Iphone mystery

[JJCRU23R]

gday all..

Just wanted to ask a question to the iphone owners or anyone who may have the answer to this thing ive been wondering about.

Ive noticed that when you tilt the iphone, you may notice two dark spots just to the left of the phone speaker. Now I wouldnt think much about these spots except for the fact that ive got a plastic iphone cover that includes holes for these two spots.

Now im pretty sure these holes arent for a 2nd camera for video calls (which would have been pretty cool), so im clueless as to what these things may be for.

What are they for?

Ive pointed them out in the pic below.

Ive checked the iphone site, googled it, yahoo questioned it but ive had no luck.. maybe im asking the wrong question?

any info would be useful...

[DJKOR]

I'm no genius on the subject (I hate iPhones) but from what I have heard, the iPhone has a sensor that turns the screen off when you put it to your ear. I would imagine one of those is a light sensor (the oval hole) and the other is the video call camera (round hole). My HTC Diamond also has a light sensor next to the speaker, but this is for automatic backlight adjustment.

Edit: As I said, I don't know the iPhone, so that was just a guess. A Google search found this:

http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/news/comm...oximity-sensor/

The iPhone 3G’s third sensor, first

revealed

by iLounge in April, has been confirmed as a second proximity sensor. While the original iPhone offered only two front-mounted —one ambient light sensor and one proximity sensor—the iPhone 3G sports an array of three sensors (two proximity sensors, one ambient light sensor) in a J shape to the

left of the ear speaker

, moved from their original locations above and to the speaker’s right. iLounge has learned that the two-sensor array apparently provides superior face proximity detection than the original single sensor, which under some conditions failed to function properly. This detail and others are included in our

First Look at the iPhone 3G

.

[glamachickybabe]

You are correct DJ, it is infact a sensor, when the phone is placed upto the ear, the screen shuts off for battery saving mechanism. When it is drawn back from the ear allowing light to re-enter the spot, the screen turns back on automatically, btw this function is only used during a call, so next time try place your thumb over it and remove it during a phone coversation. :) Hope that helps

[myztik]

you guys beat me to it...

[King Young]

Strange enough, my screen protector doesn't have holes cut out for the sensor.. LOL!

[JJCRU23R]

btw this function is only used during a call, so next time try place your thumb over it and remove it during a phone coversation. :)

Thats EXActly WHAT i was doing when i was reading back on this thread on my iphone lol! thanks for all the feedback guys!

BLACKDEVIL: my covers pretty good... it covers all sides so I dont need to mess round with screen protector stickers. The touch screen is less sensative but its something im willing to live with due to the overall convenience of not having to worry about scratching it. for 10 bucks at the local mobile aftermarket store its worth it instead of buying a $15 case that only covers the back + another $15-20 for a plastic protective sticker for the touchscreen.

[Steve]

what about if you answer your phone in the dark?

[DJKOR]

what about if you answer your phone in the dark?

The proximity sensor is not depended on external light. Each proximity sensor has its own built in infra-red light which it emits and ther sensor portion of it then detects if it is bounced back or not (ie. placing it up to your ear).

[Hiro]

They are indeed proximity/light sensors and are used to turn the screen off during a call when the phone is placed to your ear, but contrary to belief in this thread they are not a battery-saving measure, they are to stop your ear pressing the touch-screen buttons and doing random things during a call - my Samsung i8910 HD has the exact same style of system and they specifically state it is to turn the touch-screen off to prevent mis-touches. The amount of battery they would save would be miniscule in comparison to the energy expended in the phsyical act of making the call and playing sound through the speakers - see how much your battery drops just sitting at the idle-screen for 5 minutes, and that is essentially all that the screen is doing during a call.

Edited March 1, 2010 by Hiro Protagonist