What the Which? Tech team wants in 2012
With 2011 drawing to a close, the Which? Tech team met for a drink or two and natter about what they’d like to see in 2012. And, while generally full of festive cheer, there were quite a few burning issues they felt needed dealing with.
And if you’ve got a secret desire for change, or hope a new product will come along to solve all your problems, share your thoughts with us in the comments.
We need more matte screen laptops
Catherine West – Senior researcher for laptops, broadband and PCs
The dearth of laptops with matte screens must be addressed. We’re well past the days of ‘any colour as long as it’s black’ in the laptop market, but there’s still a surprising lack of affordable matte screen options. Having canvassed your opinion on this matter earlier this year, we’ve been meeting with manufacturers to share yours and our concerns on this matter. I’d like to see 2012 bring more of the screens you’ve told us you want to see.
It’s time for Facebook to be transparent
Sarah Kidner – Editor of Which? Computing magazine
My wish for 2012 is for Facebook to be more open with us about its privacy settings. Sure you can access information about this from within your Facebook account but over the year we’ve seen Facebook constantly shifting goalposts – I can barely keep up with the changes. I’d like to see clear statements – in Plain English – about what Facebook and its partners are doing with my information.
Youview needs to deliver on its promise
Ben Stevens – Senior researcher and writer
I predicted Youview as being one of the big tech successes of 2011, but it seems we’ll have to wait until 2012. If it delivers on its promises, it’ll seamlessly merge broadcast TV and internet-based on-demand TV through a single set-top box. This will mean that not only can you sit down in front of your telly and watch what’s on now, but you’ll be able to watch what was on that morning, yesterday, or last week.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkJ02x0Sd0g
YouView is promising a great deal, but can it deliver? Ben Stevens hopes so.
An OLED viewfinder on a camera anyone can buy
Rich Parris – Senior researcher for cameras and televisions
One of the most exciting camera developments of 2011 was the organic light emitting diode (OLED) viewfinder on the Sony NEX-7. Super-slim and sharp, this electronic viewfinder could fit even into the slim body of the NEX-7 system camera. For 2012, I’m hoping to see more of this technology, at much cheaper prices, and hopefully in non-system cameras that don’t demand changeable lenses.
Speech recognition that really works
Matt Bath – Which? technology editor
Speech recognition in mobile phones – and even TVs – promises to be The Next Big Thing for 2012. Made popular by Apple’s use of Siri, which if you believe Apple’s TV ads will have you happily nattering away in conversation with your iPhone, expect everyone to jump onto speech recognition next year. Which would be great, if it worked flawlessly. Instead, quite often different accents or just an inability to to understand what you are saying (Unless. You. Speak. Very. Slowly) make this more like a one-sided shouting match with a device that shrugs its shoulders and simply ignores you. If speech recognition is to soar in 2012, then it’ll need some serious work to make a real impact in our lives.
Siri could herald the beginning of a voice control revolution according to Matt Bath.
An end to broadband throttling
Rory Boland – Technology digital producer
With Internet Service Providers (ISP) in the UK named and shamed as the worst in Europe for slowing broadband – or broadband throttling – it’s time ISPs got to grips with the changing way people use the internet. While a certain amount of ‘traffic shaping’ or ‘traffic management’ is to be expected to control bandwidth hogs, technology has moved on – we expect to be able to play games online, stream TV and download films all on multiple devices. What’s the point of the lightning quick speeds ISPs flash in front of us to get us to sign up, if they are going to strangle the connection for exactly the things we need and want it for?
Easier broadband switching
Catherine West – Senior researcher for laptops, broadband and PCs
Switching broadband suppliers is another problem that refuses to go away. Switching your service can be way more complicated than it used to be, particularly with the trend towards bundles. I hope the Ofcom consultation in early 2012 will bring the first moves towards a shake up that makes things much easier for consumers.
