The iPhone 12 is fantastic. It is by far the best smart phone I have ever owned. But it is not without its limitations or flaws. There is one obvious flaw that deserves mentioning.

When I first received the iPhone 12 I was a little confused. You see, I already knew that I wasn’t getting a charger with it, we had been told this by Apple and it was written on the box (although it should be said that it was in small print, in fact it was in really small print). Where the real confusion set in was after I pulled an included USB C to lighting cable from the box that I could not use with any of my previous USB A chargers or portable chargers for that matter. Immediately I thought, I can fix this, adapter. A simple adapter should have been able to fix all my problems but it wasn’t that easy. You see getting a USB C female to USB A male adapter is not a simple task, especially in store. Perhaps on the fancy internet you can get one but good luck finding one on the very same day you need to charge your iPhone! Without even knowing it I had been baited and hoodwinked.

What was the reason behind this decision? Everyone has their theories. Apple stated that the reason they left the charging device out was because of its efforts to help reduce the company’s carbon footprint. Some people are not convinced this is the case. Out of interest I recently found myself watching a video on YouTube arguing that the real reason Apple left out the charger was simply money. This is not a bad argument and I agree that having to buy a new charger is a pain when it comes to this version of the iPhone. But the problem is somewhat of an illusion. Just because Apple includes the USB C to lightening cable doesn’t mean you have to use the USB C to lightening version of the cable. The fix is quite simple. Take your old cord, that you were previously using with your previous iPhone, and use your old charger to charge your new device. It won’t charge it as fast as the new USB C chargers could (20 watt charger needed) but it will still charge your device. And there you have it. Problem fixed.

Unfortunately this doesn’t help people who have never had an iPhone though, nor does it help you use the cable provided. And that’s the real issue. Apple has mislead costumers into thinking that they need a USB C charger after they were told by Apple in the new iPhone presentation that they didn’t need a new charger at all. There’s no denying it, this is simply one of the poorest and deceptive decisions Apple has yet made. It’s a marketing trick and a behavioural trick. The user has been hoodwinked into thinking they need a new charger while at the same time they’re told they don’t need one at all.

My attitude toward this issue can be best described by Gollum who said “sneaky little hobbitses. Wicked, tricksy, false!”

What could be better than an iPhone 12 for my birthday? That would be an iPhone 12 Pro Max of course. Thanks to my gorgeous wife I was fortunate enough to be on the receiving end of this amazing gift! Thanks needs to be given where thanks is due and now that I have given thanks to my goddess great gift giving wife I can move along to my early thoughts on the iPhone 12 Pro Max.

For perspective purposes I believe that should firstly mention that the phone I was utilising previously was the iPhone XS Max. I had been a user of the iPhone XS Max for over three years and it was, to put it mildly, quite simply an amazing device. If it wasn’t for the gift of the iPhone 12 Pro Max I would have probably held onto the XS Max for another couple of years. Although, it should be said that the XS Max was beginning to wear a little thin. For further perspective it should also be noted that I am an extremely heavy user of the iPhone. Now, when I say I’m a heavy user, I mean to say that I use my device continuously all day, even while at work. Over the years the iPhone has become a vital research tool that I find I cannot live without.

The overall initial transfer experience from the XS Max to the 12 Pro Max took several hours to complete (account logins etc took up the majority of the time). But the initial set up of the iPhone 12 Pro Max was quick and easy. For example, the majority of the data accidentally transferred from my iPhone iCloud backup as I passed through a 5G hotspot on my way to work. My mobile data clearly showed this, a warning flashed up as I parked, “you have used 80% of your available data with 23 days left in your billing cycle”. I was surprised by both the excessive consumption rate and the speed at which the transfer had happened. Gone are the days of setting up each iPhone as a fresh device. This was the old way. Now I can safely say that transferring a 512 GB device from one to another can happen without hiccups using the 5G network to get the job done quickly. Happy days indeed.

