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Visibile Update

Visible Mobile Unlimited everything, no hidden fees Get the unlimited data, messages and minutes you love without hidden fees raising your cost. 99% of the US population covered Visible is by Verizon, so all Visible’s benefits come with America’s most reliable 5G network. All the hotspot usage you can handle There are no data limits on your hotspot usage so feel free to stream wherever you are. 24/7 access to human assistance We don’t have stores, but we can still offer you access to our care team via chat, at any hour. Add a smartwatch for just $5/mo Bring your own Apple Watch, or buy one from us. Read More Visible I’ve been using internet-only telephone service called Visible for three months now… and I feel I’ve experienced all the pain and strain of using their service. The short story is that this is a very inexpensive mobile service . …

I’ve been on Visible since March 2021, and have zero complaints about the service. For the first year, I was still hesitant about switching over entirely (I still had my old phone as backup), but eventually Visible became my main phone.

In fact, when I was shopping for a permanent home internet solution, Visible temporarily became my home internet for a few months. I can tell you, it’s truly unlimited, I was burning about 500GB of data a month!

Anyway, now that we’re two years in Visible, they’re making some upgrades to their network. I’ve known the changes since September 2022. I’ll confess, I wasn’t looking forward to upgrading, because I knew that it meant a price increase, because they were removing the $15 discount called “Party Pay”.

On Valentine’s Day, Visible forced existing users to upgrade to one of their two services: their standard $30 line or a faster “plus” line for $45. I was happy to see that Visible did the right thing and kept my bill to my original $25 by giving existing members a “Value Member Discount.”

Switching and activating a new line, it was painless for me. I’m on an all e-Sim iPhone 14, so while it was creating a new 5G eSim EID number, I lost phone service for about 10 minutes.* I believe if you are on an older phone, Visible may have to mail you a physical SIM card insert and activate (this could take weeks to mail). Most modern phones, starting with iPhone XS (2018) and Google Pixel 4 (2019) have eSim support.

Visible Speed Test (14 Feb 2023)

I tested the 5G Visible Speed as soon as the new line was activated, and it shows about 90mbps download - however, I should point out that during congestion, Visible will slow your speed down. I’ve also read that watching Netflix and YouTube, Visible will slow your connection to SD video... but since I don’t stream videos on my phone so I basically don’t care. If you are going to be upset about SD video you can always pay $15 extra for their Plus service (which has “premium data”). I am not aware that Visible downgrade connection to Spotify or other music streaming services, so music should be fine through your phone.

Anyway, basically, all the limitations (like the 5mbps hotspot) on Visible’s old plan are present here. The only improvement is that, according to Visible, the new network is more reliable.

If you want to try out the service at $30 or $45, please use my referral code 3ng2nr, which basically pays for my phone bill for a month.

PS, there are some things you need to know: you need to know how to remove SIM cards or activating eSim, etc. If you don’t know what a SIM card is or how to get your EID number from your phone, I can’t recommend Visible to you. Visible has a bad reputation for terrible customer services - because it’s almost impossible to get help from them. You’re forced to use their app (it’s required), you’re forced to “chat” (no voice call), and there’s constantly a long wait list. But hey, if you can solve things yourself, Visible remains the best value in unlimited phone and internet. There is no other phone plan that compares to $30 for unlimited data/phone with no data cap.

* Note: I had to restart my phone and restart Visible’s app to get it to work a second time, so you might have to do the same thing if you are having trouble switching over to the new Visible phone line. Make sure you have the latest update and you’re required to be connected to WiFi when Visible is activating the new upgraded line.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

My Movies 4 Pro

Read More DVD I usually put on one of my DVDs (see picture) and sleep mode on my television, the noise it makes gentle puts me to sleep. ...

As many of you guys know, I’m an avid collector of DVDs since 1997. I even bought my first DVD of Reservoir Dogs before I had a DVD player! I love this format, because coming from VHS and Laserdiscs, this new DVD format was smaller and more versatile and collectible.

I had a very large collection of DVD, so it made sense, at least for me, to keep track of them using an application on my computer. And since 2000, I was using DVD Profiler. When they released their software for iOS in 2010, I was one of the first people to buy it. It was great for a while… but unfortunately, the software has not been updated since 2018. There are some bugs in the iOS software that drove me nuts. For example, you couldn’t create a brand new DVD entry - it would only add DVD that exists in their catalog.

