My first smartphone growing up was a double hand-me-down iPhone 4. My mom switched to Samsung shortly after and took me with her. I’ve moved from Samsung to Samsung and have used the Samsung Note 9 for the last few years and have enjoyed it. Recently, my mom moved back to iPhone, and I was due for an upgrade, so now I’m moving over to the other side with an iPhone 12 mini. I’ve wanted to go back to Apple for a few years now, and here are some of the things I am most and least excited about.
iMessage Games
I’ve been jealous since the middle school of my friend who would get to play 8 ball, Uno, basketball, and other games with each other. I may be a little late to the fun, but I’m excited to challenge my friends to matches and then yell at them when I lose.
Stylus
Right now with my Note 9, I have a built-in stylus that makes my life so much easier. I use it for making silly memes to send my friends, designing cross stitch patterns, and playing games. It even functions as a button, letting my take pictures on my camera from a distance. I’m going to miss having a stylus handy at all times and getting to use it.
Message Reactions
Whenever my Apple users react to one of my messages, it never shows up properly for me. Instead of getting a heart or an emoji, I get a message saying that my message was reacted to. I’m also looking forward to ending texts with effects, getting balloons and confetti when someone says happy birthday, and getting simply like or laugh at messages.
Moving Files and Images
I’m not excited about the hassle of moving everything from one operating system to another. It’s going to be interesting making sure all my notes, calendar dates and pictures move without getting messed up. Hopefully, the transition will be smooth, but I’m prepared to spend a while moving things manually if needed.
Widgets
Customizing my home screen is one of the things I’m most looking forward to. Getting to change the app faces and add widgets looks like so much fun. I’m excited to make my own designs, and my biggest problem is deciding what theme I want it to be.
Watches
Right now I have the Samsung Gear 3, which I love. I’m in the process of considering if I want to keep using the Gear, which I’m used to, or move to the Apple Watch, which will be more accessible and have matching features. The shape and style of the Gear are familiar to me, but there are more functions to the Apple watch that would be useful, once I’m used to them.
My new phone should arrive any day now, and I’m looking forward to the switch with cautious optimism. There are plenty of ups and downs, and I’m hopeful the highs will outweigh the lows.