Peter Oppenheimer drops MAJOR "iPhone" hint - Page 2

Many states, and more specifically CA, have that law already in place, with the exception that you may use a hands-free headset. Why they want your hands in the 10-and-2 position (I prefer the single-hand gangster lean 12:00 position) I have no idea, you're still USING the phone.

Maybe this will bring some cool hands free earpieces? Lol...

He must not do any research and he may be confused by the WCDMA standard within 3GSM. From the GSMWorld website.

"Let's be clear what is meant by the term. 3GSM represents third generation services delivered on an evolved core GSM network. 3GSM services are delivered at a technical level on third generation standards developed by 3GPP, which utilise Wideband-CDMA and, in some markets, EDGE air interfaces."

W-CDMA in the GSM standard??? It's a fact. The high speed CDMA standard is called EVDO.

Also from the CDMA.org - 350 Million subscribers.
from GSMWorld.com - 2,000 Million subscribers.

I don't think GSM is going away any time soon.

I don't think there is a question that Apple is working on a phone. The rumors are too thick and they are hiring phone techies (from an phone company insider who knows people that have gone to Apple.) However, working on a phone and releasing a phone are not the same thing. Apple has had projects that never saw the light of day.

The competitive landscape of the phone world is very different than the MP3 player market. Phone/hardware subsidies from service providers are the difference between a competitive product and an exclusive shiny toy. The combination of an MP3 player, camera, and phone is not really very novel even if it does look fantastic.

A $500 iPhone with a high dollar service plan for W-CDMA will be the next Cube. A really neat product that I wish I had but never wanted to pay for.

Apple will have to get a service contract from somebody and will they profit share on the hardware and the service plan?????

Yes, but as I understand it, they are working to ban cell phone use period, while driving. The distraction alone is enough to cause accidents.

Actually, it's been proven in studies that having a conversation while driving, with passengers, whatever, is dangerously distracting and leads to accidents.

Actually, it's been proven that studies are dangerous and lead to accidents.

accidents are dangerous and lead to children!

Children are dangerous!

An iPod phone would be great, the iPod OS would suit a phone, and there is are those pieces inside the latest firmware (as mentioned in another thread) for stuff like signal strength etc.

I want a NanoPhone® !!!

so is smoking banned? i mean you need to light it (dial) and then it always in one hand (like a handset) AND its on fire!

gotta be more hazardous!

i dont drive and i dont smoke, but i do have a mobile phone, and these bans on its use while driving seem crazy if you compare phone use to smoking while driving, and with the lighters installed in cars, the car makers seem to be encouraging you to 1. do something that could lead to an accedent and 2. give you lung cancer.

why is no-one banning smoking while driving??

So true, and they often have accidents.

A University of Michigan statistical study found a person using/talking on a cell phone (specifically) is more likely to have an accident than a drunk. They also said doing anything active other than just driving at a minimum doubles your chances of causing an accident. Even just talking, whether on the phone hands free or to the person next to you. It's all about divided attention while operating a lethal potentially machine.

I think that's just a standard rule for everything, not just driving. Anytime you're on the phone you're more likely to cause an accident.

Anyone ever dropped a phone while peeing? Now THAT'S an example of divided attention while operating a potential lethal machine!

Maybe if Verizon paid off the legislatures and car companies like Phillip Morris these cell-phone laws wouldn't be in place...

fellow americans, please come to europe and phone while driving.

our police officers will be glad to fine you all (and with your money we will build some more roads for us)

if you think cellphones and driving can be mixed together, you're less clever than i thought.


on the topic, apple should have released a phone-ipod years ago. sony will eat the market alone, then it will be too late, just like it is for all the ipod wannabes.

the ipod might run the same fate as pdas (read: killed by smart phones)

in a couple of years, maybe just in one, an ipod that JUST plays music, will be a dead product such as those initial cellphones that could ONLY make calls.

I'll try and find the link, but there was an interesting study that showed that listening to someone talking in your local environment was less distracting than listening to someone over a speaker or earpiece.

The theory was that with only one ear being engaged for listening, it breaks the instinctual expectation of 3D spatial sound, and we focus more intently on the voice because it is 'odd'. Add to that that the voice quality is often a bit less than a person next to you, and it results in more attention being paid to a phone conversation than a live one.

Even the person's visual field was reduced - they tended to focus more closely to the front of their car, instead of further down the road, reducing their reaction time window. Fascinating stuff.

not at all.
when you talk to passengers they will notice and TELL YOU that you're not paying enough attention to the road/driving. the guy on the phone will not.

plus your brain needs much more processing power to picture the image of the guy you're talking to on the phone than with someone you can feel, hear, touch and smell.


regarding the cellphones taking over anything, just wait.

actually i can't believe how they can actually cram all those things (a pda, flash mp3 player, 3+ megapixel cam and video rec, gameboy, gps, tv tuner...etc) on such a small device.

There IS a MAJOR difference. When someone is sitting next to you talking, they react to situations around you as well as you do. When you are changing lanes, or merging onto a highway in heavy traffic or something, they naturally respond to the situation and stop talking and are understanding if you stop responding to them. On the phone you are pressured to maintain an ordinary conversation because the person on the other side has no idea what's happening on your side.

Actually a study carried out recently concluded it's more dangerous to travel driving a car using a mobile phone, than it is to travel while tipsy. (buzzcast)

That shizel is very distracting, but it should never be banned. People just need to adjust their behavior to the times. In other words, while on a hands-free call be more alert, that is all.

Yeeeeeeeah, that'll work.

Are you talking to me?

