Submitted by ItsOk2PeeSittingDown t3_11r8cjx in Futurology
I was thinking about this today and miss the days when cell phones weren't just iterations of last year's model (first world problem, I know).
Personally, what I'd love to see is the concept of the cell phone as it is currently gone altogether, replaced wholly by wearables such as a watch and AR glasses.
Recently I bought a dumb phone to completely focus on my Licensure exam studying. It was life changing, so many of my issues dissapeared after day 3. Lack of focus, bad time management, and vices were no where to be found.
Passed the test and switched back and I'm back to my fuckboi habits. Please go through with it, excited for you!
I have turned off all my notifications on my phone except for calls and blood sugar levels. I was constantly checking my phone when an application wanted my attention. It was causing me stress and using up my time. I even shut off the ring for the phone at times as I will get back to the caller later. I grew up when the phone was at home and you checked the answering machine when you came home. So peaceful when you can get rid of always being available.
I really miss being unreachable.
It was bliss.
My problem is I do so much shit on my phone that I actually need to do, I would definitely have to buy a laptop, and I really don’t feel like buying a laptop.
Exactly. I don't even use computers anymore, just my phone so I'm screwed lol
I want physical buttons back I'm so sick of waiting for buttons to load or having them do nothing because my "smart" phone is being stupid.
Thank you, I wish I could give you 100 upvotes. I say the apex design was the blackberry! But the market disagrees with me. There is a reason keyboards for computers are not touch screens because that would be highly inefficient. people like how sleek touch screens are but they are a worse design.
I would like to have three physical buttons on the side of the phone, likely below the power button, that serve as redundant buttons for Back, Home, and Multitask. Leave the touch screen buttons there, but also put them on the side.
you can remap buttons on android. Def can achieve what you want with remapped volume, might need to use press and long press/double press.
I don't know who decided touch screens were the way to go, but I hate them lol
Big tech. It's flashy and cheap to produce
Make them more efficient, and downclock the shit out of them for that insane battery life. Most uses for a phone dont need a lot of power, so an insanely efficient phone would be nice
I Second this!
The screen uses most of the battery
Good point!
Make the camera actually useful with alternate vision modes. Night vision, heat vision, and whatever else so more humans can see more of the spectrum of our reality
Ultra violet, radio, xray!
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Most phone cameras do pick up infrared light -you can test this by pointing a remote control at the camera and pushing buttons. Cat phones s61 has built in FLIR.
Fuck that, I want a tricorder with sensors n' shit.
Until we have a better method than a keyboard of getting data from a brain into a device, a handheld unit with keyboard is not a bad format. Currently phones are rectangular which is one of those “but that’s how we’ve always done it” things. I think there’s vast opportunity to improve the interface with the hand- even providing left hand and right hand models.
Also, I don’t need my phone to be 8mm thin. Fatten it up and give me some more battery capacity.
MS tried non-rectangle phones, with keyboards - Microsoft Kin. The worst design failure in history of mobile phones ever.
Looked it up. Yeah seems pretty awful.
I miss being able to text in my pocket, get rid of the buttons on the screens !
Rugged flip phone (less damage while stored) with replacable battery and a physical keyboard that runs efficiently and has onboard back-up (including passwords) so it can be simply wiped and reset if malicious apps get in. No 'tracking' cookies allowed and 2 Sim and 2 memory storage slots. Waterproof with different cases available for personalization. I like the ring and magnetic options, but also want wireless charging. I'm finally over needing the 3.5 jack as wireless earphones are almost good enough and they actually have options that don't require you to put them IN your ear canal.
Cameras, speed and resolution are almost beyond what most people actually need, they are the least important parts to me, but I'm not a selfie-worshipping social media influencer.
I don't worship selfies either but I like taking photos of nature. A fast and hi def camera is essential. As is manual focus. I struggle to get clear photos of bugs since they took away manual focus.
Would like more seamless integration between devices. If I'm browsing something on my phone and want to switch to my pc monitor I should be able to swipe or some very easy action to get it there.
Chrome's is almost perfect but could be better and is limited to browser windows
Why do we still have phones as they are now? I'd love to see them integrated into earbuds/headphones. Voice Command has gotten good enough that we don't HAVE to have the screen. It would be good to have someone flip the use model and if you need a screen you pair THAT to your phone rather than your audio.
All data should be encrypted and our privacy respected so no conproration can use our personal data to feed some damn AI or use it with something like elastic search
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I want a thicker phone, not exceeding 1cm, that has an amazing battery. I also want the screen to be narrow enough that I can type one-handed.
Have you tried enabling one-handed keyboard? It does just that bias to whichever side you choose.
Actually I haven’t yet had a need to, since my progression has been iPhone5 > iPhoneSE1 > iPhone12 Mini. If I do ever get saddled with a massive platter of a phone, I guess it’ll be my best bet…
Rollable phones. Don't know how foldable phones are seemingly winning that battle right now, because they seem to be ugly and impractical with a noticeable crease that makes an expensive phone seem like a cheap one.
