I chose the Phone 15 over iPhone 16e

Friday evening, I bought an iPhone 15.  I considered the 16e but I felt that it was an experiment I didn't want to try.

The 60 Hz OLED display and the Apple modem seem okay, but for someone else to try.

 Obviously, the iPhone 15 has been out for about 1.5 years and that's good.  There won't be any surprises. Whichever device I bought, the inane gestures are part of the package.  I've become so accustomed to using the Home button (since the iPhone 4S) that I will have some trouble switching.

 Given that the iPhone 15 was only about US$1.50 more per month for 24 months than the iPhone 16e, it wasn't a difficult choice.  It still has a newer SoC than the 2022 iPhone SE/iPhone 13 but it's only one generation newer.  They only had black and pink phones and I chose a black 256 GB model.  Immediately, they wanted US$99.99 upfront, plus $36 activation fee plus tax.

 AppleCare+ will be quite a bit more expensive.  I'm expecting it to be around $10 higher but it would also be higher for the 16e.

I ordered a Spigen Liquid Air case that I'd been watching for a few months.  It's supposedly 50% off at US$14.99.  I've used one on another phone and it was agreeable without being too heavy or bulky.  It's not as strong as the Ballistic cases I used to buy, but I'm not sure they're in business any longer.  I could throw the phone in those.  I ordered through Amazon, but there aren't many ways to do this now, and without a car, I just can't go to multiple stores looking for a case.

I'm not sure about the phone-to-phone transfer but restoring the phone from my Mac at USB 2.0 speeds takes too long.  I tried to do that for someone who got an iPhone 15 when iOS 17 was new and not stable and it did not work.  I'll make a backup and try the WiFi transfer.  I'm not completely sold on iOS 18, but I suspect I won't be able to replace it with iOS 17.  I'm not ready to update my Mac to Sequoia, but that may happen, as well. 

Wish me luck!

Update 2025.03.10: The phone arrived.  I asked the UPS driver to wait because T-Mobile customers have been receiving empty boxes from UPS.  After the problem I had recently with the local UPS location losing something else, I was concerned.

The Quick Start phone-to-phone transfer did not work.  It managed to transfer my SIM contents to the eSIM but that's about it.

 I backed up my phone Sunday evening and restored to the new phone on Monday afternoon.  It was better than usual.  I remember starting the restore and going to bed.

 The phone is a bit bigger and definitely needs a case because the camera module sticks out.  I wouldn't want to drop it on a table and damage it.  The Liquid Air case has such an unusual feeling.  It's grippy but smooth.  The price was right, also.  It took some time to get everything to where I can use it and shop.  I can't seem to get away from using Face ID, but I'll be damned if I want it.

The phone is faster but I don't see that it's really fast.  There is only a one generation difference between the SoC in the 2022 iPhone SE (A15) and the iPhone 15 (A16). 

Update 2025.03.18: It's been a week.  The iPhone 15 works well enough.  It's not as huge as I thought it would be because of the smaller display of the iPhone SE.  I don't like the pill-shaped opening, but it ill be okay.

 I tried the Kishi V2 controller.  It didn't work with the Nexus app, which is very different from Android.  Then, I looked at the Razer website and they mention the iPhone 15.  I suspect that they mean any USB type-C iPhone, but they only mentioned one as not working.  Maybe, in a few years, they'll have the app working with this port and not the Lightning port.  Oh, second try.  The Kishi V2 works.  The Kishi V2 Pro that comes with the Razer Edge does not.  That's the one with Force Feedback.  Oh, the Kishi V3 works with iPhone 15 and 16.  I'm not spending another US$100.

I haven't played as much but I haven't seen any scrolling problems, so the OLED display must be quick enough.

Update 2025.04.06: I'm thinking that I chose at the correct time.  The tariffs from the White House will have ruined the market for electronics and more.  I noticed that a photographic lens has already risen in price on Amazon.  Prices of Apple's phones may be as high as US$1000 more. 

Update 2025.05.11: I've been playing a few games.  Moonlight Mahjongg that I've been playing since around 2008, on the 2nd generation iPod touch originally, seems just as tough on the iPhone 15 as it was on all of the other devices.  That's odd.  Other games seem okay, but it makes me wonder if Apple went out of their way to push people to the Pro models.

Thankfully, I've gone through the transition period and I can just use the phone now.  Call quality is reasonable, as is the photo quality.  The only thing that really bothers me is that the bezels are so small that the case covers some of the display.  At least, it's not like the Razer Edge where they put some artificial material  to surround the display and cut off part of the display.

iOS 18 is buggy.  I don't have to worry about Apple Intelligence, but still, they really need to work on a superior experience and repair the operating system, and their apps. 

Update 2025.09.15: Having seen the iPhone 17 series, I'm glad I have the iPhone 15.  Tried-and-true products don't cause worry.  Now that the iPhone 15 series has been stopped, it looks as though everyone will get some form of Apple Intelligence, some of it useful.  By 2035, hopefully, Siri will finally work well.

