iPhone 6 is too big.

You read that right. No, I don’t mean iPhone 6 Plus. Yep, iPhone 6 is too big.

It’s now been over 8 months since a brand new and shiny iPhone 6 arrived at my doorstep, and ever since then I’ve battled with the question “Is this thing too big?” Last week, I decided the answer to that question is unequivocally yes. 

Note: Your milage may vary, I’m not saying it’s too big for everyone. It’s just too big for me and I’ll explain why over the course of this post.

It doesn’t fit in pockets, it can’t be carried as easily, it’s more difficult to balance when holding it with only one hand… the list goes on. For me, my phone is meant to be a portable computer. Emphasis on portable. Something I can slide in and out of a pocket, something I can hold and use discretely. I lost both of those characteristics when upgrading to the iPhone 6. I use my phone primarily for messaging, browsing Twitter, quickly looking up info on the web, for music and of course for listening to a tonne of podcasts. None of those things benefit from me having a physically larger phone. For any serious web browsing or computing, I have a MacBook Pro which does the job perfectly. 

There’s no doubt that iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are the two best and most advanced smart phones ever released by Apple. From their camera, to Touch ID, to the processing power, even to the physical design and shape of the phones, they beat out every previous generation hands down. But iPhone 6 is just too big. For me. 

My decision was confirmed the other day when I put my iPhone 6 in an armband to go running with. The result? A phone thicker than my arm. I don’t want my phone to be this large. This is when I realised it’s gone beyond the point of portability – it’s a liability to carry. 

The design is amazing, it feels so nice and soft in the hand, yet iPhone 6 is still too big. Unnecessarily so. The ONLY benefit of having a larger phone is that typically larger phone’s have bigger batteries and hence get better battery life. iPhone 6 wins out by a considerable margin over my old iPhone 5s when it comes to battery, there’s no question there. But is the tradeoff worth it? I’ve decided it isn’t. 

So, my next phone? I won’t be buying another iPhone with a 4.7″ screen. Hopefully a 4″ (iPhone 5 & 5s sized) iPhone. That’s if Apple ever go back to that sized flagship again. In an ideal world they’ll have a 4″ flagship phone variant which sits alongside its 4.7″ & 5.5″ offerings, but I can only hope…

June

The month of June is here - we’re two days in, in fact - and I’m excited. It’s grown to become one of my favourite months. 

As much as I usually won’t say “x is my favourite y” or “I like orange more than black,” I’ve grown a certain fondness for the month of June. Here in Australia the weather begins to cool right down and as someone who enjoys the cold, I’m happy with that. Typically June is a period where I have very little work to do for school, this year notwithstanding as it’s HSC year. 

There are always a few parties towards the end of the month, as birthdays start to roll around – including plenty of big eighteenths this year. 

It’s the time of the year where teams begin to cement their place for the year on the NRL ladder. My team, the mighty Dragons, have begun this month in top spot - a position I hope they can keep right through to the end of the season with the potential reward of a premiership win. But more on that later. There’s also at least one and sometimes two State of Origin matches throughout June – Up the NSW Blues! Furthermore, there tends to be a few decent movies which are released in June as a result of the Northern Hemisphere, in particular the United States, beginning their Summer holiday period. 

Lastly, and possibly the most exciting event of June, is one which I’ve only cared about for the last four years and that is Apple’s World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC). One year I hope to be able to attend, but that’s not the focus of today’s post. WWDC is exciting to me for many reasons, but mainly because I simply loving seeing the cool stuff announced by Apple at the event. I’ve come to expect the announcement of new features for major operating systems - mainly iOS and OS X - and I find the temptation of new betas exciting, even though I won’t always install them. The announcement of new API’s for me as a developer is always fascinating, and last year in particular was exciting as I got to work immediately on a “Today View” widget for my app Daily Steps. Following the progression of Apple’s software development from June through September/October is always an interesting journey. Not to mention the excitement around reading Tweets, blog posts and listening to Podcasts recorded live from WWDC, which are the result of the collaboration of many of the people I respect most in the technology reporting and journalism industry. 

As the excitement builds for WWDC, you can sure bet I’ll be awakening shortly before 3 am next Tuesday morning to watch the WWDC Keynote live from my chilly bedroom and I’ll be filled to the brim with kiddish excitement. Sorry, I just can’t help it! 

So begins June of 2015. It’s going to be a great month. 

Samsung - originality and creativity

Oh Samsung. Unsurprisingly, you’ve managed to stuff up again. This time it’s with regards to your latest flagship device - Galaxy S6. 

