How long you've had a credit card matters

One of my major New Year's resolutions this year was to implement austerity. The past few years I’ve been highly cavalier with my money, mostly towards doing an immense amount of traveling. I don’t regret any of it as it’s been some of the best times in my life, but what with me turning 30 I figured time was right to store up some cash for headier times.

Midway through the year however I decided I was going to purchase a Porsche 911 in the near future, so austerity could not have come at a more perfect time. Slavishly save money just to then squander it all? That’s just how life works. To paraphrase Ludacris’ character in the Fast and Furious franchise: what’s the good of making money if you don’t spend any of it?

Nevertheless I’m still keeping to my resolution, and it’s been going great. With less expenditure I’ve whittled down the number of credits cards I use to only a few (the Chase line of Freedom and Sapphire cards are awesome). With no activity on the spare cards, I was content to let the credit card company close on them, thinking that it won’t do much damage to my credit score.

Well I was wrong. A few weeks ago I did my periodic routine check of my score on Credit Karma, and a particular item serendipitously caught my eye: the age of credit history. Turns out the length of time a credit card is open bears a positive attribution to the credit score, with it signifying trustworthiness and whatnot. Unfortunately for me, the cards I haven’t been using are the one’s I’ve had the longest.

I can’t let those cards expire now and risk damaging my credit score, not with the need to get financing for the Porsche next year. So in the past few weeks I’ve put tiny purchases on each formerly disused card to restart the closure clock, so to speak. My score is currently in the low 800s, and I aim to keep it that way.

Pro tip: don’t let your old credit cards expire unless you’ve got an equally old credit card you plan to keep using, because it will impact your credit score greatly.

The lonely nights.

Initial iPhone XS Max impressions

I was surprised how easy the preordering process was this year. The Apple Store app opened up right at 12:01am Friday, and within minutes I was ready with a launch-day delivery unit. A stark contrast to the previous few years where the app was unresponsive for a quarter hour, and mere seconds delay in decision bumped me off of first day delivery (last year).

Either Apple’s supply chain have improved immensely, or they’ve got plenty of iPhone XS on hand for everyone. Probably the latter because the line frenzies we are used to seeing in previous iPhone launches were few and far in between. I can walk into an Apple Store right now and buy a unit in any of the three colors.

Of course I’d rather not leave the house if possible, so I optioned for home delivery. Trouble is I didn’t get home last Friday until way late into the night, though I figured the setup process wouldn’t be too much of a hassle: backup iPhone X into iTunes, plug the new phone in, and step 3 profit. The plan was going great until I turned on the new iPhone XS Max for the first time and it ceremoniously failed at the Verizon authentication process.

Turns out Apple screwed up royally with their batch of Verizon phones. Their authentication system still has my old and out-of-date PIN and not the current one from Verizon. I was adamant my info was correct, not knowing it wanted the old PIN. Verizon couldn’t do anything about it, and the Apple tech support I talk to did not yet know the extent of the situation. After two hours of futility, I finally remembered my old PIN and I was home free.

The screen is massive and glorious.

The iPhone XS Max is about the size of the old ‘Plus’ phones, but the display dominates the entire frame. At 6.5 inches, it is desperately close to mini tablet territory, and I simply love the amount of real-estate. After nearly a year of using iPhone X I’ve gotten used to its screen size, but mere minutes of using the XS Max, the previous generation phone already feels uncomfortably small and cramped. I’m very glad I chose to go with the larger model: more text, more information; watching Youtube videos in landscape is a pleasure.

Unfortunately not many apps have been updated to utilize the newfound space. Native Apple apps obviously look great and sharp, but other apps are merely zoomed to acquiesce the new size. Just as we had to wait for apps to update and take full advantage of the iPhone X screen, I fear we may need to do the same for the XS Max. Tick tock, app developers.

Other than the extra screen size, operationally the XS Max is nearly identical to the X. It’s probably speedier and smoother, but I’d be hard-pressed to tell the difference. Even after a year in production, the X is not lacking in speed, especially after the update to iOS 12. The reason for upgrading to the XS Max was the bigger display, and the improved camera.

And what a sweet camera it is. I’ve only had a few days of shooting under my belt, but I can’t stop being impressed with the results. Smart HDR is simply magic, producing images in real-time that an equivalent DSLR camera would require multiple exposures and then combining them in software on a laptop. It’s awe-inspiring to see Apple continually attempt to overcome the limitations of sensor and lens physics with sheer computational might.

More to come on the iPhone XS Max as I get more familiar with its intricacies.

Straight off iPhone XS Max camera, unedited.

Back from the sickness

You know how when people survive a serious illness like cancer, it’s as if they receive a new lease on life? All the fake trappings and responsibilities imposed by others fade to the background and the healed person instead focuses on what’s most important.

One doesn’t necessarily have to beat a big disease in order to feel this way. For the sum total of last week I was sick with the usual cold. It explains why there weren’t any updates on here. I basically slept for 10+ hours each day, and for the rest of the time it was eight hours at work (gutted it out) and then lots of lounging around at home watching Youtube videos.

