Difference between revisions of "2000: xkcd Phone 2000"

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m (Explanation: Corrected myself - no phone has four *rear-facing* cameras.)
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*'''Backflow Preventer:'''
 
*'''Backflow Preventer:'''
 
*'''Swiss Army Partnership: Folding Knife (Unlocks Only if Switzerland is Invaded):'''
 
*'''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).
+
*'''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.
 
*'''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).
 
*'''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).

Revision as of 17:16, 30 May 2018

xkcd Phone 2000
Our retina display features hundreds of pixels per inch in the central fovea region.
Title text: Our retina display features hundreds of pixels per inch in the central fovea region.

Explanation

Ambox notice.png This explanation may be incomplete or incorrect: Created by an XKCD PHONE 2000 USER - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.
If you can address this issue, please edit the page! Thanks.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • Front-Facing Camera Obscura:
  • 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 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 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: 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: 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): AMOLED is a display technology often used in cell phones, providing thin and emissive displays. LCD is another display technology used in phones, and works by blocking light from a separate backlight. A 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

Ambox notice.png This transcript is incomplete. Please help editing it! Thanks.


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Discussion

Huh, it's not a milestone comic like 1000 was. 172.68.58.191 16:16, 30 May 2018 (UTC)

Yeah, I'm slightly disappointed honestly 172.68.54.46 16:22, 30 May 2018 (UTC)
Gotta wait for an actual round number, like 0b100000000000 162.158.111.127 16:38, 30 May 2018 (UTC)
Well it is the phone 2000 and he does mention in passing asking if 2000 is a good number to choose Zachweix (talk) 16:39, 30 May 2018 (UTC)
What am I waiting for more: 2018 or 2048? SilverMagpie (talk) 16:53, 30 May 2018 (UTC)
Waiting for 2018 personally. A comic that has looked at the calendar so many times should be able to see the comic number match the year. Lukeskylicker (talk) 17:36, 30 May 2018 (UTC)
I think it is pretty clearly a milestone comic. Previous xkcd Phones were timed near iPhone releases. This is very specifically for the 2000th comic. I think it no coincidence that the xkcd Phone 2000 was released for the 2000th one, and think it should be mentioned. 162.158.63.28 18:04, 30 May 2018 (UTC)
I was disappointed, was expecting a 1000-style comic. JayPlaysBeamNG (talk) 19:43, 30 May 2018 (UTC)
That's just the exact same thing as 1000, which IMHO I don't really want. 172.68.46.41 20:08, 30 May 2018 (UTC)

It might be worth noting, that mouse cursors were a thing on BlackBerry smartphones. 162.158.202.100 17:00, 30 May 2018 (UTC)

Those had the weird double-screens, where you could lightly drag your finger around and the cursor would follow, and if you pushed hard it would click. Most people found it to be annoying at best, IIRC. 162.158.74.165 18:38, 30 May 2018 (UTC)

They actually still work on Android if you pair a mouse with the phone (at least, last I tried it). This was actually annoying - my Apple Magic Mouse prefers to pair to my Android Phone than to my Macbook Pro! Fluppeteer (talk) 17:59, 30 May 2018 (UTC)

I would buy it just to be able to plug a keyboard into the type A port. I hate the USB host-peripheral thing... My phone is more than capable of handling external devices. Linker (talk)

Don't you like USB OTG or type C adaptors? Bluetooth keyboards should actually work with many Android (or Windows Mobile) devices. Fluppeteer (talk) 17:59, 30 May 2018 (UTC)
Most Android phones accept keyboard/mouse/pendrive/whatever standard USB peripheral through its USB, some are able to power them, for others you need to provide an external power source. For my old Moto Droid 4, I connected OTG adapter to a USB hub and there one self-made male-male cable for power and rest for peripherals :) As soon as you connect a mouse, the pointer appears. 172.68.215.103 07:56, 31 May 2018 (UTC)
The issue is you need the adapter. I hope to get an OTG adapter someday, but it is just annoying to have to carry an adapter around (Thank goodness I still have a headphone jack...)I am really hoping type C just cleans up the mess, considering a lot of phones have more power than some old desktops... it just bugs me. 'Course, it would probably not be a priority for the OEM's because 99% won't care. Linker (talk) 15:45, 31 May 2018 (UTC)

I think PCB refers to Printed Circuit Board which I assume naturally doesn't contain BPA. 172.68.174.28 18:54, 30 May 2018 (UTC)

I edited the explanation to include Printed Circuit Board. I didn't go as far as to remove the alternate explanation, but I think you are correct Itijara (talk) 19:57, 30 May 2018 (UTC) Itijara

The charging area looks an awful lot like the suggestive violin plots of 1967:_Violin_Plots 162.158.186.42 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

Is that even a "standard" USB port? it looks like it has one too many pins to me, although i guess maybe it could be a 3.0 port. 172.69.68.219 21:58, 30 May 2018 (UTC)

Title text - Our retina display features hundreds of pixels per inch in the central fovea region.