Then recently, when I bought my Lenovo Legion Gaming PC, I tried to sync my DVD Profiler on my phone to my computer and my DVD was destroyed through bad syncing. I didn’t have a DVD Profiler backup (my only backup was on my old Fallout Gaming PC). No problem, I guess I can start over. Unfortunately, scanning in the UPC of DVDs and Blurays was not great on DVD Profiler. It took forever for the camera to focus on the UPC, it would be impossible to scan in my entire collection.

The final straw happened on Friday, when nothing worked on DVD Profiler, because their servers was offline. It was time for me to move on.

Looking online for alternatives, I came across My Movies 4 Pro for $15. There is a ‘demo’ version for you try out, if you aren’t convinced. The demo only lets you add 50 entries.

So far, it’s a massive improvement over DVD Profiler. The UPC scanner is amazingly fast, and if you have a lot of films, like I do, this will save you a lot of time.

My Movies 4 is also available for the PC, but it actually works a little differently on the PC. It’s more of a movie streaming application that uses Windows Media Server… so I recommend just using the My Movies 4 app as a standalone app.

My only complaint is that My Movies 4 may take forever to “synchronize” with their servers. It takes a long time sometimes because the app takes a moment to download the high resolution front and back cover of the DVD or Bluray. Since I set my app to the highest resolution, it takes a moment for everything to sync. When it syncs, the app won’t allow you to add anything, so you’ll just have to wait until it is all downloaded.

The beautiful thing about the syncing process is that any DVD/Bluray that you add on your phone will magically appear on your iPad. This works much better than the old DVD Profiler, which requires you to manually sync to your PC (since the database is stored on your local computer).

For the most part, My Movies 4 catalog works well. Sometime I do run into a film that is not on their database. You can manually add in the UPC and photos of the cover artwork, so it works as you would expect (you couldn’t do that on DVD Profiler if you have a new iPhone).

Pro Tip: If you own a lot of discs, set the scanner to Multi-Scan and also set the Country to “All”. This is especially useful if you own a lot of movies from other countries. I wish I had known this when I started rescanning my collection!

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

iPhone 14 Plus, eSIM, and Visible

Read More Visible I’ve been using internet-only telephone service called Visible for three months now… and I feel I’ve experienced all the pain and strain of using their service. The short story is that this is a very inexpensive mobile service . …

So, I recently bought the new iPhone 14 Plus, which is a 6.7 inch larger iPhone, but not “Pro” level. A quick review: the iPhone 14 Plus is the same as the iPhone 13, only slightly bigger. I wouldn’t recommend upgrading. I bought the new one so I can gift the old phone, but otherwise, there’s really no need to upgrade.

iPhone 14 Plus

Going to the new iPhone 14 was a little tricky, because the iPhone 14 do not have a physical SIM tray. So you can’t just yank out your SIM card and put it into the new phone. Instead, you have to use eSIM. eSIM are less convenient, but it’s more secure. For example, someone can steal your phone, they can’t just do a “SIM Swap” (it’s horrible if your passwords are tied to your phone).

The other thing about going all eSIM is that it has better anti-water/moister protection.

The last benefit about eSIM is that a phone company can just activate a new phone number/account in a few seconds. In the past, if you wanted to open a new line, they would have to mail you one of their SIM cards.

Having said all that, I truly wish there was a physical SIM option.

For what it’s worth, activating the Visible service, using eSIM, on the new iPhone 14 Plus was relatively easy. You have to key in some unique numbers from Visible and you have to tell them the phone’s EID. The only trouble I ran into was that I needed internet for the new phone to activate properly (as the old phone was disconnected once you transfer to the new phone).

Anyway, since getting rid of my DSL home internet earlier in September, I’ve been looking into other unlimited cellular plans with tethering or hotspot options.

If you are in the same boat of getting rid of your home internet, I’ve broken down some of the options available.

Right now, I’m quite happy with Visible, with both the pricing and the ability to use hotspot to multiple devices using my iPhone. Even though there is a speed cap of 5mps, I don’t actually mind this, as I was used to speed slower than 3mpbs on DSL. It is fast enough to stream YouTube and get my email… and it’s free unlimited hotspot. If you don’t want to hotspot, you can always plug in your phone to your computer and it automatically will share internet with the computer.

Anyway, looking at the other phone companies, none of them comes close to offering unlimited hotspot. Most of these service cap at 5GB, 25GB, or 50GB. The only true “unlimited hotspot” on the list, are Google Fi and AT&T… but you are going to have to pay through the nose at $65 or $85 a month. With AT&T, you do get HBO Max… but I don’t think it’s worth $85.