Good news: I’m all caught up on Mighty Car Mods episodes.

I’ve recovered now, obviously (and thankfully), and I do feel a modicum like the guy who’ve conquered cancer: a new opportunity at this game of life. It’s so easy to take health for granted, even for someone like me who is super health conscious and exercises on a regular basis. The common cold doesn’t discriminate however and in those hours of feeling like shit and viscous fluids keeps coming out the nose, I resolved to be even more carpe diem as soon as I recover.

So there’s much to catch up on, and much to write about on this blog. My initial impressions on the iPhone XS Max (ridiculous name remains ridiculous) will be tomorrow, so please look out for that. In the meantime, a happy Monday to you all, let’s be healthy and get after it.

Now that’s a good color combination on this classic light-rail train. I wish SF MUNI would have kept it.

I'm getting the iPhone XS Max

So of course I am getting the new iPhone XS Max. Announced at the Apple event yesterday morning, the latest iPhone is an iterative improvement to the ground-breaking iPhone X: the screen got brighter and has more colors, the cameras got larger pixels and aperture, the glass and steel body is stronger, and the processor is incrementally faster. All is what’s expected from an “s” release, and as I’ve said previously, the iPhone X is still plenty competitive with the smartphones of 2018. Nobody has yet to even match its chipset speed.

Then why am I upgrading? First, because I can, and second, for the bigger screen. iPhone X have always felt a bit small after two years of using the ‘Plus’ versions of iPhone 6 and 7. The missing screen real estate isn’t too much of a bother because the edge-to-edge OLED panel is that good, but a size increase would make it perfect. As expected, Apple announced an iPhone XS model with a larger screen, though it’s not a ‘Plus’ anymore, it’s now a ‘Max’.

Anybody else think Apple have gone off the deep-end lately with their naming conventions (iPhone SE comes to mind)? The word ‘Plus’ is stamped in the consumer consciousness denoting the bigger iPhone model for years now, and Apple just tossed that brand value away in a flash. Curious, to say the least.

Alongside the new flagship, Apple also introduced the iPhone XR, the base model of the iPhone X(?) range if you will. It’s got the same computational innards as the XS, but it forsakes the intricate OLED panel for LCD, and the body is made of aluminium instead of stainless-steel. There’s only one camera module instead of two, though at least it’s the same wide lens as the XS. It comes in five vibrant colors, harkening back to the iPhone 5C, sparking the question why Apple didn’t call it the iPhone XC instead of XR.

Price at $750 to start, the cheapest new for 2018 iPhone is not exactly cheap at all. I’m old enough to remember flagship smartphones started in the $600 range; today that wouldn’t even get you the compromised version. It can’t be helped: suckers like me are gladly paying the $1K entry cost going on the second year like clockwork. Apple has zero incentive to change, especially with the U.S. government barring the the likes of Huawei from selling their lower cost flagship phones here.

Preorders for the iPhone XS starts at midnight Friday so let the annual ‘can you get your order in for launch day’ games begin. I’ll be there, man.

I reckon this is secured enough.

On 10 months with the iPhone X

Today is Apple’s annual new iPhone announcement event, and mere hours from me typing these words right now, I will find out how spectacular of a phone I shall be getting really soon. Before all that happiness however I’d like to talk about the iPhone X, a phone I’ve thoroughly enjoyed for almost a year.

It’s an interesting reflection of human nature that we’ve grown accustomed to iPhone X’s eye-watering price. Starting at a hair under a thousand dollars - which itself is shocking enough, I of course simply had to get the SKU with additional storage (Apple, as ever, was clever to provide the “base” model with only 64 gigabytes), so the final suggested purchase price of my 256GB unit is $1,149.

It’s been said that smartphones are essentially computers that fit in our pockets; well, now they cost the same as one too. The price shock quickly wore off, though: nowadays when I see smartphones costing in $700 dollars range, I think of them as inexpensive. Hashtag crazy rich Asians.

I have to say the iPhone X is absolutely worth its significant purchase price. It’s easily the most transformative iPhone since iPhone 4. A return to glass on the back, along with the stainless-steel band, makes iPhone X feel tremendous to the hand. It’s solid and exquisite to the touch, so much so that I decided from the outset to not put a case on it. 10 months later and aside from a few nicks on the band from the two times I dropped it on solid ground, my iPhone X have held up excellently.

Operationally, the iPhone X, to quote the late Steve Jobs, is a screamer. Everything is incredibly fast and fluid, and it makes using lesser phones and tablets (my Microsoft Surface Pro 4) a frustrating experience. Why can’t all touch devices be this responsive? Lag is nonexistent, and apps closes and switches with nary a hiccup; I don’t think I’ve ever had to perform a hard-reset. The fact that I can edit 42 megapixel photos from my Sony A7R2 camera right on my iPhone X and it’s all super smooth is a testament to Apple’s ingenuity with its A series silicon.

