2000: xkcd Phone 2000

2018-05-30T17:20:44Z

PokeMaster2164:

{{comic
| number = 2000
| date = May 30, 2018
| title = xkcd Phone 2000
| image = xkcd_phone_2000.png
| titletext = Our retina display features hundreds of pixels per inch in the central fovea region.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an XKCD PHONE 2000 USER - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

*'''Dockless:''' It was common practice for older standard cellphones (i.e. non-smartphones) to use a docking station for charging. "Dockless" could be a catchy marketing term for wireless charging.
*'''Silent:''' Implying perhaps that the phone is unable to produce sound entirely. Labelled at the location where a headphone socket would traditionally be, although some recent phones have discarded the traditional headphone jack in place of wireless headphones.
*'''Mouse Cursor''' Most recent Android phones have external mouse support and will display a mouse cursor. However, this is typically disabled by default. This mouse cursor seems to always be present, even when the touch screen is in use.
*'''Quad Camera Takes Four Copies of Every Picture:''' Recent phones have added up to three rear-facing cameras, offering different fields of view, monochrome cameras for low light, and a wider base for emulating depth of field effects. At the time of writing no phone on the market has four rear-facing cameras. However, YouTube personality nigahiga created a parody of the iPhone (iFhone 8) that has four cameras structured similarly, e.g. taking a picture of a letter K gives 4K.
*'''Front-Facing Camera Obscura:''' A [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera_obscura camera obscura] is a dark room or box with a small hole allowing light to enter. The size of the hole causes light travelling in straight lines to project a dim inverted image on the back of the room or box; the concept is the predecessor to a modern camera, which uses a lens to allow more light to enter. A camera obscura is not strictly speaking a camera as in an image capture device (although there are pin-hole cameras which use the same mechanism). Actual phones have front-facing conventional cameras, allowing selfies, video calling, etc.
*'''3D Facial Contour Analysis Shows You a Realistic Preview of Your Death Mask:''' Recent computational photography effects implemented on mobile phones support facial analysis, allowing for artificial relighting or the creation of avatars. A death mask would be a new take on this.
*'''Sponsored Pixels:'''
*'''Front and Rear Pop-Out Grips:''' There are accessories that stick to the rear of a phone and can be "popped out", offering a grip, a stand, or somewhere to store headphone cables. Integrating such a feature into the phone design is novel, although some phones have incorporated kick stands. Pop-out grips are normally placed on the back of the phone to make it easier to hold with one hand. Having a second grip to the front of the phone does nothing except block part of the screen. There could be a small screen on the top of the grip since the grip is shown to contain "Sponsored Pixels".
*'''Humidity-Controlled Crisper:''' A crisper is a drawer in a refrigerator meant to control the humidity to keep vegetables from drying out and getting limp.
*'''Antikythera Mechanism:''' The [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antikythera_mechanism Antikythera Mechanism] is an ancient Greek clockwork device for predicting astronomical positions. It is one of the earliest known analogue computers.
*'''New York Times Partnership: All Photos Taken with Camera App are Captioned in Real Time by Reporter Maggie Haberman:'''
*'''Spit Valve:''' A spit valve is used for emptying saliva out of wind instruments, particularly large brass instruments. It is to be hoped that less saliva accumulates in a smart phone (best not to think about it{{Citation needed}})
*'''Standard USB Connector:''' a USB 3.0 A port is displayed. Unfortunately, a "standard" USB connector, according to the USB standard, would be a USB B port as a phone typically acts as the "slave" device, rather than the "host" as a USB A port would imply.
*'''Coin Purse-Style Squeeze Access:''' presumably, the casing is flexible in this region, and when squeezed at the sides (a bad idea, considering the next design item) reveals the USB A port and spit valve.
*'''Hollow-Ground:''' a [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grind#Typical_grinds hollow grind] is a type of knife (or similar sharp tool) edge noted for sharpness and general fragility, often seen in razors and certainly not what you'd want on the edge of a phone.
*'''Absorbent:'''
*'''Keyboard Supports Dynamic Typing:''' [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Type_system#Dynamic_type_checking_and_runtime_type_information dynamic typing] is a computer programming concept, and has nothing to do with typing on a keyboard.
*'''Backflow Preventer:'''
*'''Swiss Army Partnership: Folding Knife (Unlocks Only if Switzerland is Invaded):'''
*'''100% BPA-Free PCB Construction:''' {{w|Bisphenol A}} (BPA) is a chemical used in plastics such as waterbottles. Recent studies show that BPA can leech estrogen-like compounds into liquids, so BPA-free waterbottles have become popular. There is no plastic in a printed circuit board (PCB).
*'''AMOLCD Display (7-Segment):''' [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMOLED AMOLED] is a display technology often used in cell phones, providing thin and emissive displays. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid-crystal_display LCD] is another display technology used in phones, and works by blocking light from a separate backlight. A [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven-segment_display 7-segment display] is a device made of seven independently-controlled segments (usually either LCD or LED) which can be used to display a single digit; as such the technology is common in traditional digital watches. In contrast most phone displays are made of a uniform high-resolution pixel grid that allows arbitrary content to be displayed, although some very old (pre-smart) cellphones and land lines did use this technology in displaying a phone number. The technology cannot represent the entire alphabet without modification, so it is inappropriate for text messages, let alone graphics.
*'''Runs on Battery for the First 6 Hours, then Uses Gasoline:''' A nod to the increased popularity of gas-electric hybrid vehicles. This would be a fantastic breakthrough in regards to fuel cells. There have been many attempts to use hydrocarbons, like gasoline, for charging cell phones. Although it would likely cause more problems for the average consumer having a fuel cell would reduce weight and prevent reliance on a working power grid or having to use a bulky generator to convert the gasoline into electricity first. This is not the first time Randall has talked about this before, with much of the information here coming from what-if(128 Zippo Phone).
*'''Sharpie® Dual Stylus (Dry-Erase + Permenant)''' "Permenant" is curiously spelled incorrectly, perhaps comically highlighting that the permanent portion of the dual stylus would be unable to correct any typos that a dry-erase marker would allow.
®

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{comic discussion}}

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2000: xkcd Phone 2000