An escape from the walled garden
For as long as I can remember, consumer technology has been a passion of mine. From getting so excited about the N-gage QD in the 4th grade, to spending all of my time after school watching youtube videos by the likes of MKBHD, Jon Rettinger and Matts Macintosh, you could say it was quite the obsession. Hell, it was my love for consumer tech that got me my early jobs at Tech in Asia and The Jakarta Globe.
Given that backstory, it's safe to assume that I have considerable experience with a wide variety of systems and ecosystems. My love for tinkering started around 2008, when I discovered Linux through Ubuntu 8.04. I was thrilled by the idea of a customisable desktop operating system, so I clicked download immediately. After an overnight wait thanks to my 384kbps broadband connection, I used Nero to burn it onto a CD-R and installed it on the family computer.
From then on, I jumped between any operating system I could get my hands on. At this point, I was still using either a Nokia or Sony Ericsson before eventually joining my peers on the BlackBerry side of things. I also dabbled with Apple products, from multiple iPod Nanos to various iPod Touch models, and built several Hackintoshes with the help of my fellow nerd and partner in crime (you know who you are).
Given my affinity for trying new things and tinkering, I never really felt loyal to one brand or ecosystem. That was, at least, until Android came around. In early 2011, I was in the market for a new phone. Android wasn't popular back then while BlackBerry still dominated, especially in my circles. The idea of not having a BlackBerry meant you’d probably be left out of any plans or group chats. Not that big of a deal for a secluded introvert like me. I decided to visit the phone store, wander around, and play with all the devices when a quirky, pudgy little brick caught my eye: the LG Optimus One running Android 2.3 Gingerbread. It was different, exciting, and most importantly, within budget. I took the plunge, and that marked the beginning of my true loyalty to an OS.
From the Optimus One, I eventually upgraded to several Android devices, including but not limited to the Galaxy Nexus, OnePlus One, HTC One M7, Xiaomi Mi4c, Nexus 6P, Xiaomi Mi A1, and the OnePlus 6. I’m pretty sure there were more Android devices in between that I’m forgetting. My loyalty did waver a bit when I had an iPhone 6 Plus for about 3 months and an iPhone 7 for almost 8 months, but I always found my way back to Android.
On the desktop side, it was different. I had found myself frustrated with the constant bugs and performance issues of Linux and Windows and yearned for something stable. In August 2014, I bought my first Mac, a 13-inch MacBook Air. That computer sparked my love for Apple, especially how seamless and "magical" it was. Well, that and the indoctrination of listening to podcasts like ATP and Connected. That laptop ended up being my workhorse throughout university. I used to carry an HDMI cable (and a Mini DisplayPort to HDMI dongle) with me all over university so that I could plug into the lab monitors and avoid using the old Windows 7 machines. After graduating and starting at GOODSTUPH, I picked a fully specced-out 13-inch MacBook Pro as my computer. At that point, I didn’t think I’d ever be pulled away from macOS. (spoiler alert: I use a Linux PC as my main workhorse now).
Around this time, I was using my OnePlus 6, which I loved and still have. However, I started to get a little frustrated. The OS was great, but apps were buggy, and videos of my cats were never as smooth as I wanted them to be. In early 2020, I decided to bite the bullet and switch to iOS. This time felt different compared to when I tried the 6 Plus and the 7. It wasn’t curiosity driving me to iOS; it was frustration with Android, which was new.
I got an iPhone SE (2020) and loved it. However, after 2 years, I was charging the phone almost 5 times a day. I loved the small form factor but was tired of the range anxiety that came with it, so the iPhone 13 Mini was the only logical upgrade. At that point, I dove right back into the ecosystem. I already had a MacBook Air M1 – which was not my primary computer but probably best left for another post. The next device I used the most was my TV, so I picked up a used Apple TV 4K (from my aforementioned partner in crime). I loved it, especially coming from a Chromecast. Eventually, I got an Apple Watch Series 8, which I'll admit didn’t feel all that different from previous wearables I had (Moto 360, Pebble + Pebble Time, Mi Band 1 & 2, Huawei Band 4). I also picked up AirPods Pro, which were great.