The other big thing will be AI edge capability. There's a huge gap in performance between what phones need now for contemporary applications, and what they will need to run AI applications on the edge device. I really think this will be the driver in the need to keep upgrading to the latest phones, as even my middle tier device does everything I need.
My s20 ultra is amazing. Yes, it's a few years old, but it's still mint from being in a case. I see zero reason to upgrade it anytime soon. The only improvement I would like is a major reduction. In price. They are too expensive.
New battery tech that lasts longer and doesn't have all the negatives of lithium ion. An actual qwerty keyboard like the old droid or sidekicks
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I would like to see them attached to a wall with a cord with a rotary dial where you have to memorize the number and it takes a long time to dial it in. No data, no text. Just talk.
Interface remains the biggest hurdle.
But functionality is still lacking. One example: If I am doing -whatever- on my desk top and need to websearch something, it's nearly instant. On my phone, not so much.
Connecting to a large screen is a pain. Or even glasses. Apples headset should just be a hand free interface for the phone. They dropped the ball big time
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A neural implant that allows Apple, Instagram, and Amazon to transmit advertisements to my brain while I sleep and work so that I never have any break from things trying to provoke me and telling me that I should feel dissatisfied.
Unbreakable glass. Batteries that last days. Waterproof.
And settings that allow you to turn ON what you want, rather than dig around forever to turn something OFF, then find that carrier app that you can't delete. I didn't die when I cut off a mattress tag, I can deal with an issue with my phone if I delete VZW notes or whatever.
I would love a thin foldable or pull out phone that became the size of a tablet and could replace a PC. Not asking for lot right? It should have a small keyboard, pen, and mouse that are stored within it.
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I'd like a simpler iphone that still works for business purposes, but doesn't have insane graphics, expensive cameras, crash detection, nanny features and tracking, etc. Basically an iphone 6 or 8, but one that doesn't get bricked by future ios updates. Our family all has 6 and 8s now and dread the day when they become obsolete.
Surely there's a market for this? I'm basically someone who needs more than a flip phone for work. I've gotten accustomed to the ios way of life, but I don't need all the new stuff.
i’d like it to do what I want instead of being a device to harvest my data and funnel it to companies for monetisation. Like Nokia phones used to be
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I'd like to see more energy-dense batteries, not lithium ones really, but something such as the theoretical lithium-air ones with energy-density comparable with gasoline. An energy cell that allow us to charge once and it'll last for days, preferable one that recharges very quickly to(within a minute, or two for example).
A button wouldn't hurt anyone, button is nice, button is great, feels so good to press one when I want to minimize my app, and go back to my "desktop". Current Smartphones are weird imo.
Removable batteries, that'd surely be amazing at least for someone who plans to make a phone lasts for several years, when it is dying out just remove it and replace it, plain and simple.
Chips with smart architecture, so it can process more information more quickly.
Also foldable smartphones everywhere, becoming as ubiquitous as our regular smartphones, tho seems unlikely in a third world country such as mines.
Location via satellite. There are times when I'm hiking, or in a plane, where I can't get a location.
You'll be able to get internet on your phone anywhere in just a few years.
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Probably obselete. Augmented reality will likely take over. Imagine browsing something with your eyes, copying it, glancing at your computer monitor, and pasting it there, completely handless. As for calls, e-sims would likely be implemented in this AR chip.
Have them be dockable so you don't need a laptop or desktop anymore.
I have good news for you. This already exists in the form of Samsung DEX.
Personally, I would love to revisit the concept of modular electronics, like the Phone Blocks idea presented a decade ago...
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I wonder if we'll see the phone bit of a phone (the ability to have a voice conversation) disappearing - I suspect most people barely use their phone for voice these days. Maybe your telephone will separate into a different device like a watch or pen and we have a separate device for typing / browsing / messaging.
That would lend itself to devices which roll up (maybe into a pen) or are wrapped around your wrist as a wearable device.
Battery technology is improving so fast that they will last for days or weeks
[as an asside, I used to have a JCB rugged phone whose battery lasted 3-4 weeks. It was great - but I could never remember where I left the charger - and often had to buy a new one. Maybe a 4 week battery life isn't such a great idea!]
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I'd like a watch that can show e-mails, take calls/texts, run basic apps like WhatsApp and a VOIP client and do voice assistant tasks, one that doesn't need to be tethered to an iphone or even need an iphone. I'm not a huge phone user, I mostly use a PC, so such a watch would be great for me. If it had a webinterface or a way to run all current android apps that need a full display that would be better too.
Looking further on into the future, I'd like a wristband phone, with a foldout flexible OLED display. Normally it would be an inch wide and would display basic info. But then you can slide out a 6" flexi display across your arm and use it for full on use. Or it has a built in projector (a good one, as current micro-projectors are useless).
But the tech for this is a while off yet considering processing, display, power and comm requirements. But I could see such wristbands replacing a large segment of phone users in 20 years if they are any good.