Better mobile phone battery life
Andy Vandervell – Deputy technology editor
It’s amazing to think how mobile phones have evolved in the last few years. Smartphones were once the exception rather than the rule, but now it’s the other way around – ‘dumbphones’ as some dub them are increasingly rare. However, while the power, speed and functionality has ballooned, the batteries that power phones have remained static. Consequently many of us are resigned to charging our phones everyday, or glancing fretfully before they die at just the wrong time. We need revolution in battery technology otherwise progress will become horribly stunted.
Faster mobile broadband
Christopher Christoforou – Principal researcher for ebooks, tablets and software
I would like the mobile internet to work better. With a decent 3G smartphone and living in the city, I’d expect a reliable and quick service. But all too often it’s slow. At times it’s positively sluggish, a half loaded page or a stuttering YouTube video. Using it on the train is especially hit and miss. But I know I’m lucky compared with many who don’t get it at all. 4G should be great in comparison. But despite being available elsewhere, it’s still annoyingly at least a year away in the UK.
What changes would you like to see in 2012? Share your views in the comments below.
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Ken Fleetwood
I would like to see more testing on internet routers. I agree with some of the comments by other members with the last testing. I think you need to test both on imacs as well as windows and state whether they run over PPPoA which most ISP’s do, and also test them wired to compare performance. Some of the routers you last tested, I have read reports of unreliability and failing within a year. A review of testing proceedures needs to be looked at.
Mike S
I’d like to see decent DAB signal availability and sound quality in the UK.
Currently service is patchy at best (I live in Whitstable, Kent) – I get a signal in certain places in the house but not at all times. Also, the sound quality is in many cases inferior to FM radio because broadcasters are choosing to pay for less bandwidth.
It feels that, along with Digital TV (nearby Canterbury has none right now) and slow broadband, we are very much in a two-tier digital society even before the issue of affordability is considered.
Barry Emmott
Even when you can get DAB signals they are still very patchy. I live in northwest London and listen to LBC 97.3 a lot. Near my windows I get an acceptable signal but in the body of the house the signal is patchy and not at all the digital quality we were promised – I prefer FM.
Mark
I am afraid DAB is an outdated technology which has been virtually rendered obsolete before it has ever really taken off. The future now is in streaming internet radio and mobile technology. If I want to listen to the radio now, at home or in my car, I simply tune in using a streaming internet radio app on my smartphone. What is needed now is investment in mobile infrastructure.
Ian La Terriere
Rural coverage should be improved before all these fancy DABs and mighty speeds. Radio 4 Longwave is still the only anywhere near reliable radio station in Rannoch. FM is intermittent if available at all, and fluctuates even when connected to a satelite dish when the wind blows, which it does most of the time.
As for mobile coverage, Vodafone is good with the arial well sited high on our land, but 02 is non-existent. Most delivery drivers are supplied with 02 phones and are out of touch soon after leaving the A9 ten miles away. Why can’t 02 do a deal with Vodafone to share their mast?
steve
Yes i agree mobile television in kent is impossible to get with a mobile ariel signal only a roof/loft ariel so what is the point on having a mobile 9″ tv.
Egeria
For 2012, I want (a) mobile telephone network providers seriously to improve their network coverage in rural areas; and (b) BT to increase the internet capacity by significantly improving the contention ratios (capacity) at local telephone exchanges.
I live in a valley in central southern England and work in the Thames Valley where, about half a mile from my office, we have a mobile ‘phone mast on our land.
My iPhone4 barely works in either place and I have no 3G either. In addition at work, I have recently moved to a new office 500m down the road and, because BT has failed to build sufficient capacity into the local telephone exchange when upgrading it and cannot tell me when they will increase this capacity, I can no longer obtain VDSL.
Kieran Sykes
I moved back from Australia to Yorkshire and have been horrified by the mobile and internet providers in rural areas. My mum pays for the highest rate of internet speeds but she gets the equivalent of dial up. I can only use O2 for my mobile as Virgin, 3, and Vodafone don’t work at work or at home and I can’t use an iphone on any network as there is no signal at either place so have to use a blackberry. BUT the networks call me regularly trying to get me to change, and insist on checking when I tell them I don’t get a signal (“let me just check your coverage area – oh, you’re correct, you don’t get a signal”)
Vicky
I hope 2012 sees a progression of the Ultrabook – decent laptops with multi-tasking abilities which are much more portable than traditional laptops. We’ve seen some good entries to the market this year but a bit more competition and more attractive pricing for those of us looking to spend less than £1000 would be ideal and certainly give the tablet market a run for their money.
