Both ipad and iphone should have an infrared LED in them to expand their use as tv remote controls.
That's not the way Apple "thinks" in developing products. IR is today's technology, but by the time they would get the redesign of that added into a production model, newer sets (and set-top boxes) will be on the home LAN and controlled by commands sent over the network, not (just) IR.
And garage door opener.
I was just talking with Mrs. Thrawl that the form factor and interface of the iPad would make a killer universal remote.
I have been wanting that for two years! They would decimated the Universal TV remote business. The only way a player in that industry could survive is if they switched to creating an iPhone/iPad app.
With WiFi getting integrated into everything, IR isn’t needed. To the contrary, I find IR a pain because one IR device may influence multiple devices at once: using the TV’s “universal” remote, I end up activating things on both the TV and BluRay player; using the Apple IR remote, controlling the Apple TV often sets off apps on my wife’s MacBook. HOWEVER, on my iPod & iPad there are remote-control apps for the BluRay player and the Apple TV, and they don’t suffer from inappropriate activation of other devices ... AND the apps allow better interfaces, such as typing in search terms or getting additional info on what’s playing.