Update 2025.12.14: Apple is trying my patience again.  Getting the USB type-C cable to remain inserted seems to be a challenge.  Google and OnePlus use a special port on the Pixel 6a and 13R, respectively, and the cable doesn't slip out of the socket.  If I sneeze (or practically anything else) near the iPhone 15, it seems to loosen the connection.  You think the $0.50 that Apple saves is worth the headache?

Update 2026.03.02: The iPhone 17e was announced.  I'm still glad that I got the iPhone 15.  Siri is still about the same.  The C1X modem will be replacing the C1.  Better rates will be useful.

Update 2026.03.15: I bought an Anker MagSafe-compatible portable power bank.  The more expensive model was on sale for almost double this one.  It works well enough, but I had to buy a different case.  Considering that I've tried to use my portable power bank with a cable and the cable slips out of the iPhone 15's port, this will be consistently useful.

Switching from a OnePlus 8T to a Google Pixel 6a: What could go wrong?

 Now that the 8T is approximately 3 major versions behind, I wondered if it was time to switch.  I also recently bought a Razer Kishi V2, which for some reasons, doesn't work with it.  Android version 12 seems good but I wonder what kind of a mess the OnePlus/Oppo combination has made.  Things just don't seem quite right.  What better way to get a clear version of Android than from Google.

My last Google-labeled device was the 2013 ASUS-made Nexus 7 tablet with a Snapdragon S4 Pro.  It didn't seem to work very well with Android, but it worked well enough to play games.  It was much better than the previous year's version made by Nvidia.  However, even version 6 of Android just didn't work well and I gave it away.

I've spent time with Android 9, 10, 11, and 12.  They are better than previous versions.

Related to the Razer Kishi V2, there was a deal on the Google Pixel 6a for US$299.99, down from $449.99.  That's a good price for an unlocked phone.  It's slightly less than the US$399.99 I paid for the OnePlus 8T, but that had 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage.  The Pixel 6a has 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage.  Both have an OLED display but the 6a is limited to 60Hz while the 8T goes to 120Hz.  The Google Tensor SoC isn't all that different than the Snapdragon 865, but in all reality, the 8T is a flagship device and the 6a isn't.

Conversion

I charged the 6a and when I turned it on, the instructions asked if I wanted to switch from another phone.  As instructed, I plugged a USB, type-C cable into each phone.  The 6a couldn't see the 8T.  I wasn't surprised.  Sometimes, it's difficult to get the phone to charge.  I connected them wirelessly and that seemed to work.

After some time, it finished.  I wondered how it did a complete backup so quickly.  It didn't do a complete backup.  That's how.

It sent the list of apps, contacts, and more.  The apps were being downloaded immediately, but that took quite a while.  Apparently, the data was not always available.  A few Android apps still cling to Facebook and other methods of storing progress, while Google is clearly available.

It took about a week to get things running the way I wanted, although I'm still not sure everything is where it should be.  The OnePlus 8T is empty now, though.

Thankfully, the 6a has a tiny, compatible SIM slot.  Mint Mobile is hard at work.  I've yet to test communications speeds.

On the other hand, game speeds seem decent.  Scrolling a game in landscape mode is jerky.  Animation is fine but that movement across the width of the display is pretty bad.  Is it the display or the graphics processor or the lack of RAM?

So far, the 6a seems okay for the job, and if it seems not good enough, I only have to remember my first Android smartphone: the LG Optimus S that was forever short on storage.  I had to delete apps to update the operating system.  That phone was US$299.99.

Real Life

Okay, so out in the real world, away from Comcast/Xfinity, it's okay for the internet connection.  I was concerned because I tried it close to work and got 3G-type speeds.  At home, I turned off the WiFi and it was faster than the XFinity connection.

What's a bit disappointing is that the display is dark in sunlight, even on cloudy days.  I turned it up to about 80% of maximum brightness and I could barely see the display.  The display on the 8T was readily visible.  Something else that hurts is that the system continues to drop the brightness level to around 30%, without asking.

The horizontal scrolling jerkiness has become less but is still noticeable.  I suspect that having half the storage and half the RAM isn't helping.  However, the 8T was reporting that 150+ GB of storage were in use, and since I don't have that much, I'm not sure how things are working or what extra the 8T was reporting as used.

Cases

Crave Dual Guard case recommended by Amazon is strong but slippery.  It's slipped off the desk and has slipped out of my hands.  I'm glad the case is tough.

Instead, two Spigen cases caught my attention:

Spigen Liquid Air Armor

Spigen Tough Armor

I have used the Tough Armor case for the OnePlus 8T and it was very good.  I've settled on the Liquid Air Armor case for now, as it is a slimmer case.  It doesn't have the kickstand but I rarely used the kickstand for the OnePlus 8T.

Still, I have to remove the case for the Razer Kishi V2.  It's possible that an adjustment to the pads on the controller will allow the case to be used on the controller.

Update 2024.07.15: Ordered a Razer Edge Wi-Fi model to replace the Pixel 6a.  It's been over a year with this awful phone and I just don't want to deal with the frustration any longer.  Newegg had a deal for US$100 off, putting the final price at about 66%.  The Snapdragon G3X should provide a much better experience.  Even the Snapdragon 865 was better than the Tensor 1st generation.