There is so much language in this and a big error not covered here:

  • Our isn't them, it's us! We all (mostly) have two eyes and the retina collects visual information in pixels.
  • But hundreds of pixels is far too low. The Wiki article Fovea centralis tells me "50 per 100 micrometres in the most central fovea". This is approximately 12,700 per inch. This would lead to roughly 162 GigaPixels.
  • And then the human eye isn't large as an inch, and the "most central fovea" is much smaller. Maybe Randall will correct the "hundreds of pixels per inch"...

Nevertheless the word retina is focusing on people who know the Apple Retina Display but don't know where it comes from. --Dgbrt (talk) 22:06, 30 May 2018 (UTC)

  • "Our" means this is a promotional page created by the company that made the phone, so it's "our phone" as in "the phone this company made and is now promoting". It's normal English use, there's no comment to be made.
  • Hundreds of pixels being far too low is one of the jokes in the comic, that they're bragging about a number that is not only unimpressive, but would be embarrassing.
  • Therefore Randall won't be correcting it, it's an intentional joke. NiceGuy1 (talk) 05:12, 12 June 2018 (UTC)

No comment on "®®™®©™®"?? 162.158.74.147 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

I honestly hope comic 2001 has a reference to 2001: A Space Odyssey. 162.158.74.135 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

Why Maggie Haberman? Is it just because of her prolific Twitter usage? I'm not aware how that relates to captioning photos, am I missing a reference? -- JohnHawkinson (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

I have a theory: the Golden Age SF writer "Cordwainer Smith" (Professor Paul Myron Anthony Linebarger), in one of his earliest stories, had people undergo the Haberman process to enable them to survive the weird space-induced pain of his Instrumentality of Mankind universe. OK, really I doubt that had anything to do with it, but I did think of that when I saw the reporter's name. Nitpicking (talk) 23:41, 2 April 2023 (UTC)

If comic #404 wasn't counted due to Comic Not Found, it means that this comic is not really #2000, but rather #1999. Probably on Wednesday it will be truly comic #2000. -- Xkcdreader52 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

Could "keyboard supports dynamic typing" actually refer to the fact that the keyboard can be used to write different words, and not in fact be locked into writing the same sentence over and over again... A sensible but clearly not marketing material point 141.101.99.197 21:59, 31 May 2018 (UTC)Sedontane

I interpreted the death mask thing to mean that the phone would edit a picture of you to resemble what you will look like when you die, which would resemble your present state more or less closely depending on how and when that happens. 172.68.58.131 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

There are two Unicode characters for the letters C and R in circles. The enclosed C and enclosed R characters are neither superscript or subscript. and registered trademark (® ®) and copyright (© ©) are smaller and often superscript. The copyright symbol should be used in place of enclosed C and the registered trademark symbol should be used instead of enclosed R. All registered trademarks are trademarks. Not all trademarks are registered copyrights. Therefore, the two symbols should not be used together. You should have only one of the symbols (® ™ ©) and it should appear immediately after the item it refers to. Items can have copyrights, trademarks, and service marks, but not a combination. Dictionary words, such as "number" can't be copyrighted. It might be possible to apply for a trademark or service mark, but you would have a hard time defending it in court. BradleyRoss (talk) 16:14, 1 June 2018 (UTC)

When i read the camera obscura bit i was thinking of the camera from Fatal Frame which allows its user to see/fight off ghosts. That makes more sense to me than the explanation here which is more of a projector than camera. 162.158.92.238 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

No, it'sn't a futuristic name anymore. I already wander in time, last time I was in the 2060s and the 2080s. And for me, "'90s" mean the 2090s.162.158.88.26 12:09, 25 June 2018 (UTC)

Regarding the swiss army knife, I think this may be a reference to the fact that the swiss army knife is a multitool, and a smartphone is sort of a digital multitool, so they kind-of go together

JavaScript is dynamically typed, and JSFuck is a subset of javascript, so a keyboard with support for dynamic typing could theoretically have only 6 characters

Some guy wrote that the next comic in the xkcd phone series came out five months later. He/She was off by two years. R3TRI8UTI0N (talk) 13:19, 7 April 2023 (UTC)