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I've never had the need for an notification LED but I can see why some would want it. I imagine the stubbornness is just Apple doing things their way.
 
I left iPhone (gave up waiting for the bigger phone) and got a N5.

I have grown attached to the LED. I have one color to tell me if I have a work email, another for personal email. Another color tells me of an unread text. I also have it set for poor signal and low battery.

That, and wireless charging would be the two things I would need to switch back.
 
Some blinky light doesn't tell me anything.

Sure it does, Einstein. It tells you you missed something. But maybe even more importantly if it's not blinking it tells you if you haven't missed anything. All without having to press a button to show the lock screen. What a novel idea! No, there is no excuse for not having such a basic feature in 2014.
 
Sure it does, Einstein. It tells you you missed something. But maybe even more importantly if it's not blinking it tells you if you haven't missed anything. All without having to press a button to show the lock screen. What a novel idea! No, there is no excuse for not having such a basic feature in 2014.

It's a basic feature that most people don't need or aren't requesting, though. So Apple has no reason to put it in.
 
Sure it does, Einstein. It tells you you missed something. But maybe even more importantly if it's not blinking it tells you if you haven't missed anything. All without having to press a button to show the lock screen. What a novel idea! No, there is no excuse for not having such a basic feature in 2014.

Under what circumstances would this be useful?

If I have my phone with me, I get alerted in a variety of more informative ways I have a notification.

If my phone is not with me, I don't care to be bothered. And usually, if it's not with me for more than 5 minutes, I have multiple notifications awaiting me one of which is bound to require my attention so I have to press the home button anyway.

It's one press of a button. One. And you get far more information than you would from a blinky light.

And the truth is, you don't even have to bother pressing the button. If there's something waiting for me, I'll get to it when I get to it. I'm on my phone enough during the day that I rarely miss anything anyhow.

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I would love a notification led. Having had other devices that had this feature I know for sure the most harcore iPhone fans would love it.

I fall on the opposite side. I disabled it immediately when I used my Android devices. I found it annoying at night and not at all useful.

Even less so on an iPhone given the notification system shows on the lock screen and illuminates the display.
 
Here's proof positive of the influence Apple has over their customers minds, opinions and beliefs.

Didn't take long for someone to bring out the sheep concept as their answer to an inability to conceive of others simply thinking differently than they. :rolleyes:

IMHO there's no need to be so slaved to your phone that you need it to beckon you from afar with an LED. Whatever email or missed call or text or new cat video might be awaiting, it can wait until I have the inclination to check. I can appreciate that an LED could be handy when someone feels a compulsion to be immediately aware of a missed communication. I just don't think that compulsion is necessary and that most would be happier if they focused on the people around them rather than their phone. (yes of course there are exceptions, but as should be apparent Apple tends to build for the mainstream and not the fringe)

BTW, I've had notification LEDs on phones prior to iphone (Treos and BlackBerries). I found it tended to reinforce a compulsion to go see what had just come in. And perhaps I hadn't set it up well, but on the S4Active I tried last year it far more often was advising me of junk emails or stuff that didn't need any immediate response than it provided any real utility.
 
It's a basic feature that most people don't need or aren't requesting, though. So Apple has no reason to put it in.

Most people don't need it huh? Well that genius argument can be levied at most phone features. People aren't requesting it? How do you know? Apple has no reason? Patently stupid conclusion.
 
I don't get the point of an LED.

So I can assign colors to certain notifications....great.

What good is being able to see a text without who it's from? Or an email?

I'd rather glance at my watch, or god forbid, press the power button once and get useful information other than "you have a text, but from who and regarding what I can't say because I'm just a dumb blinking light in the 21st century".
 
I'd rather glance at my watch, or god forbid, press the power button once and get useful information other than "you have a text, but from who and regarding what I can't say because I'm just a dumb blinking light in the 21st century".

You might be on to something... it's a fiendish plot to make people buy the Apple Watch...

Now what would be really cool is if the notification led would read out the sender/subject via Morse Code... That'd really get the propellerheads spinning... :)
 
You might be on to something... it's a fiendish plot to make people buy the Apple Watch...

Now what would be really cool is if the notification led would read out the sender/subject via Morse Code... That'd really get the propellerheads spinning... :)

I was talking about my Pebble, I have no intention of buying the Apple Watch until it is waterproof and does sleep and O2 levels.

I expect the S2 chip to be a knockout.
 