A company called Cicret were going to release a phone bracelet that projected onto your arm, but it was a total scam because we won't have the tech for it for years yet, Captain Disillusion did a great video on it (atm battery life would suck, the processing power means the interface will be barely functional, and the projection is so dim and distorted as to be unreadable). But in 20 years perhaps it'll be do-able.
As far as "real" phones, who knows. I guess the problem with a watch/wrist phone, is it's hard to disconnect them and use them as GPS
Re: "I would like to see wearables":
...like when things like Google Glass were being tried out?
The main problem I have with wearables (which is kind of an extension of the same problem of having a computer-phone and yes I'm calling it that lol) is that there's no demarcation* between a conscious experience of the world apart from Microsoft's experience or Apple's experience or Facebook's experience or everyone else's experience of the world/environment and/or the person wearing the wearable, a.k.a. you. Your own perception or understanding of yourself becomes filtered through the experience of a device by spending so much time with it. People generally are what they do, being social and constructive** creatures, & like for any living thing that adapts to its circumstances/surroundings/creations(!!), self-concept/identity/perception/etc.*** is shaped by, and in turn, kind of resembles/mimics what's around it.
The technological role or function for wearables**** on the market currently is pretty different from what a cell phone is intended to do, which is to transmit. The interface and the perceived intimacy of such devices (being garments/accessories worn against the body continuously collecting biological data, especially eyewear being tech that's put against an open mucous membrane and worn around the most important organ in the body, according to bloodflow) might have strange psychological consequences for long-time users and actual literal exposure to tech would/could be disastrous for if/when malfunctions happen.
I'm also wondering about how beneficial "scrapping" a whole existing tech market is for the environment considering the yet-lacking recycling programs for tech waste, not to mention the legalities (and labor issues/concerns) of said recycling programs as they are.
*or maybe just a preemptive lament for solitude? something that comes from an authentic "me"-ness
**one of the only animals who work on long-term projects or develop trades/skills/arts/etc., lest we forget that birds build nests
***some may call it the "ego," but I think of it more in a consciousness-experience kind of way, like something embedded in a continuous perception or beingness
**** and the fact that they are not currently really relay devices or devices that send signals to other devices, presumably that other users/owners also have/use
TLDR: Consumer wearables (specifically /not/ medical items like pacemakers, because I just know one of y'all, especially if you read something for this long, might use that as a counterexample or something) might further already-existing issues of tech- or net-dependency (for information, for communication, for a sense of sociality.) Wearables would be a new development in trend-acceptability (what I'm saying is they break "boundaries," and not "barriers") for communication devices that I'm just not sure would be more beneficial than potentially harmful.
On "the future of cellphones":
Personally, I'd like for cell phones to decide whether they are computers or phones, but cell phones cannot decide, for they are cell phones. Any sort of design/manufacturing decision of this kind would be a huge break from current consumer trends* and the current financial buyability of smartphones. I like clicky buttons and reparability and long-term functionality as a consumer. What I'm saying is I personally will probably be using a "flip phone" in the future, lol.
As far as new phone designs go, I am really not a fan of the current anti-button trend that makes "phone" "rectangle of pokable light." A friend of mine and I once had a conversation where he (jokingly) said something like "I just know that cell phone manufacturers are holding out on us and every company could come out with its 'perfect phone' that would work forever with no problems." It's still pretty funny to think about. As far as new features go, I'm sure tech companies have their ideas. From newer "consumer" features in wearables/phones, I really think the data and its collection methods would be better suited for pharmaceutical purposes and not being hoarded by home/consumer electronic companies for the sake of making profit or selling "cool" gadgets.
*and such decisions/moves have been marketed as such, for example that recent Nokia "brick" cell phone.
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For the cell phones not to be big bricks if plastic and metal we have to carry around.
But most of all, to see them not be tracking devices of our lives to use against us, but rather tools for us to achieve things we are not capable of in our current state.
I'd like to see a phone with an included, detachable, earpiece. There are so many times that I want to listen to something but don't have my earbuds with me.
Key to house car taser Headphone Jack No more spam calls
AR glasses? Please, no, those are a privacy nightmare. I won't know what info you are gathering or automatically shown about me when looking at me. Big companies having my info is one, having it at the fingertips or should I say eyelashes of everyone in the world? Shudder. Sure, there could be rules around it, but who tells me you are complying to them so no, please God, no, no. Ok, rant over.
My phone. Batteries that last days. Better cameras, but the laws of nature are in the way for the most part there. Easier integration with other equipment like your laptop, TV, or camera gear. Longer support. Modular options to select exactly the phone you want, just like laptops and PCs. OS freedom if you want to. One time purchase for all apps, so you don't have to buy them again when switching Android to Apple. Better yet: a shared app store for all platforms. But most of all: better battery life.
Google Glass died for a reason. People didn't want to be constantly recorded by glassholes.
However, I would love wireless screen without camera that can be controlled with a phone. I could watch a movie while I'm on a walk with dog or something.
JimTheSatisfactory t1_jc74t90 wrote
I'm actually considering switching to a dumb phone. I really think it'll be a positive change to not be so connected.