Reading this report, I began to realise something. Samsung are becoming more conservative and more “Apple-like” with their flagship handsets. Take the Galaxy S6, for example. With this phone, Samsung have backtracked on a lot of features which defined them in previous versions, and have opted instead to make a phone which is much more similar to the iPhone 6, particular in its physical design. With its aluminium and glass body, visual antenna breaks/gaps and a bottom which is almost indistinguishable from that of iPhone 6, Samsung have lost their flair. 

What happened to the Samsung who threw everything at the wall in the hope it would stick? What happened to the makers of the Galaxy S4, with its crazy eye-tracking software which scrolled the page for you as you read, and which allowed you to answer a call without actually touching the device. Where are the minds behind the Galaxy S5 hiding? Those folks made a flagship device waterproof, while hiding a phone inside weird band-aid like casing. You can criticise those things as much as you want for being gimmicks, but they were original and cool. Instead the Galaxy S6 is just as boring as the iPhone 6. Don’t get me wrong - I love my iPhone. But I love it for the unique offerings it has, and not for the features that are already offered by others.

The Samsung of 2013 would’ve released one flagship model to their Galaxy lineup this year - the Galaxy S6 Edge. Instead they didn’t back themselves enough on their innovative new design, and clearly didn’t feel as though they could sell it well enough to have just one model of phone. They played it safe, and didn’t take much of a risk. I think the curved Edge is cool although I cannot see much use for it. However, I know people with the phone and they seem to like it. I’m very open minded about a new feature such as that and would’ve loved to see Samsung back themselves more, and really try to give this product the hard sell. The Samsung I know releases a single flagship device: The Galaxy S6 Edge. The Galaxy S6 stays in the lab. I like Samsung for their crazy ideas. They were amongst the first with larger-screen phones, phones with LTE radios, phones with curved screens/edges. I want to see them continue this trend and not have a “fallback” phone in case things go wrong. Where’s the fun in that?

So please, Samsung, stick to being that crazy uncle we all know and love. People who continue to want premium-feeling phones with an OS that is simple, stable and “just works” will buy an iPhone, and people who want the latest and greatest, the coolest new innovation right from the get-go will buy a Samsung mobile phone. Wacky, yet cool, features in phones are what I want to remember Samsung for - and not as a copycat of Apple. 

And oh, if you’re going to copy the iPhone, at least do it right. Be shameless and relentless with your copy-cat attitude. Otherwise, this is the result.

50k

Today is the day that my flagship app, Daily Steps, surpassed 50,000 downloads.

I don’t usually share my app download numbers, but I’m especially proud of this one. Not only is it my most downloaded app, but the surge in downloads over the last 6 months is due to something so simple. I don’t market my app(s) other than the occasional Tweet and a lot of discovery comes from Google searches as well as organic searches on the App Store. But my decision to make a simple “Today” view Widget for Daily Steps was probably the best decision I’ve made for that app. It has since more than doubled the average daily downloads of the app.

While 50,000 overall downloads would be seen as small for some developers, it’s a proud achievement for me. I don’t develop full time. It’s a hobby and an interest which gets short spans of attention whenever I can find the time.

I’m very happy to have passed this milestone- it’s been a while in the making. Onwards to 100k!

Thank you to my users. You’re all awesome!

Daily Steps is available for download on the App Store here: https://itunes.apple.com/app/daily-steps/id720629415?mt=8

WWDC Student Scholarship - 2016

I love the world of technology. I love the world of technology so much so that I got into programming a few years ago and as a result now have a few apps on the App Store. Those who know me know I’m really proud of one app in particular. 

So, WWDC…

As I’ve been a high school student for the last few years, I’ve never been able to take time out of school in June to attend WWDC. Well, I suppose that’s only part of the reason. The other part is that I’ve never had the finances to do so. 

After some thought, I’ve decided I will apply for a student scholarship for WWDC in 2016. Yes, that’s a year away. WWDC 2015 hasn’t yet happened so I am getting a bit ahead of myself. And no, this probably isn’t a good reason to be writing a blog post. But I am, simply because the thought excites me. 

For years I’ve wanted to attend WWDC, and knowing there’s a possibility that I might next year makes me very excited. I’m aware the chances of winning a student scholarship are slim, but it’s the only way I’d be able to afford to go.

Even if I don’t win a scholarship to WWDC, there’s a chance I’d go just to witness the keynote and to hang out with all the cool people in the industry who attend. It would be an absolute pleasure and thrill to meet people whose work I read and listen to on a daily basis, and whom I admire so much. 

So because I felt like writing about something tonight, I’m posting this. It’s nothing definite, but still remains an open possibility at this point and that’s good enough for me. 

Meanwhile… bring on WWDC 2015!

“...are you getting it?”

When Steve Jobs took the stage over 8 years ago to announce the original iPhone, he pitched it to his audience as 3 devices…

First, it was a widescreen iPod with touch controls.

