My favourite toy

No, it’s not Lucky Car.  (He’s far too important to be considered “a toy”.). It’s my 2016 iPhone SE.  

Why is my phone my favourite toy?  Besides being a phone, it’s  an entertainment device full of books, podcasts and audio-books, a digital radio and a portable TV (thanks to BBC iPlayer).  It’s my camera.  I can use it to talk to my sisters and friends in Australia for free via certain apps.  It’s my backup wallet; forgot my purse?  No problem, so long as the internet is accessible.  It gives me access to my bank, reliable news sources (the BBC and the ABC), my emails and my health records.  It’s the SatNav for the car.  It’s my tutor.  (I learn languages with it via Duolingo.)  It’s the loyalty card and shopping voucher holder for the supermarkets I use.  When I travel, it’s my ticket and my boarding pass, as well as my alarm clock.  I use it for research.  It fits into the front pocket of my jeans and into most of my suit-jacket pockets.  It’s the handiest piece of kit that I own and it’s always with me.

Last night, I was overjoyed to discover that my phone will run on IOS 15, so I can put off purchasing a new one for another year or so.  When I do, it’ll probably be the latest model SE, the one with the “home” button and 126gb of storage.  (I always go for the largest data storage available, since it’s so easy to fill up.  My current phone is 64gb and bursting at the seams with podcasts.)

What’s holding me back from upgrading now?  Well, if you read my last post, you’ll know that I won’t upgrade until I absolutely have to, because it’s a waste of resources.  Also, the new SE doesn’t have an audio jack, while Lucky Car doesn’t have Bluetooth.  Yes, there is a converter/jack you can buy, which will enable you to plug headphones/audio cables into the fire-wire slot but that means I can either charge the phone or plug it into Lucky’s radio, not both.  Not useful when I’m using it as my SatNav and it’s draining the battery.  I hope to find a Bluetooth converter for the radio, which will enable me to do both.   (With the current phone, I can charge it while I drive and listen via the radio at the same time, so don’t risk being stranded somewhere with a dead phone battery.) 

- Pam 

PS:  My second favourite toy is my 6-year-old iPad Mini 3 together with its Bluetooth keyboard, upon which this is being typed.  I’ll probably replace “Paddy” first because his IOS stopped at 12.8.something, so apps will eventually get more unstable/problematic to use.