nostalgic upgrade —
returning to the Apple ecosystem.
the head. the body. the soul.
the head.
Some nights ago, I dreamt that life could be lived solely on a phone. So I went out of my way to come back to the Apple ecosystem with the iPhone SE.
When the sales rep placed it in my hands, years spent in San Francisco surged through me. Physically, it illusions itself as the iPhone 6S, a phone I cherished because of its reliability, a phone that took the brute of my excessive amateur photography and lengthy Spotify playlists. It handled key-smashed texts and forever Facetime calls. Such fruitful years overwhelm me.
2015 – 2018
the body.
The 6S had been everywhere. San Francisco and Los Angeles, it learned love in New York, and spent layovers and days over in Japan and Korea. It seemed to know no bounds with the intensity of life I breathed into it.
We always come back. Whether it’s home or love, I chose the SE that now feels inclusive to the already established digital world I created for myself. Between work and play, I have my Macbook (the slim one with the butterfly keyboard) and my iPad Pro (2018 for the 11 inch because an inch matters and a foot is too big for me).
It’s budget friendly. Holds the current A13 bionic chip found in the flagship 11 series. It takes pictures just as well as the 11. It’s snappy and never fails to deliver when I’m in a pinch to scramble-search for information.
Airdrop is a blessing. To cast images, still or moving, across different mediums to get work done faster and better is an immense beauty in how the ecosystem exists, in how it dwells in the wonder of our devices speaking to one another.
Apple excels in ease and simplicity, but it isn’t perfect. The battery life is whack. Straight up. It drains life throwback 2015. I could imagine it takes hard fails during concerts or excursions abroad. I easily hit 30% mid-afternoon slump from a full charge at 6 AM through simple browsing, social media usage, and photo and video.
If I do a Saturday in Seoul, I can’t imagine getting through the whole day without at least 2 pit stops to charge the thing.
the soul.
The weight of it in my hands reminds me of a golden age of sorts. Of people. Of moments. Of the best cries. Of the worst of the worst. Of all the forces life offers to make me feel every pixel in the aspect ratio of a 4.7" screen, full of life, filled with endless possibilities.
It’s good, and it’ll last. Best is basics, and the SE fulfills every portion of that. There’s something that feels so good in the age of face masks to have your thumbprint read to power up such a small slate to get you where you want to go, get you where you need to be.
