Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Your Phone Has an FM Chip. So Why Can’t You Listen to the Radio?

wired.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

111–120 of 329 posts

Re: Your Phone Has an FM Chip. So Why Can’t You Listen to the Radio?

#111

Post by pbhjpbhj »

amelius wrote: post #103
spacehome wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm running NoScript, and I saw no anti-AdBlock or video. It's becoming increasingly clear to me that NoScript is the only reasonable way to browse the web today. Random websites can't be entrusted to run javascript in a way that's not hostile to my interests.

You do realize that if everybody followed your example, they will at one point block NoScript too? Also, half of HN would be out of a job :)

Setting aside the why and wherefore; how would they block NoScript?

Re: Your Phone Has an FM Chip. So Why Can’t You Listen to the Radio?

#112

Post by lostlogin »

abalone wrote: post #89
fit2rule wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The point is, Apple has a vested interest in making sure you're using TCP/IP to do that streaming, instead of just tuning into a radio signal from space. The investment in the network of users is so high, and such a massive profit factor, that there is no incentive to flip the FM bit, for the users. Since it will mean less streaming will occur (you're not using TCP/IP when you're listening to FM radio..) Its Apple, j…

I don't follow your logic. The iPhone would receive audio from the station over "a radio signal from space" either way. TCP/IP is just a protocol. What is the "massive profit factor" Apple enjoys from using that protocol?

Apple make money from me using the internet apparently. /s

Re: Your Phone Has an FM Chip. So Why Can’t You Listen to the Radio?

#113

Post by blowski »

> [On the iPhone 6] the wireless chip is a Murata 339S0228 which houses the normal flavors of 802.11 wifi, Bluetooth, and has an FM transceiver.

...

> What we're missing is an appropriate antenna and an amplifier chip dedicated to driving that antenna. Unlike the murata chip that doesn't take up any extra space, those things /would/ take up extra space in the phone. While I'm of the opinion that Apple could have fitted them in if they wanted to, it doesn't change the fact that there's no hardware based solution for FM radio on the iPhone.

https://www.reddit.com/r/jailbreak/comments/32vp1l/question_...

Re: Your Phone Has an FM Chip. So Why Can’t You Listen to the Radio?

#114

Post by echelon »

pbhjpbhj wrote: post #111
amelius wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You do realize that if everybody followed your example, they will at one point block NoScript too? Also, half of HN would be out of a job :)

Setting aside the why and wherefore; how would they block NoScript?

Imagine a world where all content is loaded over XHRs and the DOM serves only to load Javascript.

This is becoming an increasingly prevalent pattern. I really miss the document-oriented web of the late 90's / early 00's.

Re: Your Phone Has an FM Chip. So Why Can’t You Listen to the Radio?

#116

Post by WalterBright »

Aaargh20318 wrote: post #87
WalterBright wrote: post #19

I just bought an internet radio for my stereo (yes, I'm that old, I have a stereo). I was surprised to discover it also had a wire in the box that turned out to be an FM antenna. I thought with internet radio, who needs an FM tuner? (all the local stations have streaming URLs) Turns out I actually like it. It's handy when the internet fails, or when you're nearing data caps, or just want to run it all day without int…

> It's handy when the internet fails, or when you're nearing data caps, or just want to run it all day without interfering with download speeds So basically it's useful if you have really shitty internet.

I suppose. There's a long chain of things that can go wrong with the intertoobs. My switch could die (it has), the router could die (it has) the cable modem could die (it has), the comcast street equipment on my block could fail (it has) trees could fall on the wires (happens regularly).

Re: Your Phone Has an FM Chip. So Why Can’t You Listen to the Radio?

#117

Post by phreaky »

lostlogin wrote: post #110
culturestate wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think iMessage proved that Apple could give a damn what the carriers want.

This may be a failing of mine or a regional thing, but what does this comment mean? I read it literally as saying that Apple has done what carriers want and has made iMessage to suit carriers. I suspect that this is the opposite of what is intended though, as iMessage disempowers carriers imho. How does culturestate's comment work?

"Could give a damn" and "couldn't give a damn" can be used as synonyms in American slang. Or it might just be the South.

Re: Your Phone Has an FM Chip. So Why Can’t You Listen to the Radio?

#118

Post by drdaeman »

Xylakant wrote: post #48
ch4ck wrote: post #20

In my country one has to pay to the regime for using/owning "radio/tv receiver". That's why I am happy to have more devices without unblocked analog FM. It means for me more choice without having to pay for the brainwashing/propaganda.

if you're referring to Germany, you're obliged to pay anyways - whether you own a device or not (it's per household/company since a while). It doesn't matter how many devices you own though. And you're not paying "the regime", you're paying an independent institution. It's not a tax by design though it may feel like one. The government never gets to touch the money. Now, there's a ton of things that are wrong with ou…

Here's the problem with this tax (or however it's called): you're basically paying for some third party actions that you have no control over. Someone emits some electromagnetic radiation that you may or may not care about, but for some odd reason you have to pay for that. That feels... wrong.

Can't remember any other tax-like charges where one has to pay for something artificial that they could be completely unrelated to, yet don't have any control over.

Re: Your Phone Has an FM Chip. So Why Can’t You Listen to the Radio?

#119

Post by WalterBright »

techsupporter wrote: post #37
WalterBright wrote: post #19

I just bought an internet radio for my stereo (yes, I'm that old, I have a stereo). I was surprised to discover it also had a wire in the box that turned out to be an FM antenna. I thought with internet radio, who needs an FM tuner? (all the local stations have streaming URLs) Turns out I actually like it. It's handy when the internet fails, or when you're nearing data caps, or just want to run it all day without int…

Which box did you buy? I wish I could find one that does Internet streams and HD Radio that didn't cost a kidney...

The Grace Digital one. It works, although Apple has ruined me and the user interface on the box is worse than that on a microwave. There's a long list of complaints about it, but there isn't much alternative.

The category is wide open for someone to make one where, say, the remote actually works more than some of the time. :-( I don't know why this is such a hard problem.

Re: Your Phone Has an FM Chip. So Why Can’t You Listen to the Radio?

#120

Post by pbhjpbhj »

vertex-four wrote: post #80
OJFord wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

iPhone may or may not have one, or may be locked just as it is in the US. I've never owned one. On Android though a majority have a built-in FM radio app, and more available to download on the Play store. You could have a look in the app store (make sure it's not lying about being FM and using your data) but if not maybe it's only possible if you jailbreak, or not at all.

As a fellow Brit, I've never seen a smartphone that does FM - though my feature phone does.

Interesting, Brit here too. It's the second or third feature I looked for when buying my current phone (Acer) - camera, good battery, radio.

http://www.gsmarena.com/results.php3?nYearMin=2013&chkFMradi... shows about 2000 phones made in the last 3 years with FM radio that are available to buy; I selected "touchscreen" to loosely limit to smartphones.

Post reply on HN