What else can manufacturers put into phones?

Elessar

Let's face it, high end smartphones have pretty much everything you could want. GPS, Wifi, HSDPA, good cameras, office applications, etc.

For high end devices what else can manufacturers really get into them to make them innovative? I'm having a hard time thinking of things that will separate the next generation of high end mobiles from the current ones.

I can only see improvements to current gadgets, like increasing video recording functions to HD, and giving phones proper camera lenses with optical zoom.

What else could they possibly add to innovate?

pickles_17

supposedly being able to control microwaves, cookers, lightswitches etc.

Capt'n Midnight

pickles_17 wrote: »

supposedly being able to control microwaves, cookers, lightswitches etc.

Can't you already use the infrared to control TV's and stuff ?
and phones have bluetooth
wifi means you can control anything with IP

all you need is an X11 kit for the electrical appliances

Random

I've got a crazy feeling of deja vu. Did we have this thread recently?

Anyways .. I'd be happier if they improved the battery life and camera abilities along with making them more customisable without turning them into full WM6 type devices.

Alanstrainor

I suppose having a projector built into a phone would be cool. But perhaps not practical at the mo. I suppose improving what they have, UI and system specs and speed would be priorities. Making a phone that can be considered an all in one device, phone , camera, gps, music, movies, games etc. And still having batteries that can keep all this powered for days.

Lord Nikon

Fingerprint recognition,
Thermometer.

Mimikyu

This post has been deleted.

Danbo!

What I want is a phone with huge memory (80-100Gb) and a very useable Mp3 interface.

Elessar wrote: »

....and giving phones proper camera lenses with optical zoom....

Nokia have done the optical zoom thing, takes up room tho! If they were able to size it down a bit it would be good, but I reckon more time spent improving digital zoom would be better, considering how much space a decent optical zoom setup takes up.

Random wrote: »

I've got a crazy feeling of deja vu. Did we have this thread recently?

Yep - http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055445116

Alanstrainor wrote: »

I suppose having a projector built into a phone would be cool

There were some dodgy japanese/chinese phones posted here recently with a projector. Ill wait and see nokia/SE/LG's attempts first I think

neuromancer wrote: »

Fingerprint recognition,

Toshiba's smartphone's have something like this integrated, in at least 1 model.

Capt'n Midnight

neuromancer wrote: »

Fingerprint recognition,
Thermometer.

Fingerprint phones
http://www.letsgomobile.org/en/0520/pantechpg6200/
http://www.3g.co.uk/PR/August2004/8140.htm

temperature, probably not the most useful thing on a device that you keep in your pocket, but would be shocked to see it wasn't already done, probably apps can report on the sensors already in your phone , many watches do temperature.

Dord

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

temperature, probably not the most useful thing on a device that you keep in your pocket, but would be shocked to see it wasn't already done, probably apps can report on the sensors already in your phone , many watches do temperature.

Nokia had a phone years ago with a temperature sensor in it. I can't remember the model number but it had a rubbery shell.

ozymandius

How about video editing on your phone Movidia (an Irish) company think that's what you want and are persuading phone makers to include their IP.

boredatwork82

breathalyser, so that the only numbers that can be rung when intoxicated are taxis and emergency numbers.
It would save a lot of people a lot of grief.

ozymandius

Dord wrote: »

Nokia had a phone years ago with a temperature sensor in it. I can't remember the model number but it had a rubbery shell.

5100? Hideous now.




Lithium-ion batteries' charging circuits have temperature sensing. Many phones (Siemens and Nokias) allowed access to this info - at least through back-door/engineering menus. This still possible?

But yes, it's useful only to tell you pocket temp.

(Update: in the interest of science I stuck my phone (Palm) in the fridge and it indicted below 10C - so it not too far off)


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B00MSTICK

noblestee wrote:

What I want is a phone with huge memory (80-100Gb)

I'd be very surprised if we didn't see SSDs in phones very shortly, Samsung have already hinted at it.

Capt'n Midnight wrote:

Can't you already use the infrared to control TV's

For years at this stage, works very well too.

Biro

Digital terrestrial TV apparently in some new Nokia that's not far from market in the UK.
Digital zoom is useless, just ditch it. No point in getting a phone to replace a camera. As pointed out above, optics can't be as portable as they need to be for a phone, and the sensor size is tiny.