iPhone 12

[Eric]

Who all is upgrading to this model? I think I'll be sticking with my 11 Pro Max for another year but am very much looking forward to iOS 14.

 

[jkcerda]

got 11 a few months after it got out so not in any hurry to upgrade

 

[Eric]

got 11 a few months after it got out so not in any hurry to upgrade

I cracked the screen on my XS Max a couple of months back and decided to just upgrade to the 11 then instead of waiting for the 12. I doesn't sound like it'll be that much better but will be interesting to see.

 

[Renzatic]

I seriously considered upgrading my old iPhone 7 to an XS here recently. I've had it for 3 1/2 years. I wanted something new. I wanted something nice. I wanted to spoil myself.

But I realized that I primarily use my phone talking, text messages, and occasionally looking things up on the internet. I asked whether I really, truly needed to spend $1000 on a top tier phone, only to use it for its most bare basic of features.

I decided that, no, I don't. So I bought the 2020 iPhone SE. I figured I'd put the $600 I saved towards an iPad Pro, which I will use to its utmost extent.

...at least that's what I initially thought, then I broke my tooth. The money's going towards that instead.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Not I.

My current phone is the iPhone SE, - I like the size & form factor.

However I will readily admit that I don't much care for smartphones, and am debating returning - eventually - to dumb phones in a post-covid world.

 

[Eric]

I seriously considered upgrading my old iPhone 7 to an XS here recently. I've had it for 3 1/2 years. I wanted something new. I wanted something nice. I wanted to spoil myself.

But I realized that I primarily use my phone talking, text messages, and occasionally looking things up on the internet. I asked whether I really, truly needed to spend $1000 on a top tier phone, only to use it for its most bare basic of features.

I decided that, no, I don't. So I bought the 2020 iPhone SE. I figured I'd put the $600 I saved towards an iPad Pro, which I will use to its utmost extent.

...at least that's what I initially thought, then I broke my tooth. The money's going towards that instead.

This is one of the more practical looks at the iPhone I've seen lately. Do I REALLY need all of those features for texting, basic surfing and the occasional phone call? I'm also really into photography so but use a real DSLR setup for all of that, the iPhone's are more novelty to me even with all their little extras.

Not I.

My current phone is the iPhone SE, - I like the size & form factor.

However I will readily admit that I don't much care for smartphones, and am debating returning - eventually - to dumb phones in a post-covid world.

We just purchased the SE for my mother-in-law who is not at all tech savvy because we could not find any flip phones, they are quickly becoming a thing of the past but you can't knock them for just basic phone calls.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Flip phones?

Love them to bits, and would love to see them restored to favour and use.

 

[Renzatic]

This is one of the more practical looks at the iPhone I've seen lately. Do I REALLY need all of those features for texting, basic surfing and the occasional phone call? I'm also really into photography so but use a real DSLR setup for all of that, the iPhone's are more novelty to me even with all their little extras.

To be fair, the higher end iPhones are among the best point 'n shoot cameras money can buy, but if you want to do anything beyond pointing and shooting, you really have no other choice but to go with a DSLR.

There are those little lens kits you can grab for the iPhones, but I hear they only give middling at best results.

 

[Renzatic]

Flip phones?

Love them to bits, and would love to see them restored to favour and use.

They're still manufactured and circulated, running the gamut between solid and affordable feature phones, and "why the hell would I ever consider spending $1300 on this gimmicky waste of time" foldable smartphones.

You can find a few here.

 

[Eric]

To be fair, the higher end iPhones are among the best point 'n shoot cameras money can buy, but if you want to do anything beyond pointing and shooting, you really have no other choice but to go with a DSLR.

There are those little lens kits you can grab for the iPhones, but I hear they only give middling at best results.

That would be me

 

[Renzatic]

That would be me

Nice!

It makes me wish I took up photography again. Unfortunately for me, I've got other expensive hobbies.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Nice!

It makes me wish I took up photography again. Unfortunately for me, I've got other expensive hobbies.

I hear you.

I commiserate with you.

I suffer from a similar malady, myself.

 

[Eric]

Nice!

It makes me wish I took up photography again. Unfortunately for me, I've got other expensive hobbies.

Good call, it's a really expensive hobby and not really one to make money with unless you're in a niche market. But you're right about the iPhone, as a point and shoot it's still an excellent camera.

 

[Renzatic]

I suffer from a similar malady, myself.

Unfortunately for us, it's nearly impossible to be a frugal nerd these days.

Hell, I just got through spending nearly $450 on two suites of image software the other day. It's getting to the point where I might have to start donating plasma just to keep ahead of it all.

Good call, it's a really expensive hobby and not really one to make money with unless you're in a niche market. But you're right about the iPhone, as a point and shoot it's still an excellent camera.

You know, as an aside, you could make some money where your hobbies and mine coincide: photogrammetry. If you have a fairly fast computer, and a high resolution camera, you could probably make a tidy supplemental income selling models to 3D nerds.

 

[Eric]

Unfortunately for us, it's nearly impossible to be a frugal nerd these days.

Hell, I just got through spending nearly $450 on two suites of image software the other day. It's getting to the point where I might have to start donating plasma just to keep ahead of it all.



You know, as an aside, you could make some money where your hobbies and mine coincide: photogrammetry. If you have a fairly fast computer, and a high resolution camera, you could probably make a tidy supplemental income selling models to 3D nerds.

Interesting concept that I haven't heard of until now. My current camera is 24MP and sometimes opening an image on my imac can take forever once I have PS and Lightroom open, even after I've updated my memory it still lags... this stuff takes some serious horse power

 

[Renzatic]

Interesting concept that I haven't heard of until now. My current camera is 24MP and sometimes opening an image on my imac can take forever once I have PS and Lightroom open, even after I've updated my memory it still lags... this stuff takes some serious horse power

Photogrammetry is even more intensive. You take multiple high resolution shots of an object from multiple angles, run them all through a program that generates a point cloud, then converts it all to hard geometry. Depending on your computer, it can take anywhere from 4 to 24 hours to process an object.

I'd try it out, but I don't have a good enough camera, and also it's scary.

 

[Eric]

Photogrammetry is even more intensive. You take multiple high resolution shots of an object from multiple angles, run them all through a program that generates a point cloud, then converts it all to hard geometry. Depending on your computer, it can take anywhere from 4 to 24 hours to process an object.

I'd try it out, but I don't have a good enough camera, and also it's scary.

And you can't use your computer the whole time I'm guessing? That takes dedication.

 

[Renzatic]

And you can't use your computer the whole time I'm guessing? That takes dedication.

Well, you could, but it'd probably be a janky experience.

The really cool people usually buy a headless machine to process their models.

 

[Alli]

...at least that's what I initially thought, then I broke my tooth. The money's going towards that instead.

Ouch!

However I will readily admit that I don't much care for smartphones, and am debating returning - eventually - to dumb phones in a post-covid world.

Sometimes it’s like I don’t even know you.

I use my iPhone as a camera, and that has become its primary function. Everything else I do on my iPad, and as long as we’ve been in quarantine I barely touch the phone for anything else. Although it does come in handy for finishing text/messenger conversations on the phone while I’m doing something more important (like forums) on the iPad.

I will not be upgrading this year. But I am totally psyched for iOS 14. And the new iPad os - handwriting recognition! And the new watch os. And the new ATV os - picture in picture!

 

[Yoused]

My phone is a seven-year-old LG840 that is about the size of the original iPhone and is somewhat less capable. It is a phone, for voice and text. If I want more, I have an iPad and an iPad mini-4, but, out and about, I look at stuff, not screens.