Suffice it to say the camera on the iPhone X is sublime. I’ve said it before: we are ever close to having photos from smartphones be indistinguishable from those out of traditional DSLRs.

What about the new features? The transition from nine years of having a home button to Face ID feels incredibly natural. It’s amazing what Apple has done with the feature in its first generation (Touch ID was a logistical mess when it first debuted): Face ID simply works, and its miss-rate is no worse than the fingerprint sensor of previous phones. As for the edge-to-edge OLED screen and the much maligned “notch”, let’s just say there is a reason all the other Android phone manufacturers are copying it, and not doing a very good job either. What’s the point of the notch if you’ve still got a chin bezel at the bottom?

While I am excited about the next iteration of iPhone, I’d be completely okay if I were to keep my iPhone X for another year (I won’t be, just saying). It’s still superbly quick and chews through everything I throw at it, and the camera module is still amongst the class leaders. Apple have engineered the iPhone X so magnificently that aside from the obvious screen size increase I’m honestly stumped as to how they will improve the other parts.

We shall see in a few hours.

That time when I was the only passenger on the train and it wasn’t late at night.

$200K for an E39 M5!?

The annual Monterey Car Week occurred a few weeks back, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t comment on the absurd prices people are paying at the car auctions. A remarkably not so good looking Ferrari 250 GTO got the final gavel at over $48 million dollars, a new world record. If I had that level of spending power, the Ferrari 250 to buy is the 250 GT SWB Berlinetta, a car I consider as the most beautiful Ferrari V12 grand tourer.

Automobiles within the stratosphere of 250 GTO will never lose its value no matter how many miles are put on them, so at least the owner can enjoy it for what it truly is instead of locking it in a climate-controlled box. Should the car be so unfortunate to be wrecked, a hefty personal check to Ferrari Classiche Department and a boat ride to Maranello ought to mend it back to perfection in short order, and not a penny of value would be loss. Rowan Atkinson’s McLaren F1 is still worth the many millions even after suffering a crash costing $1.4 million to fix.

Mr. Bean is absolutely kind of ‘car collector’: someone that drives the cars, potential diminishment of value of damned.

The well-heeled bloke who purchased this pristine 2002 BMW M5 during Monterey Car Week probably isn’t that type of enthusiast. With less than 500 miles on the odometer, the cleanest example of an E39 M5 this side of a BMW museum sold for a head-shaking $176,000 dollars. What an astronomical premium for having delivery miles, especially for a car that isn’t exactly the most limited of productions. Someone out there is for sure keeping a Porsche GT car hermetically sealed in hopes of a superb profit (997.2 GT3 R3 is good bet).

I surmise the buyer of that particular M5 isn’t likely to put substantial miles on it because there’s plenty of solid running E39 M5s for exponentially less money. Even rich people aren’t so cavalier with their money so in paying nearly $200K (after taxes and fees), the buyer is more than likely looking hold as an investment. An M5 is simply not in the same class of cars as the 250 GTO or McLaren F1, so the value plummets as each addition mile is ticked on.

With obviously zero skin in any of these games, I’m merely a casual observer of the peculiarities in the collector’s car market. On principle I’ve got immensely more respect for the collectors that drive their cars, rather than treat them as museum pieces or bonds in the securities market.

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Precious metal indeed.

Financial goals stop the great

Last week I wrote about not letting fear stop the great: I shouldn't let worries of potential theft deter me from getting a motorcycle and enjoying it fully. But you know what does stop the great? Money. 

For clarification, I've got enough money to purchase a bike many times over (hashtag not so humble brag). Rather it's my financial goals that is preventing me from dropping the few thousand dollars to procure a motorcycle. Currently I am actively saving up to purchase a 911 in a year's time, and with Porsche's pricing as it is, the car will cost dearly. Therefore all discretionary monetary resources I've got must attune to that objective first. 

A motorcycle wouldn't be the first casualty: due to the tremendous need to store up money for the 911, I've had to delay other interests as well. I'm largely done with my Korean studies and had originally chose to learn the piano next, but the keyboard I want costs almost $2,000 dollars so that immediately tabled it for later. I've also stopped buying new camera gear: while I've been pining for a 70-200mm f/2.8 lens for the longest time, $2,600 dollars for right now is better served towards the Porsche. 

Travel plans for this year? There were none. I couldn't part with the cash to do so. Compared to 2017 where I four times took trips out of the country, the contrast is stark. These days I even try to not go out on weekends (not too difficult for a homebody like myself) because that would mean spending more money than necessary. 

Extreme? Perhaps, but it's all dedicated to a singular goal: once I had decided to buy a 911, I knew many temporary sacrifices will have to be made. Such is the condition of being a rabid car enthusiast, though we all have our areas of fiscal extravagance, don't we? A friend of mine is planning to go see The Phantom of the Opera for a third time now that the tour has returned to San Francisco. 

I bet he hasn't the need to perform austerity like I am. So lucky. 

Geometric light play.