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Jetson

macrumors 6502a
Oct 5, 2003
587
41
Do you have evidence to suggest "chances are"? You may be right, but modern cellular networks are more sophisticated and multi-layered (LTE, 3G, 2G) than FM/AM radio. You're not wrong, it would be nice to have both, but I don't think anyone is betting that we'll get absolutely no service.
"Survival Radio: What Will Work

5293450953_944b85238b_m.jpg

In any type of disaster (Hurricane, Earthquake, Economic Collapse, Nuclear War, EMP Blast/Solar Event, etc) your typical means of communications (Mobile Phones, Land Lines, Internet) will most likely be severed or severely impaired.

I know from reading about past disasters and being in the middle of 9/11 myself that when disaster strikes, using your mobile phone (which we are all so heavily dependent on) can be a frustrating experience to say the least. If you have ever tried to dial out and received the message “All Circuits Are Busy” then you know what I am talking about.

Aside from smoke signals, there are modern options to consider... The three most readily available are GMRS or FRS radios, CB radios, and Ham radio."

My point is that the iPad/iPod/iPhone are already all in one devices. But not having an AM/FM/Shortwave receiver is a dreadful shortcoming. In an emergency the device would become a doorstop when it could be a lifeline. It was a purposeful decision by Apple to leave out REAL radio - not internet "radio", which should be changed.
 

japeurotrash

macrumors newbie
Jan 15, 2008
18
0
what about a real radio?

Why can't they put a real radio tuner in the iphone?
That would be a big real improvement...
 

mrsir2009

macrumors 604
Sep 17, 2009
7,505
156
Melbourne, Australia
But with Internet radio you get way more selection. Personally I only like one station where I live, so I pretty much always use Internet radios like TuneIn. Much better. The battery drain from data usage is worth it lol

+1. I much prefer to choose an internet radio station that I like than listen to the crappy stations in my area :p
 

FatMax

macrumors 6502
Jun 28, 2007
399
107
Norway
Just to be clear, are you talking about FM radio? Because every iDevice out there has radios in them, otherwise you wouldn't get WiFi or cellular.

Anyway, even with "hidden" FM radios there isn't much reason for them to enable them without antennas to make them work. You can't have a radio work without an antenna, so the additional cost of that (not to mention the space it takes up) basically means it isn't really worth it. It always amazes me how people forget about this. I guess people are used to ignoring how things work because it's all hidden to the user.

Internet radio (Spotify, Rdio, Pandora) is the future anyway, it is where the real money is going, and Apple is not stupid to ignore that.

The antenna lies in the headset....
 

goobot

macrumors 603
Jun 26, 2009
6,478
4,366
long island NY
You mean the internet radio they haven't actually had for the past 12 years they have been selling iPods?

Why didn't they place radios in their ipods/iphones before then (other than in 1 notable exception)?

Instead of coming up with ridiculous conspiracies, why wouldnt people accept the simple answer, which is that (a) it takes up room (b) adds cost (c) terrestrial radio is barely used outside of your car, and almost every car already has a radio in it.

Im not talking about the past. I'm talking about the future.
 

iChrist

macrumors 65816
Sep 7, 2011
1,479
432
3 countries for tax benefit
That's an ugly icon, IMO. Not very Apple-like.


As opposed to the iTunes icon? Or the safari icon? Or the settings icons with the gears facing the wrong way?

Their icon strategy is totally incoherent. I only pray Jony I've can fix it.

:apple:

----------

"Survival Radio: What Will Work

Image
In any type of disaster (Hurricane, Earthquake, Economic Collapse, Nuclear War, EMP Blast/Solar Event, etc) your typical means of communications (Mobile Phones, Land Lines, Internet) will most likely be severed or severely impaired.

I know from reading about past disasters and being in the middle of 9/11 myself that when disaster strikes, using your mobile phone (which we are all so heavily dependent on) can be a frustrating experience to say the least. If you have ever tried to dial out and received the message “All Circuits Are Busy” then you know what I am talking about.

Aside from smoke signals, there are modern options to consider... The three most readily available are GMRS or FRS radios, CB radios, and Ham radio."

My point is that the iPad/iPod/iPhone are already all in one devices. But not having an AM/FM/Shortwave receiver is a dreadful shortcoming. In an emergency the device would become a doorstop when it could be a lifeline. It was a purposeful decision by Apple to leave out REAL radio - not internet "radio", which should be changed.


