Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

15 Features the Original iPhone Didn't Have When First Announced

MacRumors said:
​
  • Touch ID or Face ID: While modern iPhones and iPads are equipped with biometric authentication systems like Face ID or Touch ID, the original iPhone could only be secured with a four-digit passcode. Touch ID arrived with the iPhone 5s in 2013, while Face ID debuted on the iPhone X in 2017.
Click to expand...
Even more noteworthy to me is that there was no Touch ID or FaceID AND the passcode was off by default. Imagine a completely unlocked phone today!
 
in my mind one of the most significant ”missing“ feature was that the original didn’t have the Apple A series processor. The performance of these early models were atrocious. Even as a dedicated Mac user I didn’t get an iPhone until the A4 came in iPhone 4.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: AngerDanger and MacScape
I remember how much grief Apple received for not having cut/copy/paste, then several years later Microsoft released a new OS (can’t even remember the version now), years later without, you guessed it, cut/copy/paste. The tech world was pretty much crickets. ?
 
  • Haha
  • Like
Reactions: jchap and TheGenerous
Also remember the first gen ran internet at the speed of 2G. Yikes. These days when my 5G phone drops down to LTE it feels like swimming through mud.
 
michaeljk said:
Its hard to believe Siri came to the iPhone more than 10 years ago and is still fundamentally useless and dumb.
Click to expand...
Nah. ‘Dumb’ doesn’t really describe anything to the user reading your post, and ‘fundamentally useless’ is definitely subjective and quite inaccurate based off my usage. (Which is rather extensive.)

I use Siri every day for dictation with my iPhone, AirPods, iPads and even Apple Maps, notes, CarPlay, ect. Even though it’s not perfect, I wouldn’t be without it. It’s been a huge convenience to make my tasks more efficient and quicker.

There’s a lot of advancement opportunity for more machine learning with Siri moving forward, but with deciphering & dictation, it has made many strides.
 
  • Like
Reactions: mk313, Aidoneus and Tagbert
It’s amazing how many people have complained over the years of Apple removing features whether it be the 30 pin connector or the headphone Jack but where would it be if they hadn’t evolved. To claim it was to sell more peripherals is ridiculous.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jinnj
Relentless Power said:
Nah. ‘Dumb’ doesn’t really describe anything to the user reading your post, and ‘fundamentally useless’ is definitely subjective and quite inaccurate based off my usage. (Which is rather extensive.)

I use Siri every day for dictation with my iPhone, AirPods, iPads and even Apple Maps, notes, CarPlay, ect. Even though it’s not perfect, I wouldn’t be without it. It’s been a huge convenience to make my tasks more efficient and quicker.

There’s a lot of advancement opportunity for more machine learning with Siri moving forward, but with deciphering & dictation, it has made many strides.
Click to expand...
I haven't used Siri ever, I wish I knew someone irl who uses Siri
 
  • Disagree
  • Like
Reactions: TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️ and jinnj
nebojsak said:
I'd like to know which exact person is responsible for ditching the alarm scroll wheel. That unimaginative corporate prick deserves to be hung, drawn and quartered.
Click to expand...
What? i actually despised the alarm scroll wheel. Took forever just to make changes.
i have an old iPhone 6 Plus that i use as a second alarm and changing the time is just a chore.

That said, at least on iOS14, you can still scroll up and down to change your alarm time, just not as intuitive i guess as before.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Tagbert
MacRumors said:
  • Flashlight: With no LED flash on the original iPhone, there was no built-in flashlight. When the App Store launched, some flashlight apps were released that displayed a white screen at max brightness to mimic a flashlight.
Click to expand...

LOL and when they finally added a flash to the iPhone 4, you couldn't use it as a flashlight. Again there were tons of apps that enabled you to turn it on as a flashlight. If i recall right, it wasnt until 3 years later with iOS 7 that Apple added a dedicated flashlight button.
 
webkit said:
Also, that $599 price required a 2-year AT&T contract which without that would've made the original iPhone around $150 to $200 higher.

$599 + $150 to $200 + inflation would make the phone over $1,000. Today's iPhone 13 is a bargain by comparison.

Apple/AT&T did lower the price down to $399 just a few months after launch, however.
Click to expand...
no no no, an Iphone 3g, and multiple generations after, you got the phone for only $200 when you signed a 2 year contract. I guess it may have been different for original, but starting with the very next gen. it was only $200 with contract
 
KaliYoni said:
Wait, there's more!
  • Having to use a dongle to listen through a decent pair of headphones.
  • Influencers.
  • Mark Z. using the mic to target ads.
  • Sergei and Larry using the mic to target ads.
  • Drivers blocking traffic because TikTok is more important than moving when the light turns green.
Click to expand...
The original iPhone needed a dongle to listen to decent headphones….
 
  • Like
Reactions: Aidoneus
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back