Ben Stevens
Watch this space Vicky. Next week we’ll be at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show, where Ultrabooks are going to be one of the most-sought after products. We’ll be sure to hunt down the ones that are destined for the UK market and bring you all the details.
Steve Mitcham
I just think the whole business of mobile phones is ridiculously over-hyped and over-priced. Personally I hate texting and typing on any small device. I just want to SPEAK messages to either a person or to be able to actively select and speak a message to their voicemail (if I don’t want long-winded dialog by someone who tends to keep me on the phone). This doesn’t need texting, Siri, IM messaging etc. and should cost a pittance on a very compact, easy to key, simple, user-friendly phone. The rest can wait until I get to my PC where I can type and navigate properly on a decent keyboard and see everything at a decent size. Apart from people who NEED to work on the move much of it is kids with toys disrupting their manners, their concentration and safety and their conversations and dealings. They should stuff the rip-off data charges and enable people use their toys unrestrictedly on WiFi when they are settled somewhere suitable with time and space like on a PC.
Richard
Hear hear!!
Malcolm Fry
Having spent weeks trying to research a new laptop, to suit my increased needs, I have found that very few current available models, have been reviewed by Which, and most models which do have a review, are now obsolete/updated. I appreciate that laptops are a fast evolving market, but that wouldn’t be so much of a problem, were it possible to find out if Model 567 was an update of model 234, and what, if anything, has been changed (hopefully improved) . I don’t have an easy answer to this, but do manufacturers not contact Which, when they bring out an upgraded or new model, to say how good it is, and what aspects have improved, compared with the old model. I know that info is not verified, but some info would be better than none. It is virtually impossible, for Joe Bloggs, to find out, from manufacturers, what has changed in an update, and even whether a new model IS an update, or something completely new.
Mark
Hear hear, come on Which we really need an update for 2012. I’d also add that it would be useful to hear about the various specifications for each laptop (such which MacBook Air / MacBook Pro configuration) you feel is best. Definatley time for your laptop section to be updated
Malcolm Fry
As a for instance, some laptops, which used to incorporate AMD graphics, with i3 & i5 processors, are now using the latest intel HD3000 graphics, instead. They seem to be saying that it’s as good, but is it? It seems to be slightly cheaper, but is it good value. I would have thought it was possible for Which to “review” these sort of changes, fairly promptly, more easilly than doing a “full” review for a completely new product.
Andy Vandervell
Thanks for all the comments. We’ve been looking into this area quite closely recently. Laptops are a bit of a challenge as they tend to update very frequently, hence the difficulty in models going out of date and so forth.
We’re currently speaking to manufacturers about this with a view to getting more advanced information about product refreshes. We hope (it’s early days yet) this will mean we’ll be able to exactly what Malcolm suggested – add information stating where a laptop has been replaced with something very similar and comparable.
We’re also going to start putting the dates a review was written at the end of each review, to make things a little clearer.
EmW
I agree about smartphone battery life. Part of the problem is the manufacturers’ (and recviewers’?) obsession with lightweight phones. Surely it would be possible to increase battery size and still keep the overall weight manageable – or at least give users the option of different battery sizes.
Steve Price
I second that! Thin is not necessarily better. Why not have a phone 2mm thicker with a better battery life? A decent battery life should be one of the main design criteria for a phone.
john mccolgan
I have a sim only monthly contract with Vodafone. 300 mins voice and unlimited txts. CAVEAT…. be aware of MMS costs = .308p per picture but what is not common knowledge is you are also charged internet access time to send the pictre message. This is like shopping for groceries and as well as paying for your can of beanz you are also charged to hire the store shopping trolley. I have instructed Vodafone to block my phone from the internet. This is no hardship as I can download any pics and send them via email free!! MOBILE PHONE CHARGES NEED TO BE MORE TRANSPARENT ESPECIALLY THE DARK ART OF DATA CHARGES
Colin McLeod
Broadband would apear to be a pain in the arse for all except those who benefit from corporate clout. The reason is simply that Joe Public can only deal with one of many numerous ISPs who offer very little except a billing service.