FUD alert. I love those examples... a sudden economic collapse will cause cell service to suddenly be interrupted as the world descends into CHAOS!! Or a hurricane for which you usually have a weeks warning?

If you are in a disaster, do you need to listen to the robo voice on the radio telling you there is a disaster? If you are able, you move to safety, if not, the radio doesn't help.

:rolleyes:
 

somethingelsefl

macrumors 6502
Dec 22, 2008
461
204
Tampa, FL
Instead of some internet radio they could just stick a normal radio in them like every other smartphone in the world.

Ummm...what phones are talking about? With the exception of the Galaxy S3 (non-US-spec) very FEW smartphones released recently have an FM radio in it. Many handset makers are dropping the functionality.

What phones are you talking about? I'd be very curious to know.
 

moderngamenewb

macrumors 6502
Jul 20, 2011
441
63
I bet this is why there's no more radio feature in iTunes since iTunes 11 came out. It's weird that there is no radio option on the iTunes sidebar, yet the preferences has the option to show or hide the radio from the sidebar. I think the streaming radio feature is why the radio button is still in the preferences
 

codefuns

macrumors member
Jun 10, 2011
90
0
Understand, 32g ssd must be much bigger than 16gb ssd, that is why it takes apple $100 to upgrade from 16G to 32G.

Actually the Zune definitely had an antenna, more than one of them. I am not saying it isn't possible for Apple to fit an antenna, just that it is yet another cost during development that they have to consider. You don't just throw an antenna in these devices, every millimeter is carefully considered and requires a lot of effort to develop. Adding an FM antenna might be a small part that costs less than a penny, but it costs tons more to add it in.
 

ghampton

macrumors newbie
Jul 26, 2012
1
0
It's also on the ipod nano screen in the Apple Store Website

I'm glad they discovered the "hidden" buttons. All they had to do was look at the screen on the ipod nano at the apple store website. Apple is not trying to hide anything.
 

rak007

macrumors 6502a
Oct 31, 2011
507
0
Instead of some internet radio they could just stick a normal radio in them like every other smartphone in the world.

I am all for this. It will be a hit especially in the developing nations (like where i come from) as Radio is a very prominent medium.
Apple had eventually put radio in their iPod nano (starting with that mini version), they can put in the iPhone as well. Hope it happens some day.
 

justperry

macrumors G5
Aug 10, 2007
12,553
9,745
I'm a rolling stone.
Just to be clear, are you talking about FM radio? Because every iDevice out there has radios in them, otherwise you wouldn't get WiFi or cellular.

Anyway, even with "hidden" FM radios there isn't much reason for them to enable them without antennas to make them work. You can't have a radio work without an antenna, so the additional cost of that (not to mention the space it takes up) basically means it isn't really worth it. It always amazes me how people forget about this. I guess people are used to ignoring how things work because it's all hidden to the user.

Internet radio (Spotify, Rdio, Pandora) is the future anyway, it is where the real money is going, and Apple is not stupid to ignore that.

Don't be a smartass here, you know exactly what I meant, if I say the word radio amongst people how many people will talk about anything other than the radio (FM/AM) we had for what, 100 years!
I also said:

REAL Radio

Cost, LOL, the radio is on the chip, the amplifier is already there and a short antenna wire costs cents, if an extra antenna IS needed and I am not sure if it really is, most likely not since the headset cable provides this.

Radio over the air costs nothing, well battery but less than being on internet radio.
Internet radio will eat your Data plan, Radio over the air costs nothing again.

Apple, just built in the damn Radio.(FM/AM)
 
Last edited:

Tech198

Cancelled
Mar 21, 2011
15,915
2,151
I wonder if Apple even decided (or even crossed their minds) of throwing developers "off-track"

That is, rather than introduce one piece, like here "two buttons to suggest ...a new feature", rather have several "fake" things , e.g., wording, animations, the whole kit thrown in, and let everyone hunt for the "easter egg"

Makes ya wonder why no one has thought of that but it would work...

