Why is Apple so damn stubborn to never include notification LED in its iPhone brand?

[TomTomHatesCats]

I have literally read every post in this thread and it just goes in circles. Yet I can't look away, haha.

I still fail to see how having a useful feature (that could be turned off) isn't better than not having it at all. 550 posts, and no argument has earnestly addressed this.

The only point made by the opposers that I've found to be valid is the possibility of Apple taking away a feature to make way for the LED. Sure, it's a bit of a reach, but that would be bad in actuality, whereas every other reason is only bad in someone's imagination.

That last statement is not meant to be provocative at all; seriously, guys, those other reasons are all non-starters if you simply turn the LED off.

 

[blwade]

I have literally read every post in this thread and it just goes in circles. Yet I can't look away, haha.

I still fail to see how having a useful feature (that could be turned off) isn't better than not having it at all. 550 posts, and no argument has earnestly addressed this.

The only point made by the opposers that I've found to be valid is the possibility of Apple taking away a feature to make way for the LED. Sure, it's a bit of a reach, but that would be bad in actuality, whereas every other reason is only bad in someone's imagination.

That last statement is not meant to be provocative at all; seriously, guys, those other reasons are all non-starters if you simply turn the LED off.

Their argument is that they are self-entitled and if they don't want it, therefore, it doesn't need to be on there!

Can't you see?

Seems pretty valid to me. I mean, every choice in my life is subject to Surf Monkey. He seems to know all. You better start agreeing with him before he trolls you some more! He will exert his will on your life! There is no running from it!


/sarcasm

 

[zakarhino]

A little green dot over the speaker grill (a la green LED on Macs for webcam on)... That would be nice.

Maybe a multicolored even glowing light under the speaker grill too. LED for camera on, glowing light for notifications.

 

[Arran]

Their argument is that they are self-entitled and if they don't want it, therefore, it doesn't need to be on there!

I hate to be nit-picky, but "self-entitled" is normally used to describe someone who demands something they don't already have. Whereas the "no-thanks-we-don't-want-a-light" are really the opposite of that: We don't want a light. Never have.

By all means call us "blinkered" or "selfish" or "narrow-minded", if you must - but "entitled" is a bit of a stretch.

Now, who can give me a good reason why Apple has not implemented a notification light in eight generations of this wonderful iPhone? I'm sure there's a good reason: Finding it will take work.

Resist the knee-jerk and give it some thought please.

 

[cdaq]

I hate to be nit-picky, but "self-entitled" is normally used to describe someone who demands something they don't already have. Whereas the "no-thanks-we-don't-want-a-light" are really the opposite of that: We don't want a light. Never have.

By all means call us "blinkered" or "selfish" or "narrow-minded", if you must - but "entitled" is a bit of a stretch.

Now, who can give me a good reason why Apple has not implemented a notification light in eight generations of this wonderful iPhone? I'm sure there's a good reason: Finding it will take work.

Resist the knee-jerk and give it some thought please.

Well, look who wants to join the grown up table.
I think the reason is obvious, the cost of implementing the feature exceeds the return they expect to take. And really, it's no wonder reading this thread. So many of you don't demand anything more than apple is willing to give but maybe there's more to it? Wasn't the entire notification system kind of just bolted on a few releases ago of IOS? I seem to remember that but maybe I'm wrong. Anyway, perhaps it would take some major work to integrate such a feature.

 

[tjl3]

Well, look who wants to join the grown up table.
I think the reason is obvious, the cost of implementing the feature exceeds the return they expect to take. And really, it's no wonder reading this thread. So many of you don't demand anything more than apple is willing to give but maybe there's more to it? Wasn't the entire notification system kind of just bolted on a few releases ago of IOS? I seem to remember that but maybe I'm wrong. Anyway, perhaps it would take some major work to integrate such a feature.

Honestly, I think it's aesthetics more than ROI. If there was something to be nit-picking iPhone on, it is definitely not the lack of LED notification.

 

[cdaq]

Honestly, I think it's aesthetics more than ROI. If there was something to be nit-picking iPhone on, it is definitely not the lack of LED notification.