While I agree that "GSM isn't going anywhere anytime soon," it is simply not a good standard for 3G services, and outside the long arm of EU economic protectionism, GSM has faltered in 3G markets.

GSM doesn't have notable 3G capabilities, and only has overwhelming market penetration in Europe. The actual quasi-3G features used by most GSM services are very splintered and differ greatly between markets. Plus, they have poor bandwidth and cell utilization.

If there were to be functionality to download songs onto the phone, which seems like it would be the killer app, anything less than EVDO is going to be a pain in the ass. USA and Asia (together) are a much bigger market, have (surprise) much higher-end 3G support, and also don't appear intent on regulating Apple's iTunes business model.

Thanks for that(I had no idea) but I mean retail store. Where I live every mall has a sony store, they should at least sell the most popular ones there.

There's not a lot of online shopping in canada because it has almost no(or even just no) benefits.

Much* of the discussion here is still around cell-phone networks sure, in most cases handsets are subsidised by network operators to secure contracts with subscribers. In some cases, handsets are not available directly - only through the networks.

With an iCell-phone, Apple has to strike some deal with a network operator a difficult call as the operators see a lot of potential profit with music-download services of their own, not to mention keeping their existing partners (handset vendors) happy... and Apple wants to keep iPod king-of-the-pocket hence the nowhere compromises that are the 100-tune Moto iTunes phones currently available...

Now, what if Apple produces an iPhone that is a nano (ie: 5GB, 1000 song at least, decent player) with this kind of added VOIP functionality:

http://vonage.com/device.php?type=F1000

Skype have somethin really interesting here too:

http://itvibe.com/news/3286/

ie: how about an Apple VOIP iPhone that skips the network issue completely and with 802.11x access to connect to the iTunes store, QT Trailers, etc... RSS even?

Obviously this will not have the same area coverage, for the time being @least but with WiFi networks expanding exponentially, it's only a matter of time... and already would be an awesome mobile media/communications device in urban environments...




(*apart form the hands-free sidetrack heck, sure an iTunes phone on an in-car dock providing connection to in-car sound system & hands-free chat will satisfy the regulators...)

I'm thinking more along the lines of not a phone that is also a nano, but a nano that is also a phone. How about something like this, but with wi-fi, stuffed inside a nano?

Vphone

No, no, no to Vonage, skype and everything thing else.

If they want more than a couple of business people and mac nerds to buy the phone is needs to be a CELL PHONE.

All this "it's just a nano and use your address book contacts to make calls."

NO! The thing has to be able to call anyone at anytime. This is a situationt that apple cannot lead the curve on.

Eventually if they can cost effectively and want to add some stuff fine, but to outright make something other than what the world over expects/needs would just be commiting product suicide.

They shouldn't make cell phone + driving illegal, what they should do is have cell phone logs admitted as evidence automatically.

That way, if you get hit by one of these idiots, you get into court and point to a piece of paper and walk out with a cheque for the damages with no fuss.

If both parties were on a cell at the time of the accident, they must battle to the death in judge's chambers.

On the other hand, I think it should be the same way with DUI... people who drink a lot regularly can have a really high BAC before they drive any worse than the average soccer mom in her FORD EXTERMINATOR. Again, just do a blood test and have it admissable in court.

Finally, in most states there are laws saying that it's not a "hit and run" unless the driver does not turn themselves in within 24 hours. That's bullcrap. That's like robbing a bank and giving the money back a few hours later--you still robbed a freakin bank!

Getting back to the iPhone, I see it as easily possible Apple will do this, but I don't know how popular it will be. Most of the demographic that this would be marketted to already have phones and are in contracts. Also, I got my phone FREE with my service agreement; since I'm locked into a contract, I expect nothing less and will never purchase a cell phone if I can avoid it.

so, what fuss free advice do you give if you get hit and KILLED?

making it illegal, means MOST people WONT do it, thereby reducing the need to go to court... or A&E... or the mortuary.

Especially if you're killed or decapitated. No fuss at all.

You can buy unlocked versions of pretty much every phone existing now, on sites like expansys.

Amorya

You fight like a dairy farmer...

(Sorry, I HAD to )

Hey, I believe it! I constantly get stuck in back of people talking on their cellphones while driving. They are always weaving all over the road or speeding up and slowing down irregularly. Constantly crossing the yellow line or going off onto the shoulder. It's worse when they are operating their phones but even when they have a headset on they seem to be in their own little world. So I'm all for a law that would limit or eliminate cellphone use in a car. Hell, I'd like to eliminate cellphone use in public places too. I'm in the supermarket and someone is having a rather personal yet very loud conversation. These people have no shame. Then they look at you as if you're being in the same aisle is an invasion of their privacy. I'm so sick of it. Blah blah blah . I have 10,000 minutes and nothing important to say. Blah blah blah .

How appropriate. You fight like a cow...

Made 10x worse by that damned 'walkie-talkie' mode where you hear *BOTH* sides of the conversation.

I royally pissed off someone who was having a domestic spat, on walkie-talkie, in the grocery store, at full volume. We were on the same 'track' in the store, apparently, since I couldn't seem to ditch her. Finally I just stopped, and announced to both of them exactly what my advice was. She. Looked. Pissed. I just looked at her and said "What, you've been announcing your test results and his reaction all over the store, I figured it was for public consumption."

People two aisles over were clapping.

5 years from now every phone will have a slot where you can plug your Nano or Shuffle in to. So will headphones. I saw a guy on a bus the other day with headphones with a built in radio. Wouldn't a slot to slip an iPod in there make for a great set of headphones?

5 years from now the nano or the shuffle won't exist anymore, at least not new ones. All new phones will play music too.