The second was a revolutionary mobile phone.

And the third, a breakthrough Internet communications device. 

From his keynote:

Well, today, we’re introducing three revolutionary products of this class. The first one is a widescreen iPod with touch controls. The second is a revolutionary mobile phone. And the third is a breakthrough Internet communications device. So, three things: a widescreen iPod with touch controls; a revolutionary mobile phone; and a breakthrough Internet communications device. An iPod, a phone, and an Internet communicator. An iPod, a phone … are you getting it?

Looking back many years later, I’ve now carried a magical device of these sorts for around two and a half years. Not long compared to some, I’m aware. But thinking about this made me review my own usage of my iPhone today. It’s fair to assume that when Steve said what he did on stage, all 3 uses of iPhone were of equal importance to him. 

Years on, I would say I use my iPhone approximately 50% of the time as an Internet communications device. Mainly for instant messaging (iMessage & WhatsApp are the two main services I use for that), social media (Twitter is my main addiction here), keeping up to date with news and sport scores as well as general web browsing. 

Strangely enough, I probably use it 49% of the time as a “widescreen iPod with touch controls.” This almost matches my use for it as an Internet communicator, and mainly consists of listening to music while running as well as a tonne of Podcasts while I travel. Podcasts are my favourite medium of entertainment, and make up a significant portion of my phone use. 

Lastly, I use my iPhone as a revolutionary mobile phone probably <1% of the time. I only make two or three phone calls in a typical month, and rarely send “Text Messages.” (I try to avoid having friends acquaintances who invest in the peasantry of the Android or Windows Phone mobile operating systems.) That being said, I do use my phone fairly often for FaceTime Audio, but I consider that an Internet usage feature and not a “mobile phone” feature. It’s gotten to the point now where I could almost comfortably drop paying for voice & SMS each month, and instead go on a data-only plan. With each passing day, traditional phone features become less and less a part of my life.

So there you have it. In summary, I use my iPhone 50% of the time as an Internet communicator, 49% as an iPod and <1% as a traditional phone. An interesting mix, but I thought it was worthwhile sharing. 

I’m curious as to how everyone else uses their iPhone, and I’d love to hear from you. Feel free to reply to this post, or to reply to me on Twitter (@ZachSimone) with your estimated iPhone usage breakdown.

Tesla introduces Tesla Energy

This truly is the future, kids. And that future is now. 

One day I’ll look back and say “I watched Elon Musk change the world.”

I did not buy Apple Watch. Say it with me.

I did not buy Apple Watch. I did not buy Apple Watch. Say it with me. 

I decided against the purchase of Apple’s newest innovative product: Apple Watch. It took a lot of willpower to restrain myself from pressing the “Pre-Order” button but I think I’ve finally overcome my desire for this object. Now that it’s out in the wild, it’s been brought to my attention that it’s “cool” but certainly not necessary. 

Simply put, I couldn’t justify the price. $579 here in Australia for a 42mm Sport model… that’s ludicrous for something which is meant to be an accessory to my iPhone. With that money I can sell my current iPhone, buy this year’s model and still have money to spare! (I will not be doing this, by the way.) 

Yes it’s a well-designed, desirable product. But the second generation will be even more so and I think I’ll wait until then. Apple Watch does not have enough unique functionality. My Original Pebble can do the large majority of the things Apple Watch can, and it can do them a lot better at that.

As the date of shipment of my Pebble Time nears closer and closer, I become more convinced I made the right decision to buy the Time and wait until the next generation of Apple Watch. 

Apple Watch Sport on the left, Pebble Time on the right.

"Back to school"

Those three words are never too fun to hear.
However this time around it feels a little bit different. It’s almost as though I want to go to school… for I know that every day I spend there now is one day closer to finishing. I’ve enjoyed high school immensely over the last five and a half years, and have certainly not wished it away. But now with only six months remaining I’m ready to finish. Ready to move on.

It almost feels like the calm before the storm at the moment. They next half year will be extremely hectic, with very little time for rest between immense loads of study, work and socialising.

But I’m prepared. I’ve never been disorganised, and that’s going to be a quality which will help me more than ever in the coming months. I don’t get brilliant results, but they’re good. Enough. At the end of the day, my aim is to get into the course I want and I’m on track to do that.

So as I say “back to school” for what will possibly be the last time, I know I’m approaching the beginning of the end. It’s an end that will be rewarding if I make it so – and I certainly have the ability to do that.

See you on the other side.

And just yet another reason as to why I love my Pebble Smartwatch so much. I was kept informed of the score throughout tonight’s NRL match between my mighty Dragons and the Broncos. A thrilling and fantastic win for the mighty Dragons tonight.

How long until I can purchase Grand Final tickets? 😛