Trivial Trade-offs with the iPhone SE(2) →

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This time, the new SE’s trade-offs seem trivial. No face scanner, shooting photos in the dark or humongous screen? Those are minor inconveniences when you are paying 40 percent less than for an iPhone 11.

Who doesn’t want to save 40% on a new iPhone that uses the fastest and more current mobile processor as well as having an excellent camera? The biggest point that agree with Brian X. Chen on his iPhone SE (2) assessment is exactly this. He goes on to mention that he is more inclined to spend the $999 on an iPhone, as am I, but on day 2, why spend any more money?

“The new iPhone SE’s lack of compromise is what makes it remarkable. Apple took all the best parts from its expensive iPhones — including a fast computing processor and an excellent camera — and squeezed them into the shell of an older iPhone with a home button and smaller screen. At the same time, it managed to include useful features that were previously exclusive to fancy new phones, like water resistance, wireless charging and so-called portrait photos.”

Can the iPhone SE (2) Make You Reconsider $1000 Phones? →

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Is all of that worth the cost? Sure, for a lot of people. Is any of it necessary? Other than low-light photography, there’s virtually nothing that I do on those $1,000 phones that I can’t do equally well on the iPhone SE. It is fast, capable, reliable, and familiar. I’d miss those advanced features and more expansive displays, but not as much as you might think.

If I were buying the iPhone SE, I’d seriously consider spending the extra $50 to upgrade the storage to 128GB, just in case I’d want it three or five years down the road. That timespan is the reason the iPhone SE is a big deal. No other phone that costs less than $500 can claim to be this good, nor last that long.

The iPhone SE is not just a good deal. It’s also a really good smartphone.

I'm really liking the videos that The Verges' Dieter Bohn has been putting out and the fact that I concur 100% with this write-up gives me even more confidence that I'll be "fine" for the next 6-8 months. Heck, it'll most likely make me even reconsider purchasing the iPhone 12 for $1149, maybe.1 I mean seriously, I spoke about this upgrade cycle at length a while back (6 years ago) but I'll break it down again.

The iPhone X 256GB Silver cost me $1149 + tax = $1250 - $320 for trade-in = $930 divided by 30 months = 913 days of constant and daily use is about $1 a day for a TOOL that we are accessing day in and day out. Whether that's a good thing or bad, at least we get to track it now and step back. But hell, I just even bought a new 16" MacBook Pro and am producing again! Priceless.

  • The fact that a $1000 straight out of pocket for a device is definitely absurd hence the reasoning why I was trying to make my iPhone X 256GB Silver last for 36 months!↩

    • Ordered My iPhone SE (2)

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    I broke down just less than a week after the initial online orders were made available and consequently, I’ll have to wait until May 8th - May 15th. Apple offered the highest value for my iPhone X 256GB Silver at $3201 and I ended up having to push for the iPhone SE 256GB White which should be around $229 out of pocket before taxes. Love the white back and the all-black front too! I tried to go with the 128GB version but I looked and I had only 88GB left on my 256GB meaning I was using more than 128GB! Oh well, Being that this phone was around $549 + tax, I’m wondering how much I’ll be able to get for it in 6-8 months when the iPhone 12 comes out? Since it will cost around $300 out of pocket, I’m actually okay with it trading in for that much. Dang, I just looked it up too and my iPhone X 256GB Silver was $1,149 + tax!!! And yes I bought Apple Care back then!

  • 27.8% residual after 32 months… try finding an Android phone that can do that!

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    And if you didn't catch my hovering "bigfoot" footnote, it reads: 27.8% residual after 32 months… try finding an Android phone that can do that!

    Final Case Against Android →

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    This past week, a New Zealand man was looking through the data Facebook had collected from him in an archive he had pulled down from the social networking site. While scanning the information Facebook had stored about his contacts, Dylan McKay discovered something distressing: Facebook also had about two years' worth of phone call metadata from his Android phone, including names, phone numbers, and the length of each call made or received.

    Android is open. Apparently completely open. Google, what say you? I think there’s even more of a falling out to come especially with Apple’s Tim Cook doubling the down on Apple as well as Walt Mossberg mentioning how he secured his tech life in retirement.

    Fast Charge Your New iPhone X/8/8 Plus

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    My Favorite iPhone X Accessories

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    If you have to ask, I love my Supcase Unicorn Beetle and have been using one on my iPhone 7 Plus for the past year. It's so great, that my wife and a few other friends are also using this amazing case. For those wanting a more "trusted" name that has become synonymous in mobile protection, check out the minimalist Otterbox Commuter. It's slim enough to allow for Qi Wireless Charging as well as skinny to fit in your jeans pants pocket. This is a wonderful alternative and I had a hard time choosing myself.

    Now for those looking for a wireless charging solution, Seneo is putting out products quicker than Apple can ship the iPhone X! For a few dollars more, you can get the one that comes with a wall adapter to plug in but unfortunately, Apple did not enable the faster charger solution so anyone that has at least 2V adapter will be just fine. I prefer the Seneo since it keep the phone upright but yes it is prone to falling off with little children around. So, for the lay flat solution, Anker is the way to go.

    These are my first purchases for the phone, but if you want to enhance your photography skills, I'll about the Moment Case and Wide Lens v2. Hopefully those are shipping soon!

    South Park PvP on iOS

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    Download South Park: Phone Destroyer™ by Ubisoft now on the App Store available on iOS.

