“On December 8, 2011, the US Patent & Trademark Office published well over 40 patent applications from Apple in a single day,” Jack Purcher reports for Patently Apple.
“We focus on several patents that cover the advancement of audio quality in future iPhones. Specifically, the main patent covers an advanced noise suppression system that will be welcomed,” Purcher reports. “Many times I’ve spoken to people calling me on their iPhone and sometimes I’ve been able to hear the person next to them speaking as clearly as I could hear them. That’s not exactly the way it’s supposed to work. Apple’s newly proposed audio advancement system is likely to put that issue to rest while advancing iPhone audio quality overall.”
Purcher reports, “The last tidbit of information derived from this group of patents was rather a bit of a surprise. Apple revealed the use of a speakerphone feature on a future iPad – and that could be a new killer app in the making.”
Read more in the full article here.
I remember asking a rep at the Apple store why I couldn’t get 3G voice on an iPad. Answer, we want you to buy both an iPhone and iPad. I walked out. That’s arrogant of Apple in these hard times to limit 3G on the iPad to just data. So this patent shows a ray of hope if it materializes before I’m in a wheelchair.
If times are that damn hard for you then you shouldn’t be buying an iPhone or an iPad. Get your priorities in order.
Amen and happy Holy Days.
Joel, most people who purchase iPads already have phones, so if Apple added telephone technology to the iPad it would be an unnecessary expense for those customers. Virtually nobody would get rid of their phone and just carry the iPad around all day in case they needed to make/receive a call.
Moreover, the iPad is a pretty trim device, and Apple keeps it that way by not adding lower-priority components in the case. It’s only a guess, but I doubt if they would add telephone capabilities if they could free up a little space in the existing model; they would probably devote the space to a larger battery, NFC, a small (tiny!) projector or other device.
Finally, they probably don’t add telephone capabilities in the iPad because doing so would require them to produce and stock an additional line of products: iPad 16GB wi-fi, 16GB wi-fi/3G, 16GB wi-fi/3G/phone … then the same menu with 32GB and 64GB. Apple tries to keep it simple.
Anyway, those are my observations. You can bet, though, if a significant market developed for them, Apple would eventually supply it.
I doubt if the Apple sales clerk thought much about your question, though. He probably just said the first thing that popped into his head. I very much doubt if he was expressing Apple’s corporate policy — so I don’t think it’s fair based on this interaction to conclude that Apple is arrogant.
Just get Viber for iPad. Make calls with data.
iPad Speakerphone? Louder?
Better to hear Siri with…
😉
I already make lots of phone calls from my iPad! I haven’t found a good compatible wireless headset for it. I stopped looking one some time ago, so their may be something on the market that would work.