What would constitute a revolutionary feature on a mobile phone?

[riffle]

This speculation on phase change memory in the iPhone might explain just how Apple is able to create such a light phone with LTE and get faster speeds and better battery life.

 

[BenSkywalker]

A flashlight with a hard toggle button. This is the feature I want most.

Tasker from the Android Market called, left me this URL for you to check out

http://www.howtogeek.com/65245/how-to-start-tweaking-your-android-phone-with-tasker/

No need to wait for someone to come out with it, it's already here

 

[halik]

Furthermore, can we agree that a physical button is this regard is superior to a capacitive or worse, SOFTWARE based button? I don't want to have to worry about accidentally triggering the back or home button when I am typing.

Yes, although I've only encounter that issue at most a handful of times (where I click the Gnex home button instead of spacebar)

 

[Red Storm]

Furthermore, can we agree that a physical button is this regard is superior to a capacitive or worse, SOFTWARE based button? I don't want to have to worry about accidentally triggering the back or home button when I am typing.

Disagree!

I've only hit home by accident once in my Nexus's lifetime. I've become annoyed at having to press a physical button on my S3 every time I use it.

Software buttons make for better looking phones. Nothing looks better than the clean glass front of a Galaxy Nexus.

 

[shortylickens]

I prefer hardware buttons but I'm in the minority.

 

[swanysto]

To be honest, I think Apple could really peak interest by revamping their OS. Just simple things such as looks could go a long way. Part of the excitement about Android is the new looks of each OS. While most techies like the people on this board see through the aesthetic changes, normal people love it. You can argue fragmentation and the like, but fragmentation only applies to a small minority of phone owners. 90% of my friends don't even know what version of Android they are on, and they don't care. But their faces light up when they get that update from Android, even if it only changed to look of the bar at the top and the dialer.

Apple is always going to have a large following, but over time they have/will lose market share, and I think the reasons are simple. Yes, we get excited over major changes, but there are a lot of people who get excited over the smallest of changes. And those people want to see the change, not just hear how the new super A6 is going to run their facebook/twitter/foursquare apps faster.

 

[TheStu]

Disagree!

I've only hit home by accident once in my Nexus's lifetime. I've become annoyed at having to press a physical button on my S3 every time I use it.

Software buttons make for better looking phones. Nothing looks better than the clean glass front of a Galaxy Nexus.

I don't like how the software buttons on ICS are non-modal. They don't change appearance or disappear if unneeded, they are not context aware, so really, what the hell is the point other than that they can move around? If they did ANYTHING other than that, ANYTHING that the previous capacitive buttons couldn't, then we would be talking, but they don't do anything other than that so really, what is the point?

I will say this much though, after using Windows Phone for a year and a half or so, I actually really miss having a back button on my phone, that thing is handy. The search button I can take or leave, but the back button, ooh boy.

 

[Red Storm]

I don't like how the software buttons on ICS are non-modal. They don't change appearance or disappear if unneeded, they are not context aware, so really, what the hell is the point other than that they can move around? If they did ANYTHING other than that, ANYTHING that the previous capacitive buttons couldn't, then we would be talking, but they don't do anything other than that so really, what is the point?

I will say this much though, after using Windows Phone for a year and a half or so, I actually really miss having a back button on my phone, that thing is handy. The search button I can take or leave, but the back button, ooh boy.

When I do something like play full screen video they do go away. I like them also because it creates more uniformity between different handsets, so devs have a better idea of how things should look.

 

[TheStu]

When I do something like play full screen video they do go away. I like them also because it creates more uniformity between different handsets, so devs have a better idea of how things should look.

Why couldn't Google have just dictated one thing (which they do now with the software buttons) 'This many buttons, in this order', and just said that all along. Or if the OEMs could have at least used the same freaking order between one device and the next. And these are their own devices!

I had forgotten about the buttons disappearing, I suppose that is nice. You what, swipe from the edge to invoke the buttons (say you are playing a game)?

 

[Red Storm]

Why couldn't Google have just dictated one thing (which they do now with the software buttons) 'This many buttons, in this order', and just said that all along. Or if the OEMs could have at least used the same freaking order between one device and the next. And these are their own devices!

I had forgotten about the buttons disappearing, I suppose that is nice. You what, swipe from the edge to invoke the buttons (say you are playing a game)?

Not all apps make them disappear, I think it's up to the dev. I know with say video playing if I tap the screen the video controls as well as the Android navigation buttons both show up.

I also don't like hardware buttons because that's one more thing that can go bad/break.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Not all apps make them disappear, I think it's up to the dev. I know with say video playing if I tap the screen the video controls as well as the Android navigation buttons both show up.

I also don't like hardware buttons because that's one more thing that can go bad/break.

but software buttons can go bad too. plus software keys always worry me because any software issues from kernel to rom could screw up soft keys.

i personally prefer hard keys. i'm not asking for a physical button, but at least those 4 buttons at the bottom (or I guess 3 now with 4.0 and up).

The issue I have with soft keys is that's decreased screen real estate. You're no longer talking about 1280x720. You have to save 200 pixels for keys. The fact that many manufacturers refuse to put soft keys means that apps have to be compatible for 1280x720 and whatever number of pixels are relegated to the soft keys.

 

[Phokus]

THe iphone doesn't even have NFC, it's playing catchup to android. Android is where the revolution is. And don't tell me NFC is useless when you iFans probably don't even know what NFC tags are.

 

[kyrax12]

retina display

 

[cl-scott]

retina display

The likes of the GNex and other 720p phones actually have a higher PPI than Apple's retina display on the iPhone. Probably won't be long before you see Android phones with 1080p being pretty common which will only widen that gap.