    From South Park Digital Studios comes a real-time battle game like nothing you’ve ever experienced before! Take on Cartman, Kenny, Stan and Kyle in all out mobile mayhem!

    South Park: Phone Destroyer brings you iconic South Park characters, action packed real-time strategy, exploding PvP battles, trademark South Park humor and collectible cards in a perfect mix that’s spicier than Cartman’s chili con carne …

    iPhone X Camera Scores →

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    With a Photo score of 101, the Apple iPhone X achieves the best results so far for still images, edging out the Huawei Mate 10 Pro and the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, the previous joint leaders in the Photo ranking, by one point. Compared to its cousin iPhone 8 Plus, the X improves noticeably on Zoom performance, but also does better in terms of Exposure, Color, Texture, Noise and Artifacts. Other key strengths in still image mode include very good exposures and HDR images, accurate color rendering, good detail with low noise, as well as a natural-looking bokeh effect in Portrait mode.

    So it's the best for stills at a 101 rating but conclusively, DxOMark rates it 1 point lower overall than Google's Pixel 2 / 2XL due to it's Video Performace. Once again, it's all subjective. As always, the best camera is the one you have on your person.

    Apple iPhone X Display -- Second to None →

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    The result: Apple has produced an impressive Smartphone display with excellent performance and accuracy, which we cover in extensive detail below. What makes the iPhone X the Best Smartphone Display is the impressive Precision Display Calibration Apple developed, which transforms the OLED hardware into a superbly accurate, high performance, and gorgeous display, with close to Text Book Perfect Calibration and Performance!!

    Without Apple's expertise in developing and calibrating their display techologies, this screen could have easily been "just another OLED mobile display."

    I Should Have Fell In Line →

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    Joanna Stern From the Wall Street Journal:

    The first 48 hours with the iPhone X elicits a feeling similar to the one you get assembling mail-order furniture using a poorly drawn 45-step instruction manual. After a lot of fumbling and missteps, you wonder: Am I an idiot, or is thing’s maker out to crush my soul?

    But then comes the moment when the much-hyped new iPhone feels so natural to use that when you go back to even the brand new iPhone 8, it’s like picking up an old BlackBerry.

    Yup, Apple has a clear winner.

    The iPhone X Reviews and My Thoughts

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    iPhone X envy is in full effect! I literally forgot to preorder the device last Thursday/Friday at midnight and truth be told, I reminded myself and the wife at 11:30pm but got caught up watching Grey's Anatomy with her. She loves the show and I indulge only with her. Next thing you know, it's 12:30am, I check twitter and the iOS Apple Store and it's listed at 4-6 weeks. I gave up that night but maybe, just maybe, you might find me in line this upcoming Friday.

    Onto the reviews (if I get a unit, I will post a review just for you):

    Matthew Panzarino for Techcrunch was lucky enough to be one of the few who got a test unit for a week and took his iPhone X to Disneyland.

    It works so quickly and seamlessly that after a while, you forget it’s unlocking the device — you just raise and swipe. Every once in a while you’ll catch the Face ID animation as it unlocks. Most of the time, though, it just goes. This, coupled with the new “all swipe” interface, makes using the phone and apps feel smooth and interconnected.

    And, more importantly, it enables a whole new set of use cases and behaviors that feel organic, natural and just plain cool.

    This is one thing that I am most excited about. When I had my iPhone 5 for two years skipping TouchID in the iPhone 5S, I was envious because typing in a passcode every time sucked.

    Nicole Nguyen from Buzzfeed also reiterated my thoughts:

    For a normal human who isn’t aware of the 30,000 invisible dots being projected on their face or the 3D map of their head encrypted somewhere deep inside their phone, there’s nothing “futuristic” about these interactions. Using Face ID is what life without a passcode — life before we all became paranoid technofreaks — felt like.

    We live in a post-passcode world and, in this world, your passcode is your face.

    This everyone is the future and Apple is paving the way once again. Here's Lance Ulanoff from Mashable reiterating my point:

    Apple’s iPhone X is the beginning of something new. Even if you don’t want an iPhone X, I encourage you to pay attention. Everything the iPhone X is serves as a roadmap for future iPhones.

    iPhone 8 Plus Camera Review

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    The Apple iPhone 8 Plus is the best-performing mobile device camera we have ever tested. Its overall DxOMark Mobile score of 94 sets a new record, beating out the 90 points for both the Google Pixel and the HTC U11, as well as the 92 that its sibling iPhone 8 just scored. Its Photo score of 96 is also a new record, blowing past the Pixel’s 90. For Video, its score of 89 is among our highest, but tied with the HTC U11 and slightly below the Pixel’s 91. Of course, the Pixel is nearly a year old now, so it makes sense that Apple’s new flagship is breaking new ground.

    The king returns as the best of the best.

    If Super Mario Run Was Free →

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    Mario now only has a certain amount of energy, and the poor lad gets tuckered out whenever you play a level. If you run out of energy you'll have to pay up, wait around, or bother your social media pals to keep playing.

    If Nintendo charged $9.99 up front instead of making a portion of it free, they would have less complaints. It's already an awesome free game but "unlocking" it works for me. Think of the hours that were put into development of this game. It's wonderful and enjoyable and the more I play it, the more fun I'm having. Looking forward to see what other games Nintendo has up their sleeves in 2017 and onward.