Earlier quoted context omitted.
Even though I really like the SE, obviously there are infinite ways to make a good phone. Turns out this old one works for me, plus it's cheap, really fast, and I'm used to it — what else can I ask for a phone? Pricing is a very strong factor here, I have to say. Brazil almost always tops the “more expensive iPhone in the world” lists. SE's price is really fair, kind of an outlier in Apple's lineup.
It seems like pricing is the only real factor there based on what I am seeing in the article. If the Mini design was the same price then all of a sudden it seems like that would be the "great design". Its not even really an amazing deal. In exchange for the latest CPU you get essentially 8 year old LCD (with slightly newer contrast ratio from ~7 years ago), the same old case design with same old grade of aluminum and…
The Best iPhone
191–200 of 484 posts
Re: The Best iPhone
#192I upgraded to the 13 Pro Max from the 8 Plus and I’m still annoyed several times a day by interactions that are strictly worse without the touch sensor. Today it was because you used to be able to unlock just by holding your phone with your thumb on the sensor. But now you have to raise it to your face, hope it works after a couple of goes with your sunglasses on, and then even when it does you have to swipe up to se…
You're right, unlocking the phone every single time you want to interact with it is exceedingly tedious. Which is why I remove the FaceID/passcode completely. The overall improvement to my QoL is well worth the increased risk. And all my truly sensitive apps are passcode protected, anyway.
Let guests (or myself) use Google Maps, Calculator, etc without a lock screen.
Re: The Best iPhone
#193I knew I wasn't the only one fond of small, cheap-but-great phones! :) Btw, this is my first post in English. I cover tech here in Brazil for +10 years and run a +9 years old independent, self-sustainable publication written in Portuguese. Now, I decided to give it a shot in another language, despite still feeling uncomfortable with my English. (I hope I haven't misspelled anything!) If you enjoyed this brief iPhone…
If you are interested in some small feedback to improve a little more: the final three sentences in the article were the only ones where I saw something that could be improved.
> I have already argued in the past that I prefer this iPhone model over any newer one, Face ID capable.
I'm pretty sure this is grammatically correct as-is. (English is funny like that...) Having said that, the more natural-sounding way for a native-speaker would be to lose the appositive and avoid trying to turn "Face ID" into an adjective. So it would be something like: "I have already argued in the past that I prefer this iPhone model over any newer one with Face ID."
> It is perhaps the closest to a perfect gadget I have ever used — no wonder, it is the third “same” device I buy in seven years (before, the iPhone 6S in 2015 and the iPhone 8 in 2017).
I'm pretty sure the verb tenses are technically correct, but the last bit is not how a native speaker would write it, and there's an extraneous comma. Instead of saying 'no wonder, it is the the third "same" device I buy in seven years,' a more native-speaker way of writing it would be: 'no wonder it's the third "same" device I've bought in seven years.'
(EDIT: I was thinking about this a little more because something about the sequence of words "third same device" still didn't sound quite natural. Iterating, I think it could sound even more natural like: 'no wonder I've bought the "same" device three times over the last seven years.')
> If, despite all the rumors, in five years there is a “5th generation iPhone SE” with this same look, but updated internals, it will most likely be my next phone.
This sentence is solid and native-sounding as-is. A professional editor, though, might object to the overwhelming number of commas (even though all the commas are grammatically correct!). They might suggest eliminating some of the repetitive clauses and moving things around a bit to make the sentence flow more smoothly. The end result might be something like this: 'If, despite all the rumors, there's a "5th generation iPhone SE" in five years with the same look and another round of updated internals, it will most likely be my next phone.'
I hope that's all helpful and not too nitpicky. Like I said, your writing is fantastic as it is! I'm looking forward to reading more.
Re: The Best iPhone
#194I knew I wasn't the only one fond of small, cheap-but-great phones! :) Btw, this is my first post in English. I cover tech here in Brazil for +10 years and run a +9 years old independent, self-sustainable publication written in Portuguese. Now, I decided to give it a shot in another language, despite still feeling uncomfortable with my English. (I hope I haven't misspelled anything!) If you enjoyed this brief iPhone…
Re: The Best iPhone
#195I knew I wasn't the only one fond of small, cheap-but-great phones! :) Btw, this is my first post in English. I cover tech here in Brazil for +10 years and run a +9 years old independent, self-sustainable publication written in Portuguese. Now, I decided to give it a shot in another language, despite still feeling uncomfortable with my English. (I hope I haven't misspelled anything!) If you enjoyed this brief iPhone…
Re: The Best iPhone
#196Well, that never happened and I’m now in the position of having to upgrade a phone that’s starting to crash due to battery issues, will probably be out of iOS updates in September and is frankly getting too slow for even simple yet surprisingly power demanding apps.
I don’t know what I’ll upgrade to. Likely an iPhone, but which? I hate buying something that’s not the current generation but the thought of having to deal with Face ID multiple times a day leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
Re: The Best iPhone
#197Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think you're missing a big one that applies to most people I know: - Locked into two year contracts where a phone upgrade is "free" every two years, but they are spending $100+ per month for that "free" phone As a Canadian, I have a $50 plan with 12 gb of data (pretty good deal for here). If I wanted to get a new iPhone 13, I'd have to spend $300 up front (would be offset if i had an old device to trade in), plus a…
That definitely feels like it falls under the spending too much category, but I’ve only once financed a phone (should be mine pretty soon I think!) and hope I never need to again.
Re: The Best iPhone
#198Earlier quoted context omitted.
but... your pixel was more than $100 new. the phone you use does not normally fit into the category you describe. the only part that makes it work is the "second hand," bit. cheap/expensive is relative, and $400 is cheap for a phone (for north american audiences). fwiw, i find even pixel phones to be sort of slow after a couple years into software updates, mostly between multitasking/app switching. so I think that th…
> i find even pixel phones to be sort of slow after a couple years into software updates I assume that's because they're Google's software updates. Removing all Google apps, and most phones are fast . My BlackBerry KeyOne, with its midrange chipset, is still fast five years after it was released. Hell, I wanted a smaller form factor for a few days, and threw my SIM into my Nexus 5. Changing apps, installing updates,…
If you can modify those, then what's the comparison on? How fast it boots to no apps or services running?
Re: The Best iPhone
#199I bought a Mini with great excitement, thinking that it would take me back to the glory of the "my phone fits my my pocket and I can type with one hand" days. I kept it for 3 months, and then traded it in for a Pro. It turns out that the world has moved on. Web pages are getting harder to read on small screens. I had to squint a lot. The phone's short height means that it often doesn't charge "vertically" in Qi charg…
Re: The Best iPhone
#200Earlier quoted context omitted.
The pixel 3a is still supported by AOSP distros like CalyxOS: https://calyxos.org/install/
No SafetyNet, so useless for some of us.