To sum it up, If you are looking for an unlimited data/phone line, based on features and pricing, I would recommend Visible. I’ve used the service for over a year… and for the past two months, the phone has become my home internet as well. I have had no issues with it, so far.

In November, or so, I will have to switch over to one of Visible’s two new plans: Unlimited $30 and Unlimited Plus $45. Since I’ve been enjoying the unlimited internet so much, I may spend the extra $45 because I’m interested in the new Ultraband 5G speed… plus some limited roaming in Mexico and Canada.

	Name	Plan	Price	Network	Limitations and Notes
	Visible	Unlimited	$30	Verizon	Hotspot speed is capped at 5mbps One connection at a time* * iPhone does not have this restriction
	Google Fi	Unlimited Plus	$65	T-Mobile Sprint	Hotspot up to 10 devices Data slow after 50GB 100 GB of Google One
	Tello	Unlimited	$30	T-Mobile	Speed slowed to 2G after 25GB
	Mint	Unlimited	$40	T-Mobile	Hotspot is limited to 5GB Data slow after 35GB
	US Mobile	Unlimited Premium	$45	Verizon	Speed slow after 100GB Hotspot limited to 50GB eSim International Data: 10GB
	AT&T	Unlimited Elite	$85	AT&T	Includes HBO Max Speed slow after 100GB Hotspot speed slow after 30GB

Read more Technology.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Elden Ring

Read More Demon’s Souls I was a bit surprise to hear that the 2009 Gamespot Game of the Year went to Demon's Souls. What was so surprising is that the game was hardly marketed here, I mean I didn't really see any advertisement for the game nor did I read any reviews …

Yes, I’m finally playing Elden Ring, the game that literally everybody was playing in February 2022. The game went on sale on disc, so picked it up. I popped in the disc, expecting to play the game. Guess what? You can’t just put in a disc and play the game.

The game required a 50GB download/update. This might be more common than you think, as sometime the game on the disc is actually not complete. For example, if there are cut scenes or files that are too large to fit on the disc, you need to download the missing components. It just basically suck, because you can’t really play games offline.

Having said that, I’ve been offline and playing the Elden Ring game, after that one-time 50GB update. In recent news (as of today): “Microsoft is making it easier to play games on your Xbox Series X, even if it’s offline — as of the 2208 update released earlier this month, you won’t be forced to do an online compatibility check to play a game from an Xbox One disc. Instead, you can just pop the disc in, install the game, and play; no internet connection required.”

That works out just fine for me, as currently I’m only connecting online via my iPhone’s internet connection on Visible Mobile.

As for Elden Ring, playing at first was overwhelming, as the game is open world and you can wander where you like. I like that sort of game play, but I found myself getting killed a lot and I didn’t really understand all the mechanics in leveling up or farming for “souls”. I’ve played other “souls” games, starting with Demon Souls on the PS3, so I’m familiar on how they work. To be honest, I’m surprised that this sort of role-playing/action game is beloved by so many gamers… as they are very hard game. They’re so hard, that I’ve never beaten any souls games. I like playing them, but man, I generally suck at my timing for defending and attacking.

What drew me into Elden Ring is that the software developer, FromSoftware, hired George R. R. Martin (Game of Thrones) as writer. There’s actually not much of a story, but it’s clear that FromSoftware wanted a Western perspective/writing style to the game to appeal the Western market.

Anyway, I’ve been watching some masters at the game explain how you can level up faster and how they did it. It’s fascinating. You can go from level 1 to 100 in just an hour. There are obviously some exploits, but I didn’t think it was cheating.

Right now, I’m at level 15 and I’m still learning all the basics. I still suck at defense, but I’m enjoying what I already put into the game. From this point, I’m just going to take it easy and explore the world.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Weekend Gamer: Abandoning Home Internet

Read More Visible I’ve been using internet-only telephone service called Visible for three months now… and I feel I’ve experienced all the pain and strain of using their service. The short story is that this is a very inexpensive mobile service . …

I no longer have home internet. I was paying $35, then $50 a month, for home internet with a DSL company, which I won’t mention its name… but they’re nationwide. Internet was slow at 3 mbps, but it was fine for what I was doing. I wasn’t streaming HD videos (I still buy Blurays) or doing live streams.

For the first time, I decided to abandon home DSL internet. All this was made possible when I was getting unlimited data on my phone, via Visible, a company by Verizon. I know many people have problems with Visible, but I’ve been using them for over a year, and it works for me.

