Apple will be able to update iPhones while they’re still in the box, report claims::No more updating right after you unpack your iPhone.

  • asbestos@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    Wouldn’t this require the phones in the box to be charged above some percentage? Also if they can turn it on wirelessly I can only assume it’s using BLE and I hope the feature is off once the user sets the phone up.

    • knotthatone@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      If they design the process efficiently it shouldn’t burn too much battery to update the system image. The phone just needs to power up, connect to store wifi, apply the image and shut down. Doesn’t even need to power up the screen.

    • xia@lemmy.sdf.org
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      9 months ago

      Maybe an extension of wireless charging? Do iphones not have that yet?

      • asbestos@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        The current box arrangement and phone orientation in the box would seriously inhibit wireless charging.

      • Doctor xNo@r.nf
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        9 months ago

        I don’t think that wireless charging is fast enough to counter a phone updating yet, tbh… And constant charging would deteriorate the battery.

        • tym@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          What makes you think they care about deterioration of the battery? More future sales if they run some charge cycles before you even unbox it.

        • eric@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          Why couldn’t the update start automatically once the wireless phone is sufficiently charged? That would not be hard at all to implement. Simply indicate the update is complete by making the phone beep until it’s removed from the wireless charger. Easy peasy.

          I think the more challenging problem is designing a box that positions the phone in a way that it’s easy to charge wirelessly while still providing sufficent protection like packaging is supposed to do. Inductive charging has to be close to work well.

          • Doctor xNo@r.nf
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            9 months ago

            That would maybe solve it if you have 5 phones in your store, but I really don’t want to be the person that has to “go charge and update the iphones in storage again” if they store hundreds of phones and each needs to be placed on a charging station for an unknown amount of time “until it beeps” one by one… 😅

            The stationproblem you mention however is easily fixed by making it diagonally with a fitting edge the box perfectly fits in, so you can just slide in the box and gravity + edge puts it in the right spot. Add a big sticker for employees that states which direction and done. 😅

            • eric@lemmy.world
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              9 months ago

              You can’t wirelessly charge on a narrow edge, so storing the phone in the packaging at an angle will not work for wireless charging. You need a flat side of the phone to be parallel and flush to the side of the packaging, otherwise the wireless coil will not work.

    • scarabic@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Also my first thought. But then I realized that since they support wireless charging pads, it is possible that they can also be charged while in the box.

      No one wants a new iPhone that comes out of the box at 10% charge. But maybe they can avoid this.

      • Echo Dot@feddit.uk
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        9 months ago

        Yes but then you’re relying on the employees in the Apple store to actually keep the phones on the charging pads so unless there’s one charging pad per phone, they’re going to have to rotate them.

        I’ve worked with Apple store employees and let me tell you the name “genius” has never been less appropriate.

    • Doctor xNo@r.nf
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      9 months ago

      I’m assuming they just do it to the latest when you buy them, cause if you do it too many times it will eventually have died in the box. 😅 If do, you wait the same amount of time in the store but without the satisfaction of seeing it update, and if they do them regularly it’ll have the possibility to be 0% battery and not be able to update in the box anymore (which would also be bad for the battery)… 😅