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Ask HN: What would be possible on an iPhone with M1 Max?
This is assuming Apple succeeds in shrinking the chip down to fit in an iPhone.
Let your imagination run wild.
What would an iPhone with a maxed-out M1 Max chip inside it look like?
What would be its capabilities?
How would a powerful chip like that change the device we're all so familiar with?
- killingtime74 5y agoso you're talking about an Ipad Pro with smaller screen?
- slovette 5y agoI think there’s a future where phones are all-in-one devices. When in my pocket, it’s a screen-first mobile device. When plugged into a dock, it’s a full-blown MacOS machine. I could then have “profiles” for personal and work environments. I think these devices are going to become more tied 1:1 to our individual identities. Where my phone is a digital extension of my self. Acting as my wallet, gov ID, work ID, stores any info about me (or the private keys to get at the data in the cloud). Etc. It’s really already to that point, it’s just not fully baked the way I describe above. But I think it’s highly likely to be exactly this eventually. As a person in IT, I see an obvious change where hardware is still separated for people from person and work. people say they don’t want work on their personal devices, but then they’re the first to break that rule. Convenience is key. So I think the solve is the same we’ve done elsewhere: 1 hardware device, multiple virtual spaces on top, all tied to the me that is the ID.
- ToFab123 5y ago> I think there’s a future where phones are all-in-one devices. When in my pocket, it’s a screen-first mobile device. When plugged into a dock, it’s a full-blown MacOS machine. I could then have “profiles” for personal and work environments. This is exactly what Microsoft attempted with Windows Phone. It worked but didn't work. It worked just fine for application that had an adaptive UI that works just a good on the desktop as on a small touch screen. starting a desktop app on the phone was not a good experience. Yes, Apple could have a better shot at getting this to work if the phone and laptop had the exactly same hardware and because of their appstore. But having the same hardware in both devices is not enough. They would also for need to turn the MacOS into a gigantic iPhone with a touch Screen. They would have to recreate their own version of Windows (8) 11's vision and implement an UI that works both with mouse/keyboard and touch. I bet they are working on this, but I suspect we are many years away before we see a MacBook with a touch screen.
- perryizgr8 5y agoNot much. Same apps you have right now. In an android phone, it would be game changing. Even now, galaxy flagships ship with an almost good-enough desktop environment when you connect an external monitor. With a much more powerful and efficient chip, that will finally get pushed into proper usability.
- bpye 5y agoI still dream of a day that you could plug an iPad or iPhone into a dock and it turns into a full Mac. It feels like Apple is so close in so many ways, and they even have a fast enough iPad Pro today, it’s all down to software…
- fsflover 5y agoLibrem 5 smartphone can already do that with desktop GNU/Linux.
- rvz 5y agoAt that point, The iPhone would become like a console-level device like the Nintendo Switch, but 100,000x powerful and it will work with the existing Xbox and PS5 controllers. Potentially obsoleting Stadia. > Let your imagination run wild. An entirely new product. Smart glasses by Apple. This is where Apple 'attempts' to compete in AR and VR very seriously along side their own VR headsets.
- gigglesupstairs 5y ago> 100,000x powerful How?
- theGeatZhopa 5y agoThe chip is big, so will be the glasses. I wouldn't call it glasses, but head displays. But I'm with you. That's what metaverse need
- stevewodil 5y agoPorn could load really fast
- 1_player 5y agoNot porn per se, but porn sites are notoriously filled with dubious ads, so ad-heavy sites would load so fast people say they don't even need an adblocker anymore. Apart from that, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok will load faster? Yay, I guess?
- ssss11 5y agoFacebooks new 3D metaverse for sure.
- 1_player 5y agoIt hasn't been the processor nor the RAM holding smartphones back, they're plenty fast nowadays. It's the operating system and the form factor the issue. M1 won't solve any of that.
- Tsiklon 5y agoSingle device computing with different user paradigms would be possible or even desirable with such a system, just plug into a USB-4/Thunderbolt dock and away you go; Instantly you’re in Mac OS able to do more than is currently possible on iOS/iPadOS. This to some extent is possible now, on many Android flagships it’s possible to run a desktop environment, but getting actual Mac OS and it’s software catalogue would be far more desirable than what’s currently available on those Android systems. Getting this CPU to run in a phone form factor would be a serious game changer - this increase in horsepower and homogenization between the two platforms would make it so this would be a major selling point: “The best of iOS and Mac OS, on one device”.
- rdtwo 5y agoAgreed you could take the Nintendo switch model to smart phones
- smilebot 5y agoReally wish programming on phones becomes a thing. Not directly running on the phone, but maybe have a vscode/remote server that you can connect to and use a monitor + peripherals.
- vb6sp6 5y agoIt's already here. Samsung DeX is amazing. I'll be ditching the laptop soon
- brokenmachine 5y agoWhat can you do in DeX?
- vb6sp6 5y agoyou can dock your phone\tablet which gives it hdmi out and usb ports for mouse and keyboard. Then you can remote into your remote server to do your work.
- brokenmachine 5y agoI could do that with my old phone using vnc without needing Dex. My new phone has Dex but I don't really see how it's any better than just hooking to the TV by MHL HDMI adapter was. I don't really understand what Dex offers over the old MHL.
- vb6sp6 5y agoyou couldn't but that is ok. if you dont see a use for it, dont use it.
- brokenmachine 5y ago> you couldn't I couldn't what? I used to hook my old Note 3 via MHL to the TV and use a keyboard/mouse with vnc. I still don't get what Dex offers beyond that. I'm trying to understand the difference between Dex and just hooking an external screen to the phone like before.
- Gargyle 5y agoNothing new. You can't install your own software without store approval.
- rowanG077 5y agoNot much honestly. iphones are limited by iOS not by hardware.