation with the push of a button)
44. IPhone calculator? (I though it had one, i’m not sure, if it has weather, stocks, maps, what about a calculator? All phones have this, really, even from 2002)
45. My last point is, the iPhone is not a revolutionary device by any means, and no Steve jobs nor apple invented “Multitouch†as he stated in his demo. Multitouch was done in so many products prior to 2004, even SMART Boards had this. Also when he says he “reinvented†the phone, I don’t think he realized that he reinvented a converged device with less functions than the original products he was merging. If you have a converged device, the sum of its abilities should actually exceed the 2, 3 or 4 device originals. For example, I have a PDA, I can write html email but I can’t send it unless I have WiFi, with a regular phone, I can send emails but not HTML, when you merge the 2 devices you can send html emails. Next example, GPS, phone, PDA convergence, I have Google maps, maps don’t work unless you have a GPS, nor can it update unless you have an internet connection, you merge all 3 devices together and you have active GPS tracking in Google maps, no single device could do that before. When you merge a device, you should not be loosing ANY features, you should be gaining features that you’ve never had before in addition to the ones you already had.
Hypno-toads
an SSH client, so I can use the iPhone as a remote terminal, just like I was able to with my Treo.
When Im plugged in in the car and a call comes in let the car speakers play the sound of the call and the internal mic pick up my voice.
I would definitely like a weekly calendar view that like that of ical. I like to look at my week at a glance and see the time blocks