The company that can and still does drag it’s heels is BT (or whatever they call themselves now) and is still a monopoly as far as exchanges, lines and line quality go and are safely cocooned from retail pressures by this situation, only those fit to deal with the technical complexities of bandwidth, exchange overload, copper v fibre lines etc,, will benefit. Joe Public has to settle for the odd tweak and catch it, if and when he can, if he notices it at all, if he has the patience and perseverence to get past all obstacle that the ISP call centres put up first (check lists, monitoring, warnings of consequential fees they may have to pay if their own equipment is faulty).
Please put some pressure in the right place!!!!!
Steve Shaw
Internal memory on Android smart phones needs to be increased as there are many app’s that need to be run off the internal memory and cannot be moved to the independant memory card. I believe that the current max internal memory is 1GB. I have only recently started to use my android phone with many app’s and now see the low memory messages, if this isn’t increased substantially or SD Card memory enabled to run app’s from I shall be forced into changing to an i-phone where it is all internal memory.
I also share the views stated earlier about longer battery life on smart phones is becoming essential.
david bensley
My wish is for a choice of camera with a viewfinder capability.
Up to now I have refrained from buying a digital camera because of the lack of a viewfinder capability. (I continue to use my two analogue film SLR’s -a Contax Aria and a Pentax Mz/n- both small and with good manual control). I would really like a, smallish, portable digital compact with a clear viewfinder. Even in the small number of cameras where viewfinders are actually available they are usually not perfect and always no exposure information is given through the viewfinder. Even some digital SLR’s such as the Panasonic GX1 have no viewfinder provided as standard but only as an expensive optional attachment.
Steve
What would be nice would be a phone with a selectable safe reliable wi-fi only option without having to remove any SIM cards. Dual or triple SIM to undercut the rip off merchants – there are one or two only in the UK but many abroad. Would be far more effective than Ofcom etc. Also more slide-out or fold-up landscape QWERTY keyboards make sense (which also protect your screen from scratches) for the many that hate these touch screen keyboards although I acknowledge what a wonderful machine the iphone is in so many other respects. My old Psion 3a (which is still going strong since 1996) is better for agenda, spreadsheets, contacts database, printing Xmas card address labels, crossword shortlists etc. with its clicky landscape keyboard and screen than modern mobiles! … and it is still fully compatible with my Windows XP laptop and MS Office software.
Malcolm Fry
I agree with Catherine West, that it needs to be much easier to switch providers, especially if one has bundled services. We are lucky enough to have fibreoptic, so always have good speeds, when it’s working at all. We seem to get reliable speed, at least 80% of advertised, but at what a cost. If there is a problem, our ISP’s call centre is useless.
I have looked for a different provider, but no one seems able to provide a comparable bundle. All say they can’t provide fibreoptic, and most are unable to even provide a land-line. I presume our current provider is blocking the use of both the fibreoptic and telephone system, by anyone else.
smn275
In 2012, I would like to Which? to campaign for effective Android mobile ‘phone security
Sylvia Williams
Technology
My husband, who is totally blind, has a couple of wishes for technology improvements for 2012.
The first wish concerns DVD players/recorders and DVD disks.
He would like to have a talking remote control for the above that would speak every key press on the control handset, as well as speaking all the menu options that appear on screen.
The handset would have to be similar to the universal type handsets that are available for use with several makes of TV that requires you to key in the relevant code for your make and model of TV. The handset should also be able to read out the choices on the DVD disks, such as language, individual tracks or all tracks and things such as subtitles for the hard of hearing and audio description.
This kind of technology already exists in GPS systems and specialist software for mobile phones.
A couple of years ago a company called Nebular Systems was looking at ways of incorporating chip technology to be fitted in DVD players etc but nothing has been mentioned as to whether this research is continuing.
