EE Product Suggestion

[generic_newbie]

Here is something I'd like EE/BT to try and do.

Its a basic concept. Imagine a home phone that was digital touchscreen like a smart-phone such as an iPhone, and cordless:

Firstly, for a home phone, that's something I'd like to see EE/BT try and do. BUT, imagine the same cordless, digital touch-screen smart-phone (HSP- Home Smart Phone?) in its docking station, like as pictured, but with an EE Mifi Mini that slots sideways into the docking station, and charges, like the house phone. Two birds with one hub, right?

BUT then, next, you can actually TAKE the home phone OUT OF THE HOUSE with you and CONTINUE TO USE IT, after all, it is a phone and a smart-phone at that, so it'd probably have a sim slot like the EE hubs and Mifi devices.

AND, if it did have a data SIM, you could take the phone out of the house on your way out of the door as you go off to work, and (if not) grab the Mifi device from the docking hub at the same time, giving you calls and wifi (should you need wifi as well as 5G data).

With a bit of work, I reckon BT/EE could produce a home phone a bit like an iPhone or the Gigaset (as pictured above) and reduce the size of the EE Mifi Mini even further and make it magnetic, a bit like Apple's MagSafe gadgets, so that the Mifi device sticks to the back of the phone when out and about.

Factor in more than one phone (because your son is bound to take the main one with him somewhere) and more than one hub/dock (because even your daughter needs wifi), and you've got a neat little domestic setup that'd keep all of the family connected with calls/data/wifi both in and out of the house, and both the phone and Mifi neatly sit in the dock/hub when not being used, automatically charging, so always fully charged. And the hub/dock can double (triple!) up as the main BT/EE wifi homehub so there's always the main wifi connected within the house even if someone took all of the Mifi devices out with them.

Anyway, if any EE employees read these forums, please note my suggestion and make it to EE/BT's R&D department. Thanks

[Chris_B]

@generic_newbie  Nothing stopping you from using a smartphone as your home phone.  I don’t have a home phone so in essence this is working exactly how you say.    

Not sure about the mini being with the device that already has a sim in it that allows you to connect to a network.     The mini WiFi device is still connected to the same network that the phone would be connected to so kind of pointless. 

Keeping a battery on charge isn’t a good thing also as it chemically ages the battery and gives it a reduced life span.   

[generic_newbie]

We have one of the Gigaset phones like in the picture. It is digital touchscreen and sits in the dock while not being used. The dock automatically tops up the battery, so its never low, but as its cordless it can sometimes be out of the dock for hours or days. I think there's a way of factoring in battery charging cut-off when full, as the Bang & Olufsen instructions said its fine to leave some of their devices on charge all the time, it doesn't harm the battery/device. Possibly the mark of a more expensive product.

Aside from that, I do use my mobile smartphone as the main house phone most of the time, its not a problem other than when the signal is weak and I find myself reaching for the landline, which should't really happen in Greater London but seems to, even with EE.

Its the EE Mifi Mini that has a sim. I bough one a while back, but tend to use 4/5G most of the time rather than a 4/5G hotspot. But yes, either one home wifi network with a separate Mifi mini with an separate data sim, or both home wifi and Mifi running on the same type of sim. This would require sim cloning, but actually, if EE/BT supply them with that intent they'd be considered duplicate sims not cloned ones.

[generic_newbie]

Its not the best example, but does feature wireless charging, which would be a nice feature of EE/BT to integrate. 

The white box in the picture is actually the case of some Apple earphones, but in our example, would be the Mifi mini, and the charging dock/hub would be at more of a 45 degree angle rather than flat.

[Chris_B]

@generic_newbie   You can not have 2 sims with the same number so it would be 2 sims with their own number.   Your lack of signal will not be any better using a mini WiFi to give a signal as it’s the same signal as your phone.   Your home fixed line broadband will help there as you can use WiFi calling,  no network will guarantee indoors buildings blocked signals therefore Wi-Fi calling.  

[Chris_B]

@generic_newbie   To make a wireless charger out of the current WiFi mini is so simple ( I might have a go myself). But it’ll put more cost on the product and end result is more cost to the user.  and to have say something like smart charging will again add on more cost.    

[generic_newbie]

Yeah, seem to recall having 2 sims the same defaults to only using one on the network at a time, but something may be possible if EE/BT really put their minds to it. Failing that, making the phones dual sim would be even better, an e-sim for the house number and another for other calls/outside. Actually, with e-sim technology 2 sims using the same details may possibly be possible. e-sim is more suited to situations like that, if you ask me; permanent/long term contracts which don't require a physical sim, freeing up a slot for a secondary sim. 

As for wireless, its the way things are heading. Future-proof the phone designs now, and they're still current/relevant in 5 or 10 years time. Not sure this would be a premium product, but possibly the premium end of the basic quality EE/BT product range. You could do a basic one, like the ordinary BT/EE homehubs and Mifis, and then a fancy one. The basic one requires battery charging connectors in/on the dock for the phone and Mifi, and the premium one uses wireless.

Housephone/mobile/wifi indoors/outdoors all in one. One product, all uses.

[generic_newbie]

If not possible, it may be possible to set up number re-directs and number synthesising so that at least they all re-direct to the same number, or/and it seems like the call comes from/goes to the same number.