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It's simply not useful to the average user. You can use your phone to look up the barometric pressure in your area and the results will be more accurate.

Stop with the macho man nonsense.

Just because it's not useful to you, doesn't mean it's not useful. It's exciting to me.
 
I can tell you the atmospheric pressure almost anywhere in the world right now.

1 atmosphere. Sorry you're bad at science.

Edit: Denver: .9 atmospheres. It's just not a big deal unless it adds weight, at which point I don't want it.

Wow that was a simplistic and childish answer that does not in any way represent the information related to the subject. Which you seemed to realize almost immediately.

The phone will probably weigh more than current phones, but I doubt that will have anything to do with what is probably a very tiny sensor. Big screen and big battery. That’s where all the weight will be.
 
Interesting... Now I can do the weather myself... Watch out weather channel I'm about to put you out of business. :D

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Could be used for super precise weather prediction or maybe even automatic airplane mode?

I don't know automatic airplane mode is not a huge selling point for me.
 
Wow that was a simplistic and childish answer that does not in any way represent the information related to the subject. Which you seemed to realize almost immediately.

Go look up the altitude of Denver. It's a mile above sea level.

The phone will probably weigh more than current phones, but I doubt that will have anything to do with what is probably a very tiny sensor. Big screen and big battery. That’s where all the weight will be.

Sure, but each piece of the phone matters. Big screen and big battery gets used every day. Pressure sensor will never get used by the average user.
 
It's simply not useful to the average user. You can use your phone to look up the barometric pressure in your area and the results will be more accurate.

Stop with the macho man nonsense.

I think there is some potential here - just as your phone transmits motion to Apple to help with the traffic app, this could easily support a hyperlocal weather app.
 
Again...

It's a very useful sensor for indoor location tracking between floors.

For example, GPS can tell that you walked into a building. These sensors can then tell if you moved floors, and pretty much guess how far you went up, down to almost the foot.

Eventually we'll have indoor maps for major buildings, malls, etc.
 
Not very accurately.

Exactly. A real altimeter would be a great addition - apps like cyclemeter and strava etc are terrible at logging the distance ascended or descended. The other day a cycle I went on was off by 100ft of climbing. Bring on a accurate altimeter!
 
Wouldn't this be a more likely watch feature?

Possibly indicating that the iWatch will have a public SDK and app store right off the bat, unlike the iPhone which took a year before it got one, or the AppleTV which still lacks one.

Also - I imagine this could have mapping implications. My understanding of GPS is that a single GPS satellite fix will tell you where you are within a sphere, because it only knows your distance. With two GPS satellites, it knows you're within two spheres of possibilities, which intersect to form a circle of possibilities. Further, it knows you're probably somewhere on the surface of the earth, which makes it plus or minus 1 mile of the earth's surface. With a third satellite, you get a pretty exact position.

But if it knows your altitude, then it won't be plus or minus 1 mile of the earth's surface. With just one GPS satellite, you get a circle of possibilities, and with two, you get a pretty exact position.

So it could easily improve GPS, right? Particularly when dealing with elevation changes?
 
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Among obvious weather and density altitude uses...

Indoor locating software wants it, something that Apple is very interested in.



Not sure what you mean.

The barometric sensors used in smartphones (e.g. Android) can tell if you changed floors by either walking up a flight of stairs, or taking an elevator.

That finally shed a whole lot of light upon us.
Thanks. Seriously.
 
I can tell you the atmospheric pressure almost anywhere in the world right now.

1 atmosphere. Sorry you're bad at science.

Edit: Denver: .9 atmospheres. It's just not a big deal unless it adds weight, at which point I don't want it.

Atmospheric pressure doesnt add weight. Even in a vacuum chamber at the same spot, you will weigh the same.

http://www.physics.org/facts/air-really.asp

... so why don’t we notice that there’s a tonne of air pressing down on us? Well, the air exerts this force in all directions, so as well as pushing down on us, it also pushes up and balances out the force on our bodies so that we don’t collapse.
 
I discover this: (iPhone 1 gen)
Sensors
Compass/ Magnetometer Yes
Proximity sensor Yes
Accelerometer Yes
Ambient light sensor Yes
Gyroscope Yes
Barometer Yes
Temperature sensor No

So ... Is this true ? If yes, why they took it out of newer models ?

iPhone gen 1 did not have a gyroscope
 
Atmospheric pressure doesnt add weight. Even in a vacuum chamber at the same spot, you will weigh the same.

http://www.physics.org/facts/air-really.asp

... so why don’t we notice that there’s a tonne of air pressing down on us? Well, the air exerts this force in all directions, so as well as pushing down on us, it also pushes up and balances out the force on our bodies so that we don’t collapse.

I meant add weight to the phone.
 
[...] A thermometer, however, wouldn't be bad at all.

So my iPhone can tell me what the temperature was inside my pocket when I pulled it out to check the temperature? How quickly do these sensors adjust to ambient temperature?
 
last week, while driving Skyline Drive in Virginia, I wanted to know the elevation and tried the compass...it didn't tell me.

then we passed a sign saying 3500 ft. but one on the iPhone would be cool.
 
The barometric sensors used in smartphones (e.g. Android) can tell if you changed floors by either walking up a flight of stairs, or taking an elevator.

Don't be an Enemy Of The State. Yes I am quoting the movie. They hijack your phone and can tell what floor you are on, so they can deploy the government goons more effectively after you.

No thanks.
 
So my iPhone can tell me what the temperature was inside my pocket when I pulled it out to check the temperature? How quickly do these sensors adjust to ambient temperature?
If it's anything like my Casio ProTrek, around 30 minutes to reach ambient temperature after removing from my wrist.
 
Hold on a minute, all the API shows is that there is something called 'altitude data'… We all know one can get altitude data from GPS. Perhaps I am not seeing something, but where is the link between "altitude data" and "atmospheric pressure sensor inside"?.. :confused:
 
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