Under what circumstances would this be useful?

You simply can't be that dense. Here's one: I get up to go get a cup of coffee but don't bring my phone. When I get back to my desk I don't need to pick up my phone if there's no indication that I've missed something. Saves a little battery and a little time but most of all I'm not needlessly distracted.

I don't care about email, twitter, facebook or any of that but I absolutely DO care about people trying to contact me now. So, that would be calls and texts. I want to know if I've missed either of those by simply looking at the phone. That you'd find that information unuseful is a bit strange.
 
Most people don't need it huh? Well that genius argument can be levied at most phone features. People aren't requesting it? How do you know? Apple has no reason? Patently stupid conclusion.

Okay seriously, I get that it sucks, but there's no need to be rude.

I understand that you want it and you think that it's dumb that Apple hasn't included it. I'm just being honest, it's not something that's frequently talked about. It comes up every once in awhile in a thread and then it disappears again. If it was a pressing concern then there would be many, many threads and it would be a constant topic. But it's not.

So yeah. Without constant, pressing demand for it as a feature, Apple has no reason, that's all.
 
I don't care about email, twitter, facebook or any of that but I absolutely DO care about people trying to contact me now. So, that would be calls and texts. I want to know if I've missed either of those by simply looking at the phone. That you'd find that information unuseful is a bit strange.

I don't understand the benefit of a blink that doesn't give me any time, contact, or contextual information.

If only there was some type of preview I could see from the lock screen, maybe by pressing just one button.....
 
I don't get the point of an LED.

So I can assign colors to certain notifications....great.

What good is being able to see a text without who it's from? Or an email?

I'd rather glance at my watch, or god forbid, press the power button once and get useful information other than "you have a text, but from who and regarding what I can't say because I'm just a dumb blinking light in the 21st century".

You miss the point, kid. The point is that you DONT HAVE TO pick up the phone and press the power button needlessly. How many times in a day do you press that button just to find that there's no new info waiting for you?

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I don't understand the benefit of a blink that doesn't give me any time, contact, or contextual information.

If only there was some type of preview I could see from the lock screen, maybe by pressing just one button.....

Ugh... The blink would tell me that I missed something and that I should probably wake the phone up at my next convenience to see what it was. That sure is a lot better than wondering if I might have missed something. Right? Damn I feel like I'm taking crazy pills.
 
You miss the point, kid. The point is that you DONT HAVE TO pick up the phone and press the power button needlessly. How many times in a day do you press that button just to find that there's no new info waiting for you?

Honestly? Never. It vibrates and I know that there is something there. My job has me receiving emails constantly so I never have my phone more than 2 feet away at work. I'm looking at it right now, and lo and behold, I can press one button and see that I don't need to respond to the text I have because it's not important.

A blinking light just tells me that....something....is there, without providing any other information that I would still need to check the lock screen anyway.

I also wear a watch that give me my texts and emails.
 
I don't understand the benefit of a blink that doesn't give me any time, contact, or contextual information.

If only there was some type of preview I could see from the lock screen, maybe by pressing just one button.....
Even if you couldn't have a different colored light for different emails/texts/calls, which you can, is it that hard to understand it is not just about seeing the light?

It is also about NOT seeing the light. The concept of not needing to check your phone when there is no need to. Get it?

The person you responded to gave an example of just that, so there really is no excuse to act obtuse about it.



Mike
 
You miss the point, kid. The point is that you DONT HAVE TO pick up the phone and press the power button needlessly. How many times in a day do you press that button just to find that there's no new info waiting for you?

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Ugh... The blink would tell me that I missed something and that I should probably wake the phone up at my next convenience to see what it was. That sure is a lot better than wondering if I might have missed something. Right? Damn I feel like I'm taking crazy pills.

You may do that - I don't. I use my phone constantly throughout the day. I never wonder if there's anything waiting and I never pick up/touch my phone unless I intend to do something with it.
 
Ugh... The blink would tell me that I missed something and that I should probably wake the phone up at my next convenience to see what it was. That sure is a lot better than wondering if I might have missed something. Right? Damn I feel like I'm taking crazy pills.

How is that different then checking the lock screen anyway?

Convienance is providing relevant information. Not just "green for email", "blue for text message", "red for Facebook". What good is knowing there is an email, then opening it and seeing that Chase wants me to get a credit card.