After having set up the device I began to play around with the newly improved camera features. The wide and ultra wide angle lens options was something I was looking forward to using in particular. After all, having the ability to get more image in your image is never a bad thing. Finally I could capture moments of action against grand back drops without having to sacrifice perspective. The wide and ultra wide lens are fantastic but the 12 Pro Max’s camera really shines in low light settings. This is a feature that most users will not even have to consider while operating the device as it happens automatically and when it does occur the difference between previous iPhone models is simply outstanding. This low light feature utilises lidar technology to better enhance areas of darkness as well has help to improve the auto focus in low light settings. The results of a low light photograph on an iPhone 12 Pro compared to the iPhone XS is extremely obvious. The iPhone 12 Pro camera is without a doubt one of the biggest advancements of the device yet. But I say yet because there is a development that is bigger still. The step up from 4 gigabytes of ram to 6 gigabytes of ram makes for a massive improvement in the phones ability to handle multiple tasks at any given moment. It has also improved many other aspects of the device such as giving the users the freedom to do just about anything web based any where you can get a decent cell phone connection. For example, I am a self confessed smart phone zombie walker, also known as a smombie, who likes to write and walk at the same time. Better yet you could say that I am a smombie developer as I enjoy walking, writing, developing and publishing all on the go. There is simply no better experience that the iPhone 12 Pro has to offer other than the ability to utilise web publishing apps on foot.

Thinking of buying the new homepod mini? Listen to this first. You won’t regret it .

If you have experienced this issue, you will no doubt understand how frustrating it can be to have a disco in your computer room after the lights are off. I mean, if a disco is what your after, than fine, flash away keyboard! But you shouldn’t deny that fact that you may risk having an epileptic fit if you continue to ignore that fact that your Corsair keyboard needs some love!

Here’s how you fix those annoying flashing white lights on your Corsair keyboard.

Step 1 - unplug the keyboard from the USB slot it is using.

Step 2 - With the keyboard unplugged, press and hold the escape key.

Step 3 - With the escape key still pressed plug the keyboard back into the USB slot.

Step 4 - continue holding the escape key until the keyboard display flashes.

Step 5 - while still holding the escape key unplug the keyboard and release the escape key.

Step 6 - plug your keyboard in!

Now the unintentional disco has ended and your keyboard should be behaving normally.

Hi all and welcome to the very first episode of Can Do! A fancy podcast regarding a not so fancy hobby!

First up! This is over due. What have I been doing these past four months since my last post I hear you ask? Well, heaps actually.

First of all, I bailed on my South East Queensland existence and made my way north. I have since had four different jobs ranging from landscaping to salesperson. I have finally finished settling into my new home with my wife and children. I have finally found new walking tracks and have only just begun to explore the area around me! The possibilities here are endless! And yes, I have found the local cans dispensary.

My can investments have fallen to the way side due to the fact that I needed to cash them in to make the big move. I have been left with no choice but to start again. So here we are. New Year, new can adventure.

Today I made my way to the can dispensary and cashed in a small harvest. First thing that should be noted is that the can dispensary in Bundaberg is toats molates or as the cool kids would say, totally heckers.... It’s busy, and noisy, and smelly but still popular. Mostly the experience I have had visiting the dispensary has been a pleasant one with only one exception. I had one old man push in front, I tolerated it as he looked like he could use all the help he could get.

In total I collected $12.20 from my haul.

So, as of today I have a total of $12.20 cents. That’s 122 units collected and cashed.

I still have all my silver I bought using the previous cans but I am not going to count these in this years tally! I am starting fresh! Any new gold or silver bought with this years can money will be included but not last years hoard, that has since moved into the family treasury.

While walking I have found plenty of cans to harvest. But also while walking I have noticed I am far from the only person harvesting bottles and cans in Bundaberg. But that’s the way the can crumbles I guess, there’s nothing wrong with a bit of healthy competition. Perhaps I will need to get up early, after all, the early bird gets the great northern bottle.

If you happen to enjoy my ramblings about can harvesting please give this episode the thumbs up and subscribe!

Until next time Cheers!

SD cards are formatted in regards to the file allocated table system chosen by the manufacture of the device.

What size SD card can my Zero-X Pulse drone take? Find out