Of course, leaving home internet, there will be some drawbacks. None of my “internet of things” devices will work correctly now. For example “smart screens” or internet security cameras. You can still access the camera using a local network (that’s not connected to the internet), as long as you are signed into that local network. Still, it’s not convenient and these constantly connected devices won’t work properly.

The other drawback is that Visible only allows you to connect one device to your phone, using your phone’s hotspot or tethering method. I suggest you read Visible’s website for details about its hotspot restrictions…. however, you can get around the one device limit by using an iPhone (Apple uses a different method to connect devices that bypass Visible’s restriction). So in November 2021, I purchased the iPhone 13, and have been very happy with both the device and my ability to connect multiple devices.

Speaking of hotspot, there is a 5 mbps cap when you tether. That’s still faster than my old DSL service! I found that, especially when I upload files, it’s much faster than DSL.

Pricing for Visible, right now, is $25 a month for unlimited talk, text, and data. Starting in October, they are changing their prices to $30 or $45, which I previously mentioned in Sep 2022. Hey, even at the more expensive $45 (which promises a faster network and expanded network), I might be willing to pay more, especially if now I am paying for both a phone and personal internet combined. Even at $45, it would still be cheaper than my ex-DSL service.

My other concern is that my Xbox always want a connection. I’ve taken precautions and have ended my Xbox Game Pass in August 2022. All the games I want are on the system, and if I need to buy new games, I will have to buy a disc. Besides, it’s been proven that buying discs (especially used games), they are much, much cheaper than buying a digital copy.

In a few months, I’ll keep you updated if my experiment goes horribly wrong or if this is be the right move for me. I sometime feel like I don’t want to put all my eggs in one basket, so I will have to look around for some other alternative solution to home internet. Any suggestions?

-- Weekend Gamer

PS, by the way, Visible is not the only unlimited data in town, there’s Tello, at $30 a month for unlimited data. Tello’s restrictions is that if you go over 25GB, they throttle you to 2GB. Mint offers unlimited for $30 a month, but you have to pay 3 months in advance ($90) and they cap your hotspot to only 5GB.

If I’m really desperate to have my internet photo frame or home security cameras to connect to the internet, I would probably buy a Tello line and leave that phone at home, plugged in with the hotspot turned on. Tello doesn’t have restrictions on how many device can connect to the hotspot... so that might work. Those home security cameras probably won’t even go over their 25GB limit. Perhaps I will look into buying a Tello line in the future to see if that might work out for me.

Read more Technology.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Site Update: Visible to remove Party Pay

Read More Visible I’ve been using internet-only telephone service called Visible for three months now… and I feel I’ve experienced all the pain and strain of using their service. The short story is that this is a very inexpensive mobile service . …

I’ve been using Visible since May 2021, and I have to admit, I love it. For $25 a month, I got unlimited talk, text, and, most importantly, unlimited data. It made me re-think the way I use the internet on my phone, since I’m no longer watching how much data I’m using. You basically use the phone like you were on WiFi, like allowing Google Photos to upload original image sizes or downloading massive Podcast or stream Vudu or Amazon Prime.

The best part is that of the price, you can tether or use your phone as a Hotspot, so one other device can use the internet (for example, my iPad or laptop).

That’s not to say that Visible (a division of Verizon) doesn’t have their issues and problems. I mentioned that this is entirely a “do it yourself” service, if you need tech support, you’re pretty much out of luck.

Still, if you set it up, I think $25 for an unlimited phone service is an amazing deal. You are not going to see that kind of low price from any phone company.

So, some bad news.

One of the key thing I liked about Visible was their Party Pay option, which gives you a $15 discount, if you’re party of a large group. Think “Family Plan”, but none of the party is related to you. Visible will be removing the Party Pay option in October 18, 2022, as they introduce two phone options: a regular service ($30) and a “plus” service ($45).

Look, even an increase to $30 (a $5 increase for me), I think is fine, as long as the service remains the same. I fear that the $30 will be an inferior version of the “plus” service, that’s what I’m afraid of… which means that the service will be a $20 increase for me if I need that “plus” service. $5 is acceptable, $20 is not okay with me.

