On my travels across the interwebs, I came across something interesting called the Apple Peel. Basically, it gives the iPod Touch telephony and SMS capabilities but only once the device has undergone the jailbreak process and the appropriate applications have been installed.
Bearing in mind that this is still a prototype there are still a lot of rough edges such as the interface still showing a call being in the process of being set up despite the call already being in progress. Ringtones are not adjustable, the font size of text messaging is inconsistent with the standard iPod Touch interface and messages can only be sent to one recipient at a time. There is also a lack of proximity sensor so you could face mash the screen whilst on call which would be undesirable. Other major downside is that the peripheral only operates on 2G and does not allow the use of cellular data.
The Apple Peel will be compatible with the first three generations of the iPod Touch and the final version of the unit will also support the use of Bluetooth for phone calls.
I guess the question that needs to be asked is would such a peripheral be worth it? Perhaps if you already had an iPod Touch and wanted a basic mobile it could be worth your while. Otherwise, if you didn’t have an iPod Touch, you might not be saving too much compared to getting a second hand iPhone. Also, unless you are inclined, people may not be comfortable with jailbreaking their devices and using a foreign peripheral with their device just to make phone calls.
I think that it’s good to see that there are companies attempting to open up Apple’s devices a bit more and extend their capabilities but it’s pretty clear that the future for Apple is about closure and restriction of the platform under the guise of security and user experience.
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