Riight... Aesthetics of an invisible item when it's not active and something that could be turned off so it's permanently invisible? Somehow, I doubt that's the reason.

 

[Arran]

Well, look who wants to join the grown up table.
I think the reason is obvious, the cost of implementing the feature exceeds the return they expect to take. And really, it's no wonder reading this thread. So many of you don't demand anything more than apple is willing to give but maybe there's more to it? Wasn't the entire notification system kind of just bolted on a few releases ago of IOS? I seem to remember that but maybe I'm wrong. Anyway, perhaps it would take some major work to integrate such a feature.

Progress.

 

[Surf Monkey]

I was doing no such thing. Only calling it like I see it.

That's EXACTLY what you were doing. The post is still on the page so denying it is rather silly.

The desirability may be debatable (and its my opinion that it would be a well received feature) but its efficacy is not. It's an incontrovertible fact that the lack of notification is a missing feature. It's also not up for argument that there is currently no way to check your phone without firing up the screen. These are facts. Do you understand the difference now?

Look at you do it again. I do actually understand the difference between facts and opinions. Evidently you're still not clear on it though. Yes, it's a fact that an LED is a "missing" feature from the iPhone, but so is a telescoping antenna (for example) but no one is in here blowing a gasket about the lack of one and suggesting that anyone who isn't calling for a telescoping antenna is a "fool" or an "idiot."

Again, the desirability of an LED notification light is a PREFERENCE. In your OPINION it's a necessary feature. In the OPINION of others it is not. There is simply no way you can make an objective argument that it's necessary. No way, no how. Why? Because it isn't necessary. It's an option that plenty of people just couldn't care less about having. That doesn't make them stupid or idiots or ignorant or foolish or any of the other condescending things that you and others have accused them of. It just means that they have a different OPINION than you do.

Umm no. Arans post was nothing but a silly strawman. It was a bad attempt to discredit a point of view by offering up something that no one had suggested. It dishonest and childish but I'll take him at his word it was only meant for levity sake. I'm sure everyone got a chuckle. haha.

Actually, it wasn't a straw man, it was an analogy. An apt analogy at that. You disagreed with his OPINION, so you called him a fool. That's why you're unlikely to gain any traction here. Resorting to rote insults is weak.

Stop universalizing your opinions. You are not everyone.

 

[tjl3]

Riight... Aesthetics of an invisible item when it's not active and something that could be turned off so it's permanently invisible? Somehow, I doubt that's the reason.

Re-watch that Jony Ive, iPhone 6 video. Then re-imagine it with a blinking light on the face of it. It would not surprise me if one of the biggest factors in not having one is b/c it would distract from the design.

 

[Surf Monkey]

Riight... Aesthetics of an invisible item when it's not active and something that could be turned off so it's permanently invisible? Somehow, I doubt that's the reason.

I don't want to pay for a feature I don't have any intent of ever using. That's just one reason off the top of my head that I'd prefer Apple not include an LED notification light even though I could choose never to turn it on.

 

[Arran]

Riight... Aesthetics of an invisible item when it's not active and something that could be turned off so it's permanently invisible? Somehow, I doubt that's the reason.

Sliding back now. Repeating arguments.

Ever consider that all this "red for facebook, green for email, orange for missed call, etc." might just make it all a bit too complicated for a nontechnical user? (i.e., most of them)

I don't fully buy the argument that you can just turn it off, because often these users turn things ON, get stuck, don't know how to kill it and then either incur an expensive service call (Genius Bar) or just leave it on and moan about it.

Either course detracts from the product experience, for questionable gain.

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Re-watch that Jony Ive, iPhone 6 video. Then re-imagine it with a blinking light on the face of it. It would not surprise me if one of the biggest factors in not having one is b/c it would distract from the design.

Could be, but I think it's more about staying true to the product's personality.

 

[cdaq]

That's EXACTLY what you were doing. The post is still on the page so denying it is rather silly.



