I have wondered why the 5g ipads don't have the phone app.
I would use a mini or an air as my primary cellular device and take calls through airpods when necessary.
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DigiTimes: Apple to Launch MacBooks with Cellular 5G Connectivity in Second Half of 2020
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I have wondered why the 5g ipads don't have the phone app.
I would use a mini or an air as my primary cellular device and take calls through airpods when necessary.
I think that's what's gonna happen in the end, 1 monthly data plan for x amount and the ability to include all your devices - it makes more sense, instead of having different data plans for different devices; It will be much more cost-effective as well, especially now with 5G. Let's hope the companies will actually offer it...
What if Apple incorporates the same easy pairing technique as it has proven with AirPods and iOS/Mac devices then the concerns mentioned would be invalidated.
Similar to stolen devices in iOS 13, macOS can adopt this feature with Mac hardware sans cellular. It is also possible to locate lost AirPods, the technology exists it is up to Apple to migrate its use to both OS platforms.
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Do you have a cellular iPad? If so then connect to that. The hype I have heard about 5G is similar to that of 4G/LTE. The issue is that even at present majority of the coverage is within urban areas and those remote area are a hit or miss. Having a laptop with cellular capabilities will not change the lack of coverage considering it can be accomplished with a smartphone or tablet as a modem/router.
It is far more mobile and convenient to walk around with a handheld for obtain a signal compared to a heavy laptop. Plus the battery life on present laptops with wifi is ~10-12hrs with cellular that will drop to ~8hrs depending on usage, signal strength etc. People have valid concerns of smartphone battery life, that is not magically going to improve on a laptop and claim there is room for a bigger battery to offset the requirements. Remember that iOS devices use ARM and present Mac hardware use x64, will this happen if we get an ARM Mac, possible however at that point Apple can just make the pairing process painless similar to AirPod.
We simply don’t know for a fact what type of power management measures Apple will use or what time of power consumption 5G has. We have seen that Apple markets some top spec laptops but it throttles its performance for thermal management. Will cellular add additional heat and power consumption to the device, possible. What other antenna redesign for better reception has to be considered, there are a lot of questions. One simply cannot compare an ARM device and apply it to an x64 device as there are many variables that we simply do not know.
Is there a high demand for this product, how will sales keep up long term over initial demand, will the additional cost steer people away to having just a wifi laptop and a smartphone combo instead.
Having 5G on everything is a pipe dream of IoT, with cyber security of these devices lacking I certainly do not want my washing machine turning itself on/off by some hacker, let alone want an IoT washing machine to begin with.
Sure, if they can make the pairing dead simple and rock solid reliable, it would completely dissolve any interest I have in having built in cellular in my MBP, but I'm not holding my breath. I've been tethering for years and I don't think the process is any more reliable right now than it was 10 years ago.
Also, pairing for tethered data is more complex than the Bluetooth pairing that takes place for the Airpods. I also sometimes will tether to different devices. I have a Verizon phone and a T-Mobile iPad. Where I get a decent T-Mobile signal, I'll tether to that instead of my phone. It sometimes gets confused as to what it's trying to connect to even when one device is right next to it and the other one is in the other room.
This actually brings up a weakness of having the cellular built in. You may still need to tether to a different device anyway depending on signal strength. Well, I wouldn't expect it to be perfect anyway, but if it'll give me instant on connectivity, I would be interested.
In very rare occasions, I've tethered my laptop with my iPhone and it works great. With that said, both iPhones and Android phones can be used for Tethering to your macbook and the same can said about iPads yet I see people purchasing Cellular iPads all the time. Why? Maybe because they're too lazy to push a few options on their phones to activate
The problem with tethering is that the devices disconnect all the time and then you have to re-tether them. It's enough of a hassle on a laptop, but having to re-tether an iPad is even more of a pain because of the way you use it makes an instant on type of experience more important. All of the iPads that I've purchased are Wifi + Ceullular.
Is everyone going to be ok with their MacBook 5G being used up by Auto Play video embedded in websites? I'm thinking even more time (at least mine) on my MBP is on the web (vs apps on my iPhone). And even Safari isn't able to keep up with the purveyors of ads and I end up getting streaming videos - ads and TV-like presentations of legit news - starting the second the page stops loading. And since 5G is so fast I'm speculating the entire video will download faster than I can pause it (or leave the page).
People had similar concerns with Bluetooth pairing and Apple introduced an even simpler and painless solution. I believe Apple can innovate in this area.
I know, but I mean indoors.. mmWave is ideal for indoor use because it hardly penetrates even windows.
Telcos will position themselves more as generic networking providers (even for internal networks) in the future by leveraging these unique frequency allocations. Because even a large company wouldn't be able to deploy this technology themselves even idnoors.
To carry your argument to it's logical ends, why have wifi in a laptop. Tether to your phone with bluetooth or hardwire and there is no need for wifi. Get rid of the wifi chips in laptops and phones since a phone is perfectly good for internet access.
if you are using your laptop and tethering it is no different from a practical viewpoint than using a laptop with cellular built in.
