Blog

Short blog posts, journal entries, and random thoughts. Topics include a mix of personal and the world at large. 

I'm sorry; I lied!

Yes, I completely lied: I went and bought an iPhone 11 Pro after having written adamantly that I wouldn’t be doing so. Indeed, the reviews and praise for the photographic capabilities of the new iPhone have proven to be extremely tempting; the pictures people are posting from the new device are just beautiful and superior - I simply got to have it. So last Friday, on a chance look (yeah, right) at the inventory of my local Apple store, an iPhone 11 Pro in ‘Midnight Green’ guise with 256GB storage came up in stock, so I swiftly placed an order.

It’s going to be really sweet to have this camera goodness for the annual trip to China in two months’ time. Which reminds me: I have to finish the Japan Escape photo stories feature - hopefully by this weekend.

Of course, I have many justifications for moving on from a still immensely capable iPhone X to the iPhone 11. It’s very similar how Porsche 991.1 GT3 owners upgrade to the 991.2 GT3, even though the newer-generation car is only marginally better - we all innately want the latest and greatest (hooray, materialism!). That said, my “old” iPhone is now bequeathed to my mother, who was running a six-years-old (!) iPhone 5C; the upgrade and speed boost for her must be utterly revolutionary. Yeah, I’m merely fulfilling my filial duties by upgrading to the iPhone 11, I swear!

There’s also the classic excuse I mean justification for new iPhones every year: it’s a device I use most often, one I’m intimately attached to (hello, restroom), so it’s worth whatever the costs because the utility factor is significant. Besides, it’s not $1200 dollars for the phone; it’s only $45 dollars a month! Hashtag millennial.

But what about talks of needing to save money after the lavish expense of the Japan trip? Well, that’s important too, obviously. This expenditure for the new iPhone will hamper things somewhat, but the overall impact isn’t that great. I’ll just have to cut back on spending in some other areas to make up the shortfall. It’s imperative to save for the future, but so is living for the present; finding a balance between the two is ever elusive and highly idiosyncratic.

Hollow justifications or otherwise, I’m super happy with iPhone 11 Pro: photos are expectedly fantastic. Night mode is a feature I’ve been requesting for many years, and it is exceptional. I can’t wait for ‘Deep Fusion’ technology to come online: Apple is using computational power to overcome the laws of physics of the tiny camera sensors, and the sample results I’ve seen are quite spectacular. Functionally, the iPhone 11 Pro is largely the same as the iPhone X, though the killer feature (other than the cameras) is the hugely improved battery life. Not since my iPhone 7 Plus have I had an iPhone with this good battery reserves.

Cheers to reversing course on our sound and logical decisions!

Christmas has indeed come early.