A week using an Apple iPhone -- An Android user's perspective

[james_s]

But you can get all the big letters on the big screen now.

Same as I run my laptop which is 1920x1080 at 150% zoom

bd139 special incoming. Can you read me now!?

i can read it when it’s this big 

I find it to be perfectly readable at the default zoom, this is how it looks on my SE, it's comfortable from a normal viewing distance.

[Halcyon]

I find it to be perfectly readable at the default zoom, this is how it looks on my SE, it's comfortable from a normal viewing distance.

That's one thing I will mention; On my "week on Apple iPhone", I found the default font to be quite large on the SE. I had to turn it down to minimum. This is neither a criticism or compliment, just an observation. Even on my Android I prefer smaller fonts, mainly so if I'm on a train or around people, they can't read my screen.

[Mr. Scram]

That's one thing I will mention; On my "week on Apple iPhone", I found the default font to be quite large on the SE. I had to turn it down to minimum. This is neither a criticism or compliment, just an observation. Even on my Android I prefer smaller fonts, mainly so if I'm on a train or around people, they can't read my screen.

Modern day cameras easily overcome that defence or even someone with excellent eyes. I'd opt for one of those foils which limits the angles the screen can be viewed at.

[tautech]

Interesting (to me) observation.
iPhone 5S iOS 12.3.1

One recent busy evening for emails for which above phone is set to check every 30 mins but while connected to my main Windoze 10 workstation to get pics off the phone, phone email notifications were perfectly in sync with Outlook notifications where they would normally lag some/many minutes behind Outlook notifications.

It seems when the phone iOS asks if the PC connection is to be trusted, it is !

[Againgly]

Personally, my opinion. iPhones are probably good and productive devices, but ... very inconvenient to use. I mainly used devices on android and, in principle, I was always pleased with them. Although I am sure, there will certainly be many objections to this.

[Ysjoelfir]

It's so nice to read all kind of "my new $1k phone is a bit nicer than your $999 phone" while I'm sitting here, having my third hand Samsung Galaxy S3, which got his third screen and fourth 7.700mAh extended battery not too long ago, and it's still working like a charm and does everything I need it to do - which is basically taking phone calls, sending SMS and using whatsapp - and that without charging it twice a day. In my case, it is more like charging it once a week.
If those functions would be possible with a Nokia 3010 I would still prefer that thing...

[Jeroen3]

When you limit the phone to function as a communication device, you can take the oldest supported version of any phone and still be happy.
When you also want the phone to function as gateway to the internet, youtube, netflix and games, then you'll keep running into the web having evolved, again, requiring more and more power.

Running an Android 4 phone right now might not be the smartest idea for the second option. Since many bugs have been published and are exploitable. Such as stagefright.
An S3 compares to a pc with Windows XP in phone world. I would strongly advise against this. The same applies to still wielding and iPhone 3 or 4. ^{(the 5, also from 2012 is still patched!)}

[Ysjoelfir]

Sure, you are absolutely right with that. Actually, the mentioned uses I wrote are basically everything I do with this phone. For anything other you mentioned I use my PC, which is pretty up to date. I keep to that phone since I don't like to throw away a perfectly working piece of equipment just because it is old and stuff (that I don't use on this device) needs more processing power every few months. There is already enough unnecessary waste on this planet.

Besides, the S3 doesn't run ICS any more. It's now a Marshmallow. Still not the newest, sure, but since that thing isn't critical in any way for me, I don't really care.

[dzseki]

I have a Balckberry Z10 (running Blackberry 10 OS) from 2013, now that is a niche, for me it still does the job, and since that OS is not in mainstream, no hackers are considering it as a target. I guess it is the same for the Windows phones now.

[Mechatrommer]

Google White Hat Hackers Say Thousands of iPhones Have Been Hacked for Years iphone lovers may have enjoyed the placebo effect

[bd139]

Interesting stuff. Some info here, minus the Panda wank (they are an antivirus pusher)

Actual source: https://googleprojectzero.blogspot.com/2019/08/a-very-deep-dive-into-ios-exploit.html

If you look at the exploit, concisely it appears to be based on WebKit JIT. So they:

1. Find an exploit in the JIT engine.
2. Leverage that to write to executable memory.
3. Use this to spawn shellcode
4. Use this to perform privilege execution.

That's a pretty advanced multi-stage attack. With the price attached to such attacks that was either sold to a state level entity or developed by one to start with. Probably what they're doing when the borrow your phone on entering China.

However A12 cores are immune to this as specified in the article thanks to PAC so not worried here as mine is an XR . This is also why you don't run tail end software and hardware if you value your security like all those miserable fuckers who refused to stop using XP.

To note this is something that desktop Chrome, Safari and Edge (dev) could be vulnerable to in one form or another.

But JavaScript is the RCA. The hacks we have to use to get rid of the hot steaming lines coming off that turd are immense and full of holes....

[Mr. Scram]

Don't worry, we'll hear about the A12 vulnerabilities in 4 years time. 

[bd139]

I'll have an A13 then 

[Mr. Scram]

I'll have an A13 then 

We'll hear about how that one was actively exploited when you had it in your pocket another year later.

[bd139]

I'll have been abducted by North Korean spies and rubber hosed at their embassy before then

[Mr. Scram]

I'll have been abducted by North Korean spies and rubber hosed at their embassy before then

We'll rubber hose you regardless.

[0culus]

*snip*

That's a pretty advanced multi-stage attack. With the price attached to such attacks that was either sold to a state level entity or developed by one to start with. Probably what they're doing when the borrow your phone on entering China.

*snip*

Strongly doubt any nation state actor worth their salt would do that. If you have a reasonable belief that you hold something like this exclusively, it's way too good of an exploit to burn by using it in too many places. Something like this would definitely be used in a targeted manner vs. HVTs by a nation state actor.

[bd139]

Strongly doubt any nation state actor worth their salt would do that. If you have a reasonable belief that you hold something like this exclusively, it's way too good of an exploit to burn by using it in too many places. Something like this would definitely be used in a targeted manner vs. HVTs by a nation state actor.

Depends what the objective is and what other exploits are available. Don't forget the security agencies stockpile these things.

[0culus]

Strongly doubt any nation state actor worth their salt would do that. If you have a reasonable belief that you hold something like this exclusively, it's way too good of an exploit to burn by using it in too many places. Something like this would definitely be used in a targeted manner vs. HVTs by a nation state actor.

Depends what the objective is and what other exploits are available. Don't forget the security agencies stockpile these things.

Sure, which absolutely means you don't want to burn a really juicy exploit chain indiscriminately. People who do this stuff for a living aren't stupid. If they can get the job done with something far more pedestrian, they will.

[bd139]

Yeah hence the rubber hosing comment

It was found in the wild however so speculation is that it has raised attention. Wonder what the purpose is.

[Mr. Scram]

Sure, which absolutely means you don't want to burn a really juicy exploit chain indiscriminately. People who do this stuff for a living aren't stupid. If they can get the job done with something far more pedestrian, they will.

At the same time people mistakenly think they aren't interesting targets. Most of us are of value to someone for some reason. Whether it's because you're a gateway to company IP or because you're a stepping stone to a high value target but there's a misconception that we aren't targeted because we're ordinary people with ordinary jobs.