By Ray Birch
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—What amazes John Oldshue about the iPhone today is that he holds in the palm of his hand a device that has more computing power than the first space shuttle.
“I remember watching on TV when the first space shuttle launched and I thought it was the most amazing piece of technology I had ever seen. And now you can hold in the palm of your hand a device that has two to three times the computing power of that shuttle,” said Oldshue, principal at SaveOnPhone.com, which has been covering the phone industry since 1998. “The iPhone, really the smartphone, is an incredible device.”
The iPhone turned 10 years old in June, and the Apple smartphone and mobile devices that have followed have changed the very concept of how a financial institution—and the services market itself-- is perceived. The iPhone has changed the role of the branch by offloading an ever-growing number of transactions, especially payments, to a mobile device, reducing costs and extending the reach of credit unions beyond any fixed geography. But the iPhone, and the devices that have followed, have also meant new competitors often built specifically for the platform, while legacy competitors with deeper pockets are also as close as a click for CU members. To mark the 10-year anniversary of the iPhone, CUToday.info is running a series of stories on a decade of change launched by the iPhone that’s likely unmatched in the history of financial services.
'Game Changer'
Oldshue said the smartphone is an invention whose impact on the world is rivaled by very few breakthroughs in history.
“It’s one of those new pieces of technology that you don’t see that often,” said Oldshue. “As far as being a game-changer, especially for the financial services industry, the smartphone is one of the biggest things to appear in the last 25 to 50 years. You talk about the personal computer, the Internet and the smartphone.”
Just as was said others who spoke with CUToday.info about the 10-year anniversary of the iPhone, Oldshue acknowledged that a decade ago he never had any idea of the effect the phone would have on consumers and business.
“I was with the rest of America when the iPhone came out—I was skeptical,” he recalled. “When the iPhone was introduced it was tied to AT&T, and that was the only way to get it. AT&T was not my carrier, so I said why do I want to switch carriers and pay for this expensive piece of technology, as well? I did not believe in the smartphone and I have no problem admitting that.”
It took Oldshue a few years to “get on board,” and it took seeing a friend’s iPhone in action to finally convince Oldshue it was time to buy one.
Long List Of Uses
What has happened in the last 10 years with advances in smartphone technology and uses for the devices is nothing short of incredible, said Oldshue.
“The list is long—deposit a check, pay for goods in a store, manage your bank account... As we know, the list is very long and growing,” said Oldshue. “Think about how you can price shop, right in a store. Go to Lowes and look for a hammer. Now you can find one on the shelf, pull out your phone and check for reviews and compare prices. Maybe you’ll decide to put that hammer back and buy it from Amazon and get it next day if the deal is better. The world has changed.”
Oldshue compared the common thinking of the U.S. consumer towards the iPhone 10 years ago to today.
“When Steve Jobs stepped on stage and said let me tell you about the new smartphone we call the iPhone, I wonder how many people laughed at him,” said Oldshue. “Now we can’t imagine going anywhere without our smartphone in our pockets.”
Recent advances in smartphones and their uses continue to amaze Oldshue. He spoke about how someone can now attach a device to the back of an iPhone to monitor for heart problems.
“For about 99 bucks you can attach this device onto your iPhone, place your two fingers on it and it will measure the electrical charges in your fingers to tell if you are suffering from Atrial fibrillation. You can know right then if you need to go to the emergency room. Amazing.”
Oldshue also spoke about being able now to use a smartphone to take a photo of a skin spot to determine if the spot might be cancerous.
“You don’t have to wait 30 days anymore to see the dermatologist. Just take a photo and send it to this board of dermatologists and get a diagnosis over your phone,” he said, adding that he sees even more applications for health monitoring from phones. “These are some of the amazing things the smartphone can do, but there are the mundane tasks that make the phone indispensable. For example, no need for a map anymore when you visit a new city. Just use your phone, punch in a little data and go. It’s hard to imagine what we did ten years ago without these devices.”
What's Ahead?
But what may be a bigger story than what the iPhone has done to date, is what it will do in the future, said Oldshue.
He said to expect the device to offer an expandable screen—as CUToday.info has reported, efforts are under way today to develop a foldable smartphone. Oldshue thinks what may be more effective is some type of screen extension that “pulls out” of the phone. He also thinks wireless charging will happen soon enough.
Those are some of the small things that will help in the performance of the smartphone and drive even more uses. What Oldshue says will be the next game-changer with smartphones is having the phones “learn about us.”
“The phone can analyze what we do every day and make all kinds of recommendations,” said Oldshue. “Say we go past a restaurant every day on our way to work and the phone knows we like the kind of food they serve based on our shopping habits. The phone will suggest that restaurant. Maybe the phone knows we need parts for our car since we visited a repair shop. It can recommend a parts store nearby. The possibilities are limitless.”
More stories in this series: