.....
Three is still here today and there are still many handsets being sold that allow for video calls to be made. The Samsung Galaxy S being one such handset, very popular and arguably a contender to the Desire family for the Android crown currently. In fact I even recently considered replacing my Desire for the Galaxy S if it was to get the 2.2 upgrade due to the forward facing camera and similar features - there were only a couple of points that kept me with the Desire over the Galaxy S.
Yes Three are still in the business today, but how many phones do they sell that have that specific feature?
Not as many as hoped because its a needless feature that people don't need. If Three stuck with video calling, they would have lost millions if not possibly billions and gone out of business.
It's like Orange, they wanted IPTV and that fell flat as although it went mad in france, UK is a different ball game.
Galaxy S is easily equally on par with the current Desire if not maybe even better. I know quite a few folk in Plusnet faults who have them and they love it, but they don't use the front facing camera.
Also consider the above point re the forward camera being used for so much more than just mobile network handset to handset video calls. There is so much more potential for mobile internet devices than the old video call capable handsets and as such I think we'll see a change in attitude towards such calls and more so the use of webcam type features while on the move. It won't be overnight, but tablets and mobile internet devices are proving more and more popular, missing a forward camera is a mistake in my view.
I still can't picture someone walking down a busy street with them holding a phone away from them so the other person can see them walking and talking to them down a street...Ok maybe a blonde person but thats another thing entirely.
Tablets is like netbook..It's a fad, give it 18 months just like the netbook and it will die out. Technology gets to a point where it can't progress that brand out.
Example: Netbook went from 7" to 12", brought you dual core and better graphics not to mention larger screen..but where from then?, battery life has suffered because of it and the overall ideas have run out.
Apple are a strange group. They like to add old features later in life and even then don't like to admit they were late in doing so, so they make it slightly different to what's been done before, even if that change makes it less useful and appears stupid - in my view.
I'll agree with that just because i'm anti apple xD
I could say the same of a non-video call. I could go and speak with a person rather than calling them on the phone! You appear to be missing the point that allowing for video calls and more importantly, video communication over the internet from a mobile device adds a convenience which otherwise may not be there. It may not always be possible to get to a computer with a webcam or the person you want to talk face to face with may not be nearby.
Goes back to my response above, you look stupid walking down a street with video calling. Can't see any london folk doing it. Can't see any Yorkshire folk either..I know were daft, but not that daft!.
The point im getting is there are reasons why it hasn't taken off.
Consider this, I work shifts which include anti social hours. I miss out on the chance to say goodnight to my child on some days sadly. I can call them, but a video call if I got a quiet moment (rare) would be great to say good night face to face to them. It sounds cheesy, but as a parent I would enjoy such a moment when I can't physically be with them, I could at least see their face and they could see mine as I spoke with them. There's no computer in most places where I work and even if there was I wouldn't be permitted to use it for this purpose. So for me, and I suspect many other parents, this would be a great feature. This is just one example of where such a feature is useful.
And you just sounded like that apple advert there...And thats just me putting it out there.
Video calls aren't dead. They may not be as popular as voice calls but they are certainly used and as I stated, use of a forward facing camera will increase with the more sophisticated internet devices becoming more popular and widely available. HTC have slipped up here really....
My view is the opposite, if it was good, it would been properly adopted and adjusted 8/9 years ago and would be in mass use in the UK today.
Not to mention, video calling is limited in the UK as network coverage can't provide necessary bandwidth. I think even Three themselves admitted that about 5 years back...whether they resolved that, I don't know. Remember they are a virtual operator, they use T-Mobiles backhaul which is now "Everything Everywhere"
The reason why video calling works in the far east for example because its rammed in every phone and its actually cheaper than voice calling..not to mention the network infastructure is about beyond anything in europe currently.
Orange's voice HD or HD voice/whatever the hell its called would appear to be what the future may hold for voice calls..Video calling is still way off being properly adopted IMO and until then, there is no real reason why companies such as HTC need to put them in.
Example:
Desire HD is sim free at