At that point, I was fully bought in and living comfortably in my walled garden. Copying text on my laptop allowed me to paste it on my phone, I could switch between my Mac, iPhone, and Apple TV using the same headphones, and I could log into NBA League Pass on my Apple TV with Face ID on my phone. It was all swell and great. Happily ever after, right? Well, not so fast.
It's now the middle of 2024 in our storyline, and things are starting to go awry. I’m charging my 13 Mini around 3-4 times a day, even with moderate use. When I take my AirPods out of the case, even after only using them once, there’s about a 70% chance one of the pods is dead while the other is at 99%. Something had to change.
Also, I felt like trying out a bigger screen phone wouldn’t be so bad, but I wasn’t sure. I knew I wanted better battery life. I was close to getting the iPhone 15 Plus. Good camera, good battery, and while I would've liked 120Hz, I wasn’t going to drop an additional $1000 for the Pro Max. Then WWDC came around, and we found out that Apple Intelligence wasn’t coming to the regular 15 line. So now what? Wait for the 16? Let me preface this by saying I probably wouldn’t ever use Apple Intelligence much. However, it left a bad taste in my mouth. I don’t fully blame Apple, because AI has advanced so rapidly and they plan their hardware specifications years in advance, but it still embodied the whole Apple vibe of "We can do what we want and people are still going to buy our products because we’re Apple." It’s fair, I probably would make the same decision if I were in their shoes. As a customer, though, it didn’t feel great.
At this time, I also had my OnePlus 6 lying around, so I decided to root it and install the Pixel Experience ROM. It was only 3 versions of Android ago when I got frustrated, but Android 14 blew me away. The animations were smooth, it was fast, functional, and beautiful. Maybe it was the right time, or maybe it was just my mindset, but that sealed the deal. It was time to break free of the walled garden.
It wasn’t going to be easy. I had a lot of Apple products in my life. I knew the watch and AirPods would be easy to leave behind, but the TV and phone scared me. I knew I wouldn’t get rid of the Mac, because it was my work-from-the-couch and travel computer. That and the fact that Windows sucks, and no laptop with Linux support has comparable battery life and performance. I had done a few months of research at this point and knew two things were holding me back on the TV side: while I have a very new Samsung TV with Tizen built-in, two main apps were missing. Jellyfin, for streaming content, and NBA League Pass. The fact that there isn’t an NBA League Pass on Tizen blows my mind. I know I could’ve gotten the Chromecast 4K, but adding Ethernet to that setup is a pain, and I’m not relying on Wi-Fi. You know how sometimes people figure things out and realise they were geniuses? I figured out I was being an absolute dumbass. I have an Xbox Series S sitting right next to the Apple TV. Its already plugged into ethernet. It runs all the apps. I didn't like that CEC didn't work with the Samsung remote, but turns out it did and I just had to configure it. That realisation was my second-stage-ignition moment, and finalised the escape from the walled garden.
I did the research and settled on the Nothing Phone (2a), a spiritual successor to the OnePlus line; simple, minimal, clean. I was going to get the Soundcore Liberty 4nc to replace the Airpods Pro, but the Nothing came with the CMF Buds which work completely fine. Sometimes, even better than the Airpods Pro.
I only ever used the Apple Watch to track my gym workouts, pickleball and my walks, which the Xiaomi Smart Band does as well. The Xiaomi band also only has to be charged once every 13-ish days. LocalSend is even better than AirDrop, so I don't miss that at all.
It's been about a month now, and I don't miss the Apple ecosystem at all. I have two Apple TVs, Airpods Pro, an iPhone 13 mini and an Apple Watch S8 sitting in a box decaying right now. I could sell them all, and probably should. I keep thinking: "I might need them one day". However, that's hoarder mentality, I need to stop that. I have a trip to Japan coming up, and I plan on using the 13 Mini in Airplane Mode just as a camera, because the Nothing's camera is passable but not great. The results of that trip will determine whether I keep the iPhone around as a camera, or not. I also use iCloud+ as my email provider for my custom domain, so I need to figure that out as well.
I guess that means this blog post will get an update that follows. Or not.