Speculation about how "visual voicemail" works -- or how it SHOULD...
The way I see it, there are two reasons for receiving voicemail instead of taking a call...
1) You can't take the call, i.e. you don't have any reception or your phone is off, or you are using the phone in a situation where call-waiting is not possible (while dialling, etc.)
2) You don't want to take the call, don't hear the ringer or are temporarily away from the handset. In this case your phone has reception and power and can take calls.
People say that the network will have to be upgraded for visual voicemail to work. This is not true. The network would only need a very minimal update (to record the calling number only) for visual voicemail to work under situation #1 only.
Under situation number two, your phone itself can act as the answering machine, recording the calling number and time (to be displayed on the screen) and the message (to be played later when and if you choose).
Under situation number one, the phone will call your voicemail system at your prompt, recording all voice messages to the handset (in real time, unfortunately), with caller's number (and name if they are in your phone book) and time of call for listing on the VV screen. You wouldn't have to listen to the messages during this process. The phone would do everything. Then you could later check those messages you want to listen to at your leisure without calling the voicemeail center.
Understand what I'm trying to say?
VV would easily work this way no matter who the carrier or whether they have upgraded.
1) You can't take the call, i.e. you don't have any reception or your phone is off, or you are using the phone in a situation where call-waiting is not possible (while dialling, etc.)
2) You don't want to take the call, don't hear the ringer or are temporarily away from the handset. In this case your phone has reception and power and can take calls.
People say that the network will have to be upgraded for visual voicemail to work. This is not true. The network would only need a very minimal update (to record the calling number only) for visual voicemail to work under situation #1 only.
Under situation number two, your phone itself can act as the answering machine, recording the calling number and time (to be displayed on the screen) and the message (to be played later when and if you choose).
Under situation number one, the phone will call your voicemail system at your prompt, recording all voice messages to the handset (in real time, unfortunately), with caller's number (and name if they are in your phone book) and time of call for listing on the VV screen. You wouldn't have to listen to the messages during this process. The phone would do everything. Then you could later check those messages you want to listen to at your leisure without calling the voicemeail center.
Understand what I'm trying to say?
VV would easily work this way no matter who the carrier or whether they have upgraded.
Comments
Here's a question. Does the iPhone download the message to the phone? Could you listen to it off line?
.... Always seemed like a rip off that you were charged minutes even though you weren't really talking to anyone.
Sadly, I am sure Cingular will not let you "cache" your Voicemail on your phone. I think the list of voicemails will be free, but accessing each will be billed as most voicemail retrieval does with everyone nowadays...
The way I see it, there are two reasons for receiving voicemail instead of taking a call...
1) You can't take the call, i.e. you don't have any reception or your phone is off, or you are using the phone in a situation where call-waiting is not possible (while dialling, etc.)
2) You don't want to take the call, don't hear the ringer or are temporarily away from the handset. In this case your phone has reception and power and can take calls.
People say that the network will have to be upgraded for visual voicemail to work. This is not true. The network would only need a very minimal update (to record the calling number only) for visual voicemail to work under situation #1 only.
Under situation number two, your phone itself can act as the answering machine, recording the calling number and time (to be displayed on the screen) and the message (to be played later when and if you choose).
Under situation number one, the phone will call your voicemail system at your prompt, recording all voice messages to the handset (in real time, unfortunately), with caller's number (and name if they are in your phone book) and time of call for listing on the VV screen. You wouldn't have to listen to the messages during this process. The phone would do everything. Then you could later check those messages you want to listen to at your leisure without calling the voicemeail center.
Understand what I'm trying to say?
VV would easily work this way no matter who the carrier or whether they have upgraded.
I think you're saying that if the carrier cares enough about the iPhone, they'll make visual voicemail work. US is a no-brainer with Cingular exclusive. Europe and AsiaPac will be the real interesting bit as the carriers are stumbling over each other trying to get exclusives on the iPhone.