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Apple Reportedly Shelves 'Walkie-Talkie' Feature Allowing iPhone-to-iPhone Messaging Without Wi-Fi or Cellular
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It would be nice not to carry a separate device when camping, on cruises, skiing etc. I certainly agree GMRS radios are superior but most people would opt to just have a singular device that relies on phone numbers as opposed to channels.
well that would have been a really cool "new" feature. i know nextel did it before but this would be a useful feature for iphones.
The AW Walkie Talkie feature is part of it. There have also been articles on MR about Apples Find My being able to locate devices without cellular or WiFi by creating a mesh network from numerous iPhones. This could also work in emergencies where regular services are not available. Those articles are filled with complaints ranging from Apple using your device to create a network without your permission to Apple finding new ways to track you when there's no cell/WiFi to people being able to intercept the data and spy on people/track them as the packets go through your device.
Regardless, my original point is 100% correct. People on MR constantly change their opinions on Apple. The only constant is if they can spin the story to somehow criticize Apple.
Thats exactly what I thought. After the big hit of the Apple Watch walkie-talkie....
Don’t recall it being mentioned, but flip-flopping not too surprising. I think it would be pretty useful given that there are so many natural disasters lately. Especially if intermediate phones could be used as relays so it’s not just endpoint-to-endpoint.
The good news is that now that Apple owns the Intel broadband stuff, they can do it right.
The ad-hoc mesh network possibilities are exciting for scenarios like emergencies or events with major congestion that cause cellular network strain. I hope this technology develops and makes it into the consumer mainstream.
Downvote me if you want, but I miss Nextel. I had their service for many years and I enjoyed the walkie talkie feature to chat with friends.
I remember reading that Steve Jobs' original iPhone idea was not to use existing cellular networks. Steve wanted to install antennas all over the world so iPhone users could talk to each other exclusively. And from the top of my head, the pitch here was that you wouldn't be paying a monthly fee for the service: it was supposed to be completely free. Of course, you wouldn't be able to call regular cell phones. That whole infrastructure was expensive and absurd, so he discarded it after he got the estimate for the project.
Why do I mention it? In my mind, this sounds like a mini-version of that story.
Why do I mention it? In my mind, this sounds like a mini-version of that story.
So our son's $29 pokemon walkie talkies have some capabilities that a $1000 Iphone doesn't?
This would have been handy for hiking and skiing.
This would have been handy for hiking and skiing.
Yes, it would be a great feature - almost simultaneously to its announcement, countries like China, Saudi Arabia and Iran will ban it (forcing Apple to disable it locally) or will ban iPhones.
Several of my friends who go hillwalking in Scotland swear by an app called Uepaa (see https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/uepaa-24h-safety/id563252812) as an emergency backup. I have it, but have never used it in an emergency or seen it used, but it seems like an interesting approach. I think the idea is to link from phone to phone until one of the phones finds a cellular network. Personally I use a personal locator beacon as my primary emergency device (no subscription fees), but they are expensive and can be used only once before they have to be refitted with batteries at a certified service centre.
I do think Apple should think beyond mobile phone networks - possibly linking to satellite as well or user-to-user.
Indeed, still waiting for a rugged outdoor version of the iPhone (built from the ground up for outdoor pursuits, including a larger battery; and maybe a secondary battery for emergencies).
I do think Apple should think beyond mobile phone networks - possibly linking to satellite as well or user-to-user.
Indeed, still waiting for a rugged outdoor version of the iPhone (built from the ground up for outdoor pursuits, including a larger battery; and maybe a secondary battery for emergencies).
Its very useful if you are on job sites that don't have a reliable cell connection or any internet.. this is pretty common and used to be part of older sprint network devices back in the days of breadbox cellphones.. such an easy thing to implement.. darn..
You should never, ever have a project get cancelled because a single person leaves the development team, leader or not. Effective teams in an experienced corporation such as Apple plug in new members and restructure, and continue working. If the decision is real, it's much more likely to be regulatory issues, and even that should have been risk-analyzed in the design stage before a ton of money is spent.
Gotenna.com
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I wouldn't assume the project was cancelled, this is merely a deadline not being met.
I would have loved to use this while skiing with the family and the kids take off with their friends and we arrange where to meet and when. Most of the time it's not a problem, but since it's so critical it would have been amazing.
Well there are trolls, and there are people who are uncertain, and of course when more facts come to life some feel different about issues. Pretty normal. I also believe that MacRumors are more than one person and when different people engage you should also have different responses. But I maybe mistaken…
Another apple FAIL. Anyone silly enough to spend $1,000 on a phone should at least get some tangible benefit over a Motorola flip phone besides a camera. All phones also have a FM chip in them too. apple ever think of activating that either? No.
Quality and innovation is a thing of past with apple=get used to it. Steve we miss you!
Quality and innovation is a thing of past with apple=get used to it. Steve we miss you!
It was Steve Jobs who decided not to activate the FM, because he thought people should listen to podcasts instead of FM radio.
So even if he came back from the dead you would still not get FM radio on you iPhone.
Easily fixed with a quick GPS check obviously. Doesn't have to be continuous either. If you're in the US you're not going to be in Europe 2 hours after the last GPS fix.
I think this would have been a useful feature. Especially if they could have added low speed data like GPS coordinates. Too bad they didn't do it. But the range wouldn't have been great in any case, especially with a built-in antenna. There's a reason walkie talkies still have antennas sticking out. It's a different thing when you're talking to a cell tower with a high position, big high-gain antenna and pretty much unlimited power budget.
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Not necessarily. As a HAM operator I have some radios that are similarly sized or smaller than today's mobile phones. Some even with internal antennas. They use mobile-phone style battery packs and they last a decent time (though handy to handy range is minimal - handy to base is much better which is why repeaters are a big thing for HAMs too).
Consider that most of the time you're not talking in this usecase, when you do it tends to be short bursts. The battery life is mainly impacted by transmitting, receiving can be done very 'cheaply'.
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PLBs are great. You don't care about the battery refit in that case where you actually need to use it.
I have a sat phone too but the hardware needed for that is in direct competition with Apple's "thin & light" obsession. The only tech that could possibly do it is the LEO networks like Iridium and GlobalStar, but both of those brands' own phones come with huge bulky antennas too. I'd imagine there's some optimisation to be had though as the sats are only a few hundred km away with line of sight (at least during the middle of the pass). You're also talking a minimum of 30-40$ per month just for standby airtime and you haven't made a single call yet.
The others: Intelsat, Thuraya etc use geosats a minimum of 50.000km away which is impossible without a chunky antenna. And a clear view of the horizon in the right direction.
Perhaps if SpaceX Starlink takes off this could become feasible.
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