I'll use 21st century technology and look at my wrist to get information at a glance, rather than a glance that requires an additional step to see a useless email.

But by all means, whatever pills suit you;)
 
Or maybe it's just that some people disagree with you and there is no big mind-control conspiracy. Sheesh.

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"Sorry Mr. President."

Not bad. Marginally more original than the post I was replying to.

Of all the trolls on this site, I'd have to vote for you as the best/most consistent/most obnoxious...

I don't think I have EVER seen you post something constructive. It's always something sarcastic and in argument against the OP/others on the thread.

(EDIT: I stand corrected... I finally saw post you weren't trolling. Doesn't seem to happen too much though.)

To the OP, I agree.

I would love something to indicate constantly if there is a notification. It doesn't have to be an LED. I also really liked the way Motorola did it with their Active Display on the Moto X (used one for about 30 days as I tried out Republic Wireless).

I do, however, fear that this won't happen in favor of Apple making more money by pushing watches for constant notifications...
 
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I see. So when you get back to your office at work, you'd like to have to press a button on your phone to see if there's voice mail. And when you get home, you've no problem to press a button on your phone to see if you have messages?

I guess I'm weird - I just think it would be nice to glance at my phone on the desk to see if I need to bother to reach over and press a button to check messages or not.

A flashing LED. Old school technology, but it's actually useful. But since Apple says it isn't, the fanboys have to agree.

You really want a flashing LED the whole time your away from your phone, draaaaaaaaing your battery ? Really, because it bothers your arthritis to push a button?

Your fanboy argument is just silly and childish.
 
Honestly? Never. It vibrates and I know that there is something there. My job has me receiving emails constantly so I never have my phone more than 2 feet away at work. I'm looking at it right now, and lo and behold, I can press one button and see that I don't need to respond to the text I have because it's not important.

A blinking light just tells me that....something....is there, without providing any other information that I would still need to check the lock screen anyway.

I also wear a watch that give me my texts and emails.

Well hey good for you, you could simply turn off such an annoying and useless feature. For those of us not tethered to our phones 24x7 it would provide quite a bit of value.
 
Even if you couldn't have a different colored light for different emails/texts/calls, which you can, is it that hard to understand it is not just about seeing the light?

It is also about NOT seeing the light. The concept of not needing to check your phone when there is no need to. Get it?

The person you responded to gave an example of just that, so there really is no excuse to act obtuse about it.



Mike

Maybe - since people are different and have different opinions - the other user just doesn't see a need to see an ABSENCE of light, either. Some of you are acting a bit childish over the idea that other people may not find the same things useful that you do.
 
OP I'm actually with you on this one

So many people miss the point. Notification led isn't for when you get a notification while looking at the phone... It's more useful for when you've actually missed something and return to your phone. Yes you can wake the device and check but you wouldn't even have to if, for instance, the ring around the touch ID home button glowed when you missed something -- indicating there is something that requires your attention.

I'm not one of those people who constantly wake their device for no good reason and scroll around the home screen doing absolutely nothing. I see plenty of people like that out in public and it's, IMO, a bad habit. It would be nice to be able to look across the room at my phone sitting on the table and see the home button lit up, indicating I should walk over and check the phone l. There's been times when I left my phone alone for a while and missed a few texts before coming back in to grab it on my way out the house.

If you've ever seen the notification orb on the old Palm Pre you'd understand. That was a perfect l, subtle indication. I'm not fond of any of the dedicated notification LEDs on android phones.
So, you walk away from your phone for a certain period of time, and then don't check it when you get back? I'm just curious. Are there actually people in the world today that don't automatically check their phone when they get back to it?
If so, then maybe you do need a notification light. Either get an Android phone, or buy one of the cases that provide this kind of notification message without having to look at the screen.
 
Even if you couldn't have a different colored light for different emails/texts/calls, which you can, is it that hard to understand it is not just about seeing the light?

It is also about NOT seeing the light. The concept of not needing to check your phone when there is no need to. Get it?

The person you responded to gave an example of just that, so there really is no excuse to act obtuse about it.



Mike

I don't have that problem. My wrist tells me if I have something, and to take your point further I can see when I DON'T need to respond to something, because the spam email will be right there on my wrist.

I don't need to go back to 2008 BlackBerry paradigms of half information requiring follow up, I have it all where I don't even need to keep my phone in view.

But you know, that's just sooooo obtuse of me. :rolleyes:
 
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