 

[AeroEngy]

Realistically within current technology, yes. I have bad nightvision and rely on a small flashlight all the time. It would be one less thing to carry if my phone had one built in.

I use the LED flash on my phone as a small flashlight all the time. I use the app WidgetLocker to add a flashlight button on my lockscreen for easy access. It is probably one of the most used things on my phone.

 

[Red Storm]

I use the LED flash on my phone as a small flashlight all the time. I use the app WidgetLocker to add a flashlight button on my lockscreen for easy access. It is probably one of the most used things on my phone.

Yep, mine is a toggle in the notification bar. Just swipe down, tick the toggle and I've got light.

 

[RedRooster]

Biometric security would be pretty cool, and do away with the lame swipe to unlock or better yet passwords in programs on the phone. Android's face scan thing is too gimmicky, I think that thumbprint on the home button idea would be awesome. Or voice or something.
Bluetooth contact lenses, so you could interface with your phone.

 

[Red Storm]

Bluetooth contact lenses, so you could interface with your phone.

That's the end game of Project Glass. Except that little lens is the phone.

Just imagine it, we'll have all our smartphone capabilities and more in a simple lens. Built in range finder, zooming, instant google searches on objects we see, including prices, reviews, etc. It's going to take augmented reality to the next level.

 

[WelshBloke]

Biometric security would be pretty cool, and do away with the lame swipe to unlock or better yet passwords in programs on the phone. Android's face scan thing is too gimmicky, I think that thumbprint on the home button idea would be awesome. Or voice or something.
Bluetooth contact lenses, so you could interface with your phone.

There's been phones with fingerprint scanners going way back.

 

[CVSiN]

Realistically within current technology, yes. I have bad nightvision and rely on a small flashlight all the time. It would be one less thing to carry if my phone had one built in.

they make an app for that..

I use mine for a flashlight all the time.. turns on the rear LED flash as a flashlight.

keep the button on your unlock screen ( unless youre an Apple person than you are SOL)

 

[CVSiN]

THe iphone doesn't even have NFC, it's playing catchup to android. Android is where the revolution is. And don't tell me NFC is useless when you iFans probably don't even know what NFC tags are.

not to mention.. still no Upgradable storage.. hello changeable 64gig SD cards on Androids...still a horrible strange screen res that is nowhere near the HD standards of "HD" 720 or 1080.
Screen is still too small compared to the super HD res screens all the competition has now.
Still a battery you cant even change...

no wifi direct.. no NFC beaming.. no wireless charging.. so data/voice at same time on CDMA versions.. ( which the GS3 can do)

still an OS that is about as restrictive on its users as the Communist Party..

in other words they spent all their money on lawsuits and didn't bother to do R&D.

Glad I grew out of Iphones during the 3.. I'd be embarrassed to carry one..

 

[ControlD]

they make an app for that..

I use mine for a flashlight all the time.. turns on the rear LED flash as a flashlight.

keep the button on your unlock screen ( unless youre an Apple person than you are SOL)

That's why we jailbreak (among many, many other better reasons lol). I have a quick toggle on my 4S that does the same thing.

 

[cl-scott]

Biometric security would be pretty cool, and do away with the lame swipe to unlock or better yet passwords in programs on the phone. Android's face scan thing is too gimmicky, I think that thumbprint on the home button idea would be awesome. Or voice or something.
Bluetooth contact lenses, so you could interface with your phone.

If you're going to do biometric security in a revolutionary feature thread, you've got to go a bit further. How about a phone that can measure your unique galvanic skin response, measure the faint pulse from your fingers gripping it, even the average pressure from the grip on the case, and the angle at which it is held, all of which is correlated against a baseline you establish and is used to recognize different users. So you pick up your phone, and by the time you get it to your customary position for use, it has identified you are you and unlocked itself.

I've also thought it would be kind of cool to combine fingerprint readers with capacitive touch screens. You don't need the accuracy to actually tell one fingerprint apart from another, just enough to say, "Yes this is a finger, not a toe" or some such, and only respond to actions when a fingerprint is recognized. Might help prevent the accidental palm presses or similar.

And while on the subject of touch screens, I would love for someone to develop a touch screen that is fingerprint proof.

 

[runawayprisoner]

That's a horrible idea. As a user I don't give a shit what your app is doing, I want to get back to the home screen. You should feel lucky they don't reset the state entirely

Furthermore, can we agree that a physical button is this regard is superior to a capacitive or worse, SOFTWARE based button? I don't want to have to worry about accidentally triggering the back or home button when I am typing.

When you get back to the home screen, the app actually does get reset entirely depending on the situation. It's random, and the developer has no control whatsoever. The reason why you don't see that is because the state of the app can be saved and restored, which works well enough for most apps.

But it doesn't work for downloading stuffs in the background... and then users keep going back to ask why their download has not finished by the time they come back to their phone. I have also received the same complaints about multitasking... "why is it that my edited image isn't there anymore when I come back to the app?" or "why is it that it takes so long to extract a file?" I can't blame them, though... since Apple does advertise iOS as having "multitasking".

But don't get me wrong. My beef is mainly with the way Apple handles multitasking rather than with the home button itself. Though the home button on Apple's iPhone and iPod Touch is especially susceptible to breaking. I have had to dissect my phone (already out of warranty for 2 years now) twice to change the home button. Both times because the spring "pad" they have under the button got flattened or worn out.

Maybe it's not a problem if you update your device every year, but it's a real problem when you want to keep using the same device for a long while.

 

[_Rick_]

The next revolution of the smart phone will be the disappearance of the smart phone.

Wearable computing and ubiquitous computing is where it's at.
If Google Glass will actually work, then that will be the beginning of the end of the smart phone.

Until then, there's not much left to do with purely smartphone, except use integrating context data ever more into intelligent systems. My research topic