When Apple announced the iPhone 4 in June of 2010, it really felt like the future. Video calls — right from a handset — is just so Jetsons.
For me, it’s been great to be able to see my kids and even tell them goodnight if I’m not home.
Since then, FaceTime has come to the iPod touch, Mac and iPad 2. Calls can be made to and from email addresses as well as phone numbers.
FaceTime still requires a Wi-Fi connection, even though the service technically works over 3G networks. Besides this restriction, what’s next for the technology that has brought video calls to the masses?
When FaceTime was announced, Steve Jobs said that FaceTime would become an open standard.
However, today, 8 months later, what progress has been made? Yes, apps like Skype can use the iPhone 4’s cameras for video chat, but the data is being passed via Skype’s app and its technologies.
It’s great that now all of Apple’s main products can tap into the FaceTime universe. While most people I know aren’t using it on the Mac, I think the number will continue to grow.
I would love to be able to FaceTime my buddy who carries a Motorola Droid X, though. I’d love to be able to FaceTime with PC users I work with. Maybe those things aren’t too far off, but I’d love to see some more information from Apple on just how far the company has gotten in getting the FaceTime standard completed and open.
Let’s press a little further into the future, guys.