Look at you do it again. I do actually understand the difference between facts and opinions. Evidently you're still not clear on it though. Yes, it's a fact that an LED is a "missing" feature from the iPhone, but so is a telescoping antenna (for example) but no one is in here blowing a gasket about the lack of one and suggesting that anyone who isn't calling for a telescoping antenna is a "fool" or an "idiot."

Again, the desirability of an LED notification light is a PREFERENCE. In your OPINION it's a necessary feature. In the OPINION of others it is not. There is simply no way you can make an objective argument that it's necessary. No way, no how. Why? Because it isn't necessary. It's an option that plenty of people just couldn't care less about having. That doesn't make them stupid or idiots or ignorant or foolish or any of the other condescending things that you and others have accused them of. It just means that they have a different OPINION than you do.



Actually, it wasn't a straw man, it was an analogy. An apt analogy at that. You disagreed with his OPINION, so you called him a fool. That's why you're unlikely to gain any traction here. Resorting to rote insults is weak.

lol I'm beginning to think I'm debating a teenager.

Good we agree, the LED is a missing feature. Where did I say it was necessary? Very few items on the phone are necessary strictly speaking. In fact what I DID say was, "The desirability may be debatable (and its my opinion that it would be a well received feature)" So it appears we are in agreement although you may want to bone up on your reading comprehension.

 

[raggdoll]

Anyone noticed in almost all battery usage screen shots, Home & Lock Screen consistently rank very high in % used?

To me, having the LED notification light would be awesome. That way I'd KNOW when a message is there, instead of checking all the time, and using up battery resources...

 

[TomTomHatesCats]

Again, the desirability of an LED notification light is a PREFERENCE. In your OPINION it's a necessary feature. In the OPINION of others it is not. There is simply no way you can make an objective argument that it's necessary. No way, no how. Why? Because it isn't necessary. It's an option that plenty of people just couldn't care less about having. That doesn't make them stupid or idiots or ignorant or foolish or any of the other condescending things that you and others have accused them of. It just means that they have a different OPINION than you do.

You seem to think you're being called a fool merely because you have a different preference than someone else, but that's not at all what I've seen from the posts attacking you.

For the record, I'm not one of the name-callers, but it's not whether you think LED is useful or not, it's why you'd be against something that won't manifest itself to you in any way if you don't want it to.

That, in itself, does come off as foolish provided you don't offer a good reason for that particular stance, which you haven't.

 

[Bewildered]

(Yes, yes. I de-lurked and joined just for this thread.)

-I've only had iPhones, so I'm completely in the dark about non-Apple smart phones and operating systems.
-I never had this feature on my old dumb phones; in fact, I'd never heard if it until now.
-But now I want it. Bad.

I'm a teacher. I can't wake my phone all the time. I have little time, and it sets a bad example in a classroom. I'm not at all tethered to my phone, so I miss customary notifications, but I have a need for emergency contact with my own children and my parents. (Sandwich generation at its finest. Marry young, y'all.)

The idea of getting visual confirmation - at a glance - that I DON'T need to push that blasted home button is a compelling attraction for me.

Plus, I'm sick to death of people waking/checking their iPhones while having a conversation with me. Perhaps this communication tic has been discussed to death here. Regardless, it's a trend that disappoints me, and is a secondary reason why I'm attracted to the feature.

Now I wish I'd never heard of it. I'm not worked up; just wistful. I'm bewildered, though, by the vehemence of the objections, but there's a level of animus here with which I'm unfamiliar.

(For the record: I pay for plenty of iPhone features I never use, but I figure others benefit from them. And it matters less to me that a feature is "old" than that it is useful. I am old and incredibly useful.)

Sorry for the ramble. Better next time.

 

[Surf Monkey]

lol I'm beginning to think I'm debating a teenager.

Good we agree, the LED is a missing feature. Where did I say it was necessary? Very few items on the phone are necessary strictly speaking. In fact what I DID say was, "The desirability may be debatable (and its my opinion that it would be a well received feature)" So it appears we are in agreement although you may want to bone up on your reading comprehension.

Quite the opposite. It's you who aren't getting it. You need to stop thinking that insulting people constitutes a position. It doesn't.