You can read about it on their website:

Existing members will be required to get a new SIM card to take advantage of all these capabilities. All members, new and existing must update their device software before activating their new Visible or Visible+ plan. Devices that are currently certified for use with Visible services including our new plans are listed in the compatibility checker.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

iPad Magic Keyboard for my iPad Pro 12.9

Read More iPad I’ve been living with the iPad 12.9 Pro (2017 Model) since March 2018. After using the iPad daily for about two months, here are my thoughts …

I caved in and bought a used iPad Magic Keyboard for my iPad Pro 12.9 (2020). You see, between my Asus Electropunk Laptop and iPad, there is no comparison in terms of portability. The laptop weighs a ton, I never want to travel with it. Instead, if I need to do some work, the iPad and Keyboard combination works best for me.

Previously, I was using the iPad and Keyboard Folio, which is fine, but I didn’t exactly love the typing experience. Plus over time, the Folio is showing some wear and tear.

The shocker of the iPad Magic Keyboard is that it costs $350 new. This is really an insane amount of money to pay for a keyboard… and I felt like it was the barrier to entry for those in the market for a keyboard for their iPad. There are many third party keyboard maker, but I decided to go with the Magic Keyboard because it uses the smart connector.

After playing around with it, like putting the keyboard light brightness to the max, I was shocked that within a few minutes, I went from 100% charged to 84%! I turned off the light on the keyboard immediately. Wow, what a battery drainer.

In the few minutes since I started typing this review, I started noticing the battery quickly dropping. It went from 84% earlier to 81% in a few minutes… Judging by the battery drain, I feel like you need to plug this in if you intend to do a lot of work on the iPad.

The best perk about this keyboard is that you can assign the four physical button at the bottom-left of the keyboard. The four keys are Globe, Control, Option, and Command. I’m a PC user, so using the CMD+C or CMD+V is annoying to me, because of the layout. I’m just used to the Ctrl key to be the furthest left of the PC keyboard. Thankfully, you can reassign the Globe key to CMD, making a better keyboard (in my opinion).

I also like the mousepad, but it doesn’t always work with all the applications. For example, it doesn’t seem to work with Google’s Keep. I am assuming it will work better with native Apple Applications, such as Safari or their iOS Mail App.

The other thing you should know about the Magic Keyboard is that it is a little heavier than the folio. Weight may be necessary so it can anchor the “floating” iPad. As for versatility - it is only a keyboard or it can only close to protect the iPad. That’s all you can do with it.

If you need to use the iPad as a tablet, like reading digital comic books, you have to remove it from the keyboard. I think it was intentionally designed this way… which I don’t like. You see with the Folio, you can just fold the keyboard all the way to the back and use it as a Tablet, if you don’t need the keyboard.

In the end, if you need a keyboard for your iPad, I would recommend either the Folio or the Magic Keyboard, it just depends on how much money you want to spend. I have to admit, typing on the Magic Keyboard is 100% better than on the Folio.

I think my biggest concern is the battery drain. It’s already at 70%, as I finish writing this.

Update: I thought perhaps it’s just a fluke that the keyboard was draining the iPad’s battery like water (even if you have the lights on the keyboard turned off)… but after using it for a week, I can confirm that you need to plug in the keyboard if you intend to type a lot. If you are not using the keyboard, obviously it won’t draw power.

The magnet is very strong and can really hold the iPad in place. You can rock it around in a moving vehicle and know that it won’t go flying off.

PS, the other cool thing about this keyboard is if you need to lock your iPad, you can use the keys: CTRL+CMD+Q and it will lock the iPad right away.

Photo below is my Magic Keyboard with Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli (from Mighty Skins) and my iPad with Death Dealer by Frank Frazetta from Skinit. I’ve previously ordered a Skinit for my Xbox Series X, and I love it. The printing looks very good and it seemed durable.

Apple Magic Keyboard and iPad Pro 12.9

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ @weheartmusic

Weekend Gamer: Razer Kishi Controllers

Read More Razer I probably won’t be buying any of those accessories, simply because I’m not a fan of the color scheme and I already own great products from Razer or Corsair, and they serve their purpose. … Genshin Impact According to some people, Genshin Impact is the biggest game in the world. I don’t normally play “phone games”, but I recently upgraded my iPad and wanted to check out the game …

I just bought the Razer’s Kishi Controllers (for the iPhone) on clearance from Target for $15. This is a massive saving, considering when it was originally released, it was $50 or more.

While I do enjoy the physical buttons, the instant inputs, the ability to move around without your fingers covering the screen … I find it hard to really recommend the product to anyone.

First of all, only a very few games works with the controller… and the game must be in landscape. Second, the controller will only work with a naked iPhone (no case) and must be physically connected via the iPhone dock.

Again, I don’t really see myself doing too much gaming on the controllers. When would I have the time to break out the Kishi controllers and adapt it on your phone, if I only need to game for a few mins, while waiting in line.