My husband’s second wish is that more is done to make DAB radios accessible to the visually impaired. He currently has a Pure Sonus XT1 DAB radio that speaks various functions but Pure no longer produce this model and if the radio my husband owns breaks down he will loose more independence by having someone else having to tune in the radio for him.
He has another Pure pocket radio that required someone else to set the preset stations. Even so, he still has difficulty on occasions as there is no spoken feedback.
He knows about the Apple products but will not have anything to do with them as more and more are going on to using touch screens.
Finally, we both feel that Government should bring in legislation that will enforce companies bringing out new technology products should also take in the needs of Disabled users.
david h
Malcolm Fry’s posting of 30/12 struck a chord with me. I think that every Which? report, not just those in the Tech section, should carry the date of testing of the item (or date of uploading would be OK) so that readers can see how current that report is. Should be an easy matter. At least one can see the month of publication on every Which? magazine – why not online as well? I emailed Which? about this around two years ago; received a reply to say they’d look into it, but nothing happened…
Andy Vandervell
We’ll be rolling this our in our reviews in the next month or so. :)
Chris Huggins
I would like an affordable phone that take more than one sim card, so I no longer have to have multiple phones for work, different projects and personal use.
Andy Vandervell
I’d just like to say thank you for all your comments – we’re definitely listening and will act where we can! Keep them coming.
abdel
mobiles that take more than 1 sim card are in the market for a very long time already unless you ‘ve never encountered one,sir
kermit
I would like to see Internet Explorer 9 re-written to accommodate how I want to use it, not how Microsoft has decided I should use it.
When I start my computer, I DON’T want to be told that ‘Internet Explorer closed unexpectedly, and would I like to restore the last browsing session?’ IT DID NOT CLOSE UNEXPECTEDLY! I deliberately shut down the computer and FULLY EXPECTED it to close. (And by the way, if there happens to be another hidden IE window open when I shut down, I don’t even get the option of opening the last browsing session.) I want the option of having my last browsing session and all the relevant tabs open automatically when I next start the computer.
It also often asks me whether I would like to speed up browsing by disabling add-ons, and then presents me with two buttons – click one to disable add-ons or the other to ‘ask me later’. But there isn’t a button to ‘stop asking me stupid questions and LET ME DECIDE when I want to disable add-ons’!
I think Microsoft treats me like a child or an idiot, not trusting me to be able to configure my browser to operate the way I want it.
I am aware of other browsers that offer the functions I want, but this rant is about IE9.
Tony Lucas
I want to be able set the sound from my TV at (x) decibels How about a sound controller in the TV. Why do I have to adjust the sound level for every programme switch? Whenever the ads come on they just try to blast me out of the room!
Malcolm Fry
One thought, if Which are speaking to “technology” manufacturers about forever changing specs. If a new model, or update, has replaced the one reviewed by Which, this would not be so much of a problem, if one could know what has changed. If a Which review has critisised some aspect, it would be good to find out what has CHANGED in the new spec, to address the problem. This would be a lot easier to do, if manufacturers did not delete all reference to an old model, the moment it has been superceded. If one does a search, on manufacturer’s web sites, for a Which reviewed model, one invariably gets the response “no matches found”. If, instead, it said ” this model is now obsolete, but this was it’s spec …….”, life would be so much easier. One could then see, at a glance, what has changed (hopefully improved).
Malcolm Fry
Having just thrown away what must be the 3rd or 4th mobile phone to fail in the last five years, I would love manufacturers to produce an affordable phone that actually worked for a while. As my eyesight is less than perfect, I need a decent sized screen, which means I am virtually stuck with a “touchscreen”. That means that I have to choose an expensive phone, with lots of features I would never use, or put up with a rubbish resistive screen! I need a mobile phone, so I’m contactable, in an emergency. Yes, I need to be able to send and receive texts, and a camera is useful. I don’t need a camera to be 8mp, and I certainly don’t NEED internet access, on the move, or I would take my laptop. Come on manufacturers! Make something reliable, at a sensible price, for those of us who CAN survive without Facebook, and Twitter, for 5 minutes.