I thought about making this another “Tech Talk” topic but in those posts I try to be less subjective and since I’ve only had an iPhone, this is going to be more of an opinion rather than a technical analysis.
The “S-cycle” of the iPhone 6 means that it’s time to upgrade. This must be one of Apple’s most successful iPhone launches (despite the smaller lines at the stores). Usually by now there has been some kind of “-gate” controversy everyone is talking about and the Twitter trolls are feasting on. Alas no “antennae-gate”, “bendgate”, “map-gate” (was that a thing?), just everyone talking about how the iPhone 6S is actually a pretty decent phone. In fact some folks are saying that Apple’s claim the iPhone 6S is a completely new phone might just have some credence. I didn’t have an iPhone 6 so I couldn’t tell you, personally, how different the phones are, I upgraded from an iPhone 5S so my perception is skewed from my “leap-frog” practice of upgrading phones.
When I first held the phone my initial thought was “this screen is huge!” I was momentarily concerned that perhaps the phone might feel a little too big. I’ve only had my phone a few days now and I don’t think I could go back to a smaller screen. Granted I’m glad I didn’t opt for the 6S Plus; that would have been too big. Once I learned the “double-touch” on the home button (Thanks, fuzzy) method for one-handed use, the size of the phone is no longer a concern.
The only problem I’ve had with the new phone is some issue with most of my apps after I restored from a recent backup. Several of my apps appeared darkened, as if they were waiting for an update. They didn’t appear in the list of updates in the app store and tapping on the icon didn’t launch the app but changed the text to “Waiting…”. If I searched for the app in the app store I was given the option to download from the cloud (as opposed to the option to “Open” the app). I couldn’t really find anything related to this issue after doing a Google search so it must have been some strange backup/restore glitch.
Aside from that weird issue, upgrading to the 6S was completely painless. In fact I sold my 5S back to Apple which rendered enough cash to purchase Apple Care+ so I essentially didn’t have to pay for the extra insurance. The phone obviously performs much faster than its predecessor. Actually I think the Touch ID is also faster and more accurate. I haven’t tried the 3D Touch or the “live picture” features yet, although I’ve read that the “live pictures” can take up a lot of memory so I doubt I will be taking many of those.
If you picked up the latest iPhone, what are your impressions?
I could get so much more accomplished if I only had minions!
I know, why would I write an opinion post on something that has been around for 40 years??! Since the birth of the iPad technology has been trending away from the nostalgic old desktop PC. Tablets and laptops (and other forms of mobile devices) are becoming more popular by the hour. The truth is, I’m not really a fan of laptops. Sure I use a laptop for work because it’s easier as a consultant to have your trusty computer with you when you need it, but work is the only occasion where I feel like having one is warranted.
This week Apple held their annual 
February 15, 2015 a three and a half hour comedy special aired to celebrate 40 years of Saturday Night Live! I actually remember watching the episode that celebrated 25 years. It was really great to see so many great actors and comedians return to the studio and reprise some of SNL’s most classic characters. I think the Wayne’s World skit that provided a Top Ten list of what’s great about SNL nailed everything that truly is great about SNL. Here is the YouTube video of that skit, if you didn’t see it:
Since the first time I saw Gunnars at Micro Center I had wanted to try them out. Granted at the time I was wearing glasses so unless I was willing to pay the ridiculous price for prescription Gunnars, they would remain on the store shelves instead of beside my gaming peripherals. A few years later I had LASIK and it was worth every penny, of course the Gunnars would still have to wait since I just paid for the surgery.