Features

8 features Apple should remove from the iPhone 8

Headphone jack is just the start

8 features Apple should remove from the iPhone 8
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From the dual camera system to the stereo speakers, the iPhone 7 is packed with cool new features.

But everyone's more interested with what features have been removed. Notably: the headphone jack.

Apple says it will help make the iPhone more water resistant, and give the company more room for extra hardware. But others say it limits choice, and also cuts off access to cool hardware that used the jack like Square's micropayment system.

Well, screw 'em. We're with Apple. Only, we think the firm hasn't gone far enough. So here are eight unnecessary features that can be scrapped in the iPhone 8. We can't wait to see Eddie Cue explain their absence.

Hard Drive

Why store all those songs and photos on your iPhone, when you can just pluck them out of the cloud?

That hard drive is taking up loads of space under the hood, and Apple offers a humongous 5GB of free online space on iCloud, and even larger info buckets at just several billion dollars a week.

Lightning Port Lock screen

The thing about the lightning port is that all sorts of unnecessary gizmos can plug into your device. Controllers, video out cables, heart rate monitors, and so on. Just pointless stuff no one is using anymore.

Apple can quite easily remove this and everyone will be fine.

Lock Button

The lock button has become outdated. No one needs to turn their phone off anymore, what with so many amazing apps and experiences available. If you want to turn it off just wait for the phone to run out of battery.

To charge it up - well, Apple removed the lightning port so I guess just go buy a new iPhone. Hope you live near an Apple Store!

Volume Buttons Volume

It takes courage for a phone manufacturer to say that all music should be heard at a certain volume, but we think Apple is that company. Plus, the volume buttons are really messing with Jonny Ive's simple design.

Let's get rid of them and get a little bit closer to making the iPhone as smooth and featureless as a bar of soap.

Speaker

The thing about the speaker is, if music can just play out of your iPhone, who's going to want to spend $150 on those wireless AirPods? Best remove the speaker and subtly encourage users to shell out for those snazzy white earphones.

Camera Camera

What if someone takes a picture of something naughty? That's too risky. Get rid of it.

Home Button

The home button can do a lot of things. Press it to return home, hold it to start Siri, double press it to switch apps, hold your finger on it to pay for stuff, and so on.

It's all a bit confusing, to be honest, and goes against the user friendly values that Apple holds dear. Best just to kill it.

Screen Screen

Here's the thing. Apple can't control what's on your screen. It tries its hardest by removing anything remotely contentious from the App Store - but that's not enough.

By simply removing the screen, turning the iPhone 8 into a beautiful black pebble, the Cupertino giant will have full control over everything your iPhone can do. Now that's progress.

Mark Brown
Mark Brown
Mark Brown is editor at large of Pocket Gamer