Just because manufacturers are running out of ideas and jumping on the IoT bandwagon and including wifi/bluetooth into many household appliances it does not mean it is a good or great idea.
Why stop at cellular when satellite would be better and won't suffer from the lack of coverage of cellular connections. Yes, even 5G will have these problems. Cellular has been available via PCM card or USB dongle attachments for years, the problem is that very few business people had a use for them not the majority of people who use these devices. After awhile some of those business types decided that why bother with a PCM card or USB dongle with a separate data plan as wifi is available in most of the location their conduct business, the few that needed it on road trips would carry their smartphones with them and this just became a duplication for the same purpose. People usually do not take phone calls on their laptops, they do on their smartphones. People receive text messages on their phones not laptops, the ability via Handoff is available as a convenience factor and that is about it. Incorporating and including a cell chip and additional antenna at an increased prices does not make sense to cater to a very very small group and other options are available and have been for awhile.
People complain about the increased price on the base MB/A/P models, what do you think a cellular capable one will cost as a BTO for those very very few people who need it. Yes, it will please the very very few in the short term, however in the long term it does not make sense as having to design, test and manufacturer a BTO option is not cheap to run and maintain when there are other viable options and there are easier solutions to make it more seamless and most seem to be concerned with.
Having a key wearable components with cellular makes more sense as the other accessories can link to it, one does not need cellular in every device. AW gained limited cellular capabilities for a reason as it transitions Apple from smartphones and into the wearable computing market. If you check the latest earning report iPhone accounted for 48% of revenue and the other areas are gaining ground. People are moving more towards wearables and handheld devices not regressing to laptops and desktops. Apple has been a consumer electronic company and it started with iMac and iPod which is what made it successful leading it today. I would not be surprised if a future AW will allow the user to use it as a cellular modem/bridge for other wearables devices. Don't look at the AW for its limitations today, however where Apple is positioning it for tomorrow.
If there was strong demand for this Apple would have produced one with 4G/LTE or even 3G a long time ago. I am sure it has been tested in a lab setting and that is to be expected with all the rumours for several years, the practicality to add another data plan just does not make sense. People spend more money today on monthly cellphone and data plans and they complain about a one time hardware purchase. Penny wise and pound foolish.
As long as you have no data caps, battery life as long as a laptop when tethered, and a fast connection I would agree. At some point in the future and then we can get rid of the added cost of wifi as well.
Sure; which is why I contend that if 5G truly lives up to its hype as wireless broadband it will change how connectivity is delivered. One 5G account linked to multiple devices can replace fiber - modem - wifi as a the way one connects to the internet. Once coverage in cities gets ubiquitous there would be no need to find hotspots and constantly reconnect; you simply stay connected to your 5G provider.
No need for BTO, everything has it and the costs are spread over many more units, and with the deletion of wifi it could even be a wash.
If there was strong demand for this Apple would have produced one with 4G/LTE or even 3G a long time ago. I am sure it has been tested in a lab setting and that is to be expected with all the rumours for several years, the practicality to add another data plan just does not make sense. People spend more money today on monthly cellphone and data plans and they complain about a one time hardware purchase. Penny wise and pound foolish.
Much of the value depends on what you get for the cost. For $10/month I get unlimited data on my iPad; if I tethered to my phone I have a data cap that I would quickly burn through.
No data caps some providers offer a set amount of Gigs at LTE and then drops the speed but still unlimited. This is more of a problem with carriers being cheap. Wifi through a landline will always be cheaper, not going to get into the details as to why this is, but that is what it is at present.
Two forms of 5G and this will only complicate matters as some carriers support one or the other and some both depending on cost, plus not in all areas and to pay for the higher cost to upgrade all 5G users will feel the $ increase in plans. 4G/LTE will still be a backup and most 5G users unless in a supported version or coverage area will be paying for 5G only to receive 4G/LTE most of the time.
Will 5G in all connected devices be possible and available, “eventually” however what we have seen is that even with the rollout of 4G/LTE the cellular space is just a mess. 5G is not going to fix this.
Carriers don’t see it that way there is a reason why they charge you $5-10 to add a cellular AW. In a carriers eyes it is how to charge you more to provide less. To add an AW to your present plan should be no different to a tethered device, considering an AW is not a main device and it’s present capabilities is limited to a larger device like a phone or tablet.
I like your utopia of having a single account and adding let’s say up to 5 cellular devices and pay one price similar to having an internet connection at home and adding more wifi devices to your router, however carriers see it as an opportunity to charge more. What if I only want cellular on my AW but not phone as I may want to tether if I really need to, guess what no option is available. Ever wonder why?
This is more of a carrier issue being cheap than anything else.
In Estonia for example you can get a PAYG 4G/LTE data plan for under €5 for a two week period, this my have changed since I last got it, however you get 50GB and you can tether if you want to as many devices as you want.
Depending on country and carriers, most are cheap and rip off they “loyal” customers. 5G is not going to make things cheaper, it will make it more expensive while you get lower speeds most of the time.