When iPhone 3.0 comes out later this year, we’ll see iPhone apps tied to special-purpose accessories.
Imagine a universal remote that lets you use your iPhone to control every box in your home-entertainment system. Or a portable RFID- and barcode-scanning module that turns your iPhone into a tiny store clerk — or comparison shopper — letting you find and buy stuff just by waving your phone at it.
These are just two suggestions from Wired.com readers for accessory-powered iPhone 3.0 applications — or, to use the term we coined, dongleware. We put up a call for suggestions, and you responded with loads of great ideas. We figured, what better way to give wannabe-millionaire developers ideas — and get what consumers want in return? Win-win.
iPhone
3.0 won’t be launching until summer, but developers can get plenty done
in two or three months. To help speed up the process, here are your
top-voted ideas in a nice and tidy list. Drum roll, please.
Barcode/RFID/Magnetic-Stripe Reader
This
idea got the most votes — an accessory that acts as a barcode scanner and maybe
triples as a magnetic-card and RFID tag reader.
Here’s
how it could be useful: It would essentially turn the iPhone into a
miniature checkout stand. The barcode scanner would register a
product’s price, and then customers can simply swipe their credit card
into the magnetic card reader. Similarly, the radio-frequency
identifier would scan products containing RFID tags, such as library
books, and send that information to the iPhone. In theory, the iPhone
app transfers the data via the internet to complete the transaction.
Wouldn’t it be interesting (and a little weird) to see iPhones or iPod Touches at the checkout counter of every store?
This could also make a great tool for consumers to do on-the-fly comparison shopping while they browse brick-and-mortar stores.
(Thanks, Jason, for submitting this suggestion!)
Bluetooth Stereo Headphones
This
suggestion isn’t mindblowing, but it’s clearly a product consumers
demand: Some wireless Bluetooth headphones for the iPhone so we can finally
ditch those crappy earbuds. This should be easy, because
Apple says iPhone 3.0 will support stereo Bluetooth accessories.
(A hat tip to, er, "Anonymous" for submitting this idea.)
Keyboard
Another
predictable gadget in demand: Wired.com readers want an
iPhone-compatible external keyboard. This will be extremely useful for
business users to speed up writing e-mails or documents. This might
even come in handy for the procrastinating student, who needs to finish up that
essay while riding the bus to class.
(Kudos to Keyboard Guy!)
Bluetooth Universal Remote
This is one of our favorites. Wired.com
readers are really into the idea of clearing out the e-clutter on their
coffee tables and relying solely on the iPhone as a universal remote.
Better yet would be a super-sophisticated universal remote that pairs up with a receiver using Bluetooth. The receiver would contain infrared blasters to send the signals necessary to control your home
entertainment equipment. Wow! Quite clever.
(Thanks, Allen!)
Automobile Diagnostics
This idea would make life a lot easier for automobile repair
workers or car hobbyists. The accessory would hook your iPhone up to
your car engine’s OBD-II port (which every car sold in the U.S. since 1996 has) and communicate with an app that performs a full engine
diagnosis. Sounds intense. Anyone up for the challenge?
(Nice one, Steve Dy!)
Light Switch Controller
Hmmm — dongleware to control the lights in your house? Z-Wave
already has a similar product, but it requires owning electronics embedded with
Z-Wave’s wireless technology. This suggestion is an iPhone accessory that simply communicates with your
lights, but it would require installing receivers on the lighting
systems throughout your home. For the time being, we don’t view this as
a very practical product.
(Thanks, ROCKERIMANMANAIFJ!)
See Also:
Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com