I’m glad I didn’t pay full price for this thing, but having said that, I do somewhat have buyer’s remorse for a product that I probably won’t be using that much.

The good news is that the Kishi will work with two very popular games: Diablo Immortal and Genshin Impact. I might have to dig around to see if there are other games that will work with the Kishi.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Diablo Immortal

Read More Blizzard I got the demo from PC Gamer in 1996 and was hooked. I love the first game, and have since bought all the Diablo games, including Diablo II and Diablo III (despite my protest in 2012). Originally I refused to buy ..…

Blizzard’s “Do you guys not have phones?” game, Diablo Immortal launched on iOS and Android on June 1st. The PC version followed soon after.

I have tested the game on iPhone 13, iPad (2020), and the PC. I have to say, the best experience, at least for me, is on the PC. To think that Blizzard wasn’t going to release the game on the PC, but changed their mind because they feared that gamers were going to emulate the game on the PC anyway. The main reason why the game is superior on the PC is that my PC has the power and RAM to run the game well… plus you have physical buttons.

So far, I actually like the game. I think it’s a first class game, as only Blizzard can deliver. Personally speaking, it’s really easy to level up in the game. In about four hours of game play, I’ve leveled up to 20, not even breaking a sweat. There is a reason for this, because Blizzard wants you to beat the base game so that you’ll spend money for the post-game or fight for ranking. Of course, I’m not planning on spending money to play the game… but Blizzard makes it impossible to ignore the store.

Again, I’m one of the few people that actually like Diablo Immortal. Especially for a “free” product, I will put up with the game design and questionable advertisements whenever you go to the store.

I have heard that at some point in the game, you cannot really progress unless you spend money. I haven’t reach that point yet… but I know it’ll happen.

Now that I’m tired of playing Diablo II and Diablo III… this Diablo Immortal game will tie me over until Diablo IV, which I absolutely cannot wait for.

Yours,
Weekend Gamer

Diablo Immortal on iPhone 13 (June 2022)

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Apple Watch SE

Read More Apple The iconic iPhone 7 has been announced by Apple yesterday (September 7th). It is the latest and greatest from the company, and they are getting a lot of negative feedback about the lack of a headphone jack ....

I didn’t intend to get it, but after contemplating about the Black Friday prices for the new Apple Watch SE for about $200, I couldn’t pass it up. As you know, starting last year, Apple introduced their “budget” Apple Watch, the SE, which strips out some features.

What’s missing from the SE is a faster/latest processor, no ECG and blood oximiter sensors, no always-on display, and lacking UWB or 5GHz Wi-Fi communication capabilities. If you absolutely have to one of those things, then you need to buy the new Series 7.

My biggest complaint is that you must have an iPhone to use with the Apple Watch. I believe you can only have one active watch at one time, so if you own multiple Apple Watches, it only works with just one.

The other complaint is that battery life is absolutely bad. You need to charge it every day. To be fair, most smart watches requires you to charge once a day. My Amazfit GTR 2 advertised battery life of 7 days, but in reality, it’s really only two or three days. So battery life just sucks all across the board.

My last complaint is there aren’t many watch faces officially available from Apple. I’m assuming that it will get better over time. There are many third party watch face makers, but none of them are very good. The really good one costs subscription fees, which I would rather not pay for. If they sell individual face for, say $1, I wouldn’t mind paying for one or two… but unfortunately, there’s not many choices.

Otherwise, I’m pretty happy with the new watch. I feel it’s “fast enough” for my needs, and it has all the health tracking abilities in other smart watches. My two health focus is sleep tracking and heart beats… but obviously, you can use it to track various other things, like standing up or walking/running.

One of the coolest thing going from my Amazfit watch to the Apple Watch is that Apple has some applications built for WatchOS… which Amazfit some some Android Watches don’t have. For example, I used the calculator on my watch (for tipping) and showed up the compass on the watch to my brother.

Another perk in the Apple brand that you may not be aware of, is all the many, many, many accessories you can get for the Apple Watch. Need a new wrist band ? There are a million bands out there. Don’t want to pay $100 for Apple’s Milanese Loop ? There are knock-offs you can get for $15 (which is exactly what I did for a similar Milanese Loop at Walmart).

So, if you’re keeping track, I’m officially 100% into the Apple Echosystem, owning the new iPhone 13, iPad Pro 12.9 (2021), Apple TV (HD), and, now, the Apple Watch SE (2021).

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com