No one would every know what the REAL feature would be..... At least the speculations, would BE speculations, rather than an actual rumoured fact,

And isn't that whats its supposed to be any way ? Just speculation ?
 

steve-p

macrumors 68000
Oct 14, 2008
1,740
42
Newbury, UK
Apple, just built in the damn Radio.(FM/AM)
How many people really care about it though. Internet radio is most likely the future of radio, and there are good apps for that today. Even with broadcast radio, analog AM and FM is on its way out and being superseded by digital transmission formats in a lot of countries. For example there was talk of permanently discontinuing AM and FM transmissions here in 2015.
 

kdarling

macrumors P6
Ummm...what phones are talking about? With the exception of the Galaxy S3 (non-US-spec) very FEW smartphones released recently have an FM radio in it. Many handset makers are dropping the functionality.

There's like 50+ phones in the US alone with an FM Radio, and the NAB is pushing for all to include it for "national emergencies". A lot of the cheaper phones outside the US still come with one.

As for just smartphones, a search for FM Radio on PhoneScoop found these supposedly currently available models:

2012_fm_radios.png
2012_fm_radios2.png
 

SockRolid

macrumors 68000
Jan 5, 2010
1,560
118
Almost Rock Solid
AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, etc execs reading this post and dreaming that dream of 3G/4G tolls too tight for even 1 full movie and having the masses turned onto streaming their TV and music all the time, anywhere. The Cloud is a 3G/4G tollmasters nirvana.

Agree. It's a huge mess. I'll update my prediction:

Streaming radio today.
Streaming TV the day after the day after the day after tomorrow.

I think it will take some major disruption to hammer the cell carriers into submission. To help speed their inevitable descent to dumb pipe status. But they'll grab as much cash as they can, for as long as they can, in the meantime.

Eventually, when "real 4G" is rolled out (minimum requirements: 1 Gb/sec for stationary terminals and 100Mb/sec for highly mobile terminals, with a single voice + data all-IP connection) we may see something like a class action suit against the cell carriers for charging separately for voice and data. That's like an ISP charging more for downloading a movie than for downloading a software update. It's all just data packetized into exactly the same data format.

Or, there might be some bold and disruptive force from the mobile telephone industry. Maybe Sprint will give its subscribers unlimited data for a fixed price per month, even at 1Gb/sec data rates. And maybe that will be so successful for Sprint that AT&T and Verizon will do the same (along with the rest of the world's carriers as they migrate to "real 4G").

I don't see that happening with legacy 3G-based technology (LTE, HSPA+, etc.) LTE, for example, still requires separate voice and data connections, so there's at least a shadow of a reason to for the carriers to charge separately for voice and data plans. All the more reason for the carriers to drag their feet. And, as far as I know, "real 4G" is only a set of requirements. The actual technical spec hasn't been finalized yet.
 

somethingelsefl

macrumors 6502
Dec 22, 2008
461
204
Tampa, FL
There's like 50+ phones in the US alone with an FM Radio, and the NAB is pushing for all to include it for "national emergencies". A lot of the cheaper phones outside the US still come with one.

As for just smartphones, a search for FM Radio on PhoneScoop found these supposedly currently available models:

View attachment 394941
View attachment 394940

Thanks. I was actually curious. My old HTC's used to have it, but my newer Android phone and iPhone do not. I gotta say though, I maybe only used the FM radio on my old phone maybe once or twice...but I guess it's good that the option is there for other people who might use it more frequently.
 

SnapApps

macrumors newbie
Jan 28, 2013
4
0
Grand Rapids Michigan
I would LOVE a Apple supported Pandora type service

How exciting!

I would EASILY replace my Pandora/Spotify with an Apple radio service if it lived up to the Apple name of quality.

My only concern(although it is a concern with Pandora too) like a previous poster mentioned- I am always afraid of running up my data cap…

I would definitely give it a chance though!:apple::apple::apple:
 

thekev

macrumors 604
Aug 5, 2010
7,005
3,343
Eventually, when "real 4G" is rolled out (minimum requirements: 1 Gb/sec for stationary terminals and 100Mb/sec for highly mobile terminals, with a single voice + data all-IP connection) we may see something like a class action suit against the cell carriers for charging separately for voice and data. That's like an ISP charging more for downloading a movie than for downloading a software update. It's all just data packetized into exactly the same data format.

They could just refactor the charge per GB and you'd be paying just as much anyway. Just changing how charges are assessed is unlikely to change your phone bill.
 
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