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You seem to think you're being called a fool merely because you have a different preference than someone else, but that's not at all what I've seen from the posts attacking you.

For the record, I'm not one of the name-callers, but it's not whether you think LED is useful or not, it's why you'd be against something that won't manifest itself to you in any way if you don't want it to.

That, in itself, does come off as foolish provided you don't offer a good reason for that particular stance, which you haven't.

Actually, if you bother to go back and read my posts in the thread I have offered reasons why I personally don't want or need an LED notification light. However, that's not really the issue here. In point of fact no one has called ME a fool. That's a charge that's been leveled at others along with idiot, ignorant and a host of other mindless smears that don't do anything to advance a reasonable conversation. And these kinds of insults appear primarily in posts where the author is struggling to universalize his or her opinion. That's a poor choice no matter how you slice it.

 

[cdaq]

Quite the opposite. It's you who aren't getting it. You need to stop thinking that insulting people constitutes a position. It doesn't.

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Actually, if you bother to go back and read my posts in the thread I have offered reasons why I personally don't want or need an LED notification light. However, that's not really the issue here. In point of fact no one has called ME a fool. That's a charge that's been leveled at others along with idiot, ignorant and a host of other mindless smears that don't do anything to advance a reasonable conversation. And these kinds of insults appear primarily in posts where the author is struggling to universalize his or her opinion. That's a poor choice no matter how you slice it.

Yeah deflect, good tactic. It's about as good as you're going to do here. You are so very wrong and you, me, and every single objective person whose read this thread knows it. You lose. Maybe you can post again tomorrow after your nap.

 

[bentgate]

Say what you guys want, I love mine on the Galaxy S3. I have my phone rooted, so I customized the notification light to flash green for hangout texts, red for gmail emails, and blue for missed calls. It's awesome, and I dont know how Im going to live without it if I switch to the iPhone 6 (still waiting to see the Nexus).

Its such a simple feature, I really dont understand why Apple wouldnt put it on their phones. At this point theyre just doing it on purpose.

 

[cycledance]

you will pay for this feature. it's called the apple watch.

 

[mercuryjones]

Forget the blinky LED. Forget firing up the screen.
If I want to know if I missed any notifications, all I do is say "Hey Siri, do I have any notifications?" And then I listen.
But, I guess that's the wrong way to do it. I obviously need a blinky LED light, flashing different colors, in order to best notify me, right?
I'm such a fool for using my iPhone in this manner.

 

[Zwhaler]

If Apple includes it, then they will be admitting they were wrong about not including it. Stubbornness...

 

[Altis]

Forget the blinky LED. Forget firing up the screen.
If I want to know if I missed any notifications, all I do is say "Hey Siri, do I have any notifications?" And then I listen.
But, I guess that's the wrong way to do it. I obviously need a blinky LED light, flashing different colors, in order to best notify me, right?
I'm such a fool for using my iPhone in this manner.

I can't tell if you're being serious, because asking Siri would involve waking the phone, which would show you the notifications... no?

And if you are trying to ridicule people for wanting a notification light, then you really just miss the whole point of one.

There is no downside to having one, yet it's something plenty of people would like to have.

 

[mib1800]

Forget the blinky LED. Forget firing up the screen.
If I want to know if I missed any notifications, all I do is say "Hey Siri, do I have any notifications?" And then I listen.
But, I guess that's the wrong way to do it. I obviously need a blinky LED light, flashing different colors, in order to best notify me, right?
I'm such a fool for using my iPhone in this manner.

You are a fool then. Asking siri 60 times a day whether you have missed notification and the getting replied with a nil 55 times out of that.

LED serves a purpose which other type of notifications cannot. As simple as that. Only a mind blocked cannot see that.

 

[iBought]

LED is pretty annoying actually. Thing is blinking until you check your phone.

- you check your phone after leaving it alone for a long time. Thats basically a fact - everyone does that.

- when you don't leave your phone alone and see a call come though, or an email or something you don't want to deal with, you will still have the annoying blinking light until you check the message.

Source - me. I had one on old phones. It was annoying.

Adding an LED function would change the design of the phone. To me - not worth it.