Apple iPhone XR review

Earlier this week I bought a brand new iPhone. My previous iPhone was an iPhone 8 Plus which was a secondhand unit. I can’t justify buying a brand new iPhone so a used one makes more sense. The downside of getting a phone that was used by somebody else is, the previous owner decided to (foolishly) stick a camera lens protector cover and the camera lens. I know he meant well but the thing left a scratch mark round the camera bump which didn’t bother me really much since I’ll be using a case anyway but it somehow did because I know it’s there?







Unlike the iPhone 8, this iPhone XR is brand new. Of course I will be paying for it until two-three years later because you know, whoever finishes paying their credit card bills. I was contemplating whether to get this or a second hand iPhone X unit. But then a brand new iPhone X is strangely enough a tad more expensive than the XR. And after my experience with the secondhand 8 Plus, I don’t want to take that gamble again. So iPhone XR it is. You know matte black is my thing but for my new iPhone, I decided for a white unit. The black version to me was not really black like a metal iPhone but more like greyish in color which would not do.





This is also my first iPhone with a notch which means Face ID and I must say it’s the feature that I love the most about these new iPhones. Touch ID is nice and all but Face ID is truly revolutionary. Apart from unlocking the phone in less than a second without touching anything, you can also buy apps and login to banking or other apps by just looking at the phone. I know that might not sound much but it’s just super convenient to have. Some people might be disturbed by the notch but I didn’t even notice it after a while.



Size-wise, the XR is slightly taller than the 8 Plus but with similar width. Being a glass sandwich, it feels about as heavy as the 8 Plus if not only slightly lighter. But I would trade the weight for the wireless charging capability that is a must for my daily driver phone. Unlike the 8 Plus, the XR only has a single camera lens but it still take beautiful portrait mode photos, but only with objects with a face. Without a second camera, you can’t take depth of field photos like you can with the 8 Plus or X/XS models. Which is not a big deal for me because this single camera still take beautiful pictures every time with little effort. The photos are still better than the best Samsung, Huawei or Xiaomis out there.











The 64GB space is quite adequate for my apps, photos and videos. I was subscribed to 50GB iCloud for a while since it’s ridiculously cheap - RM3.90 per month (less than a dollar). Eventually I concluded that I don’t need that much space for backups so I cancelled and subscribed to 100GB Google One instead which is cross-platform. This iPhone supports eSIM although I have no urgency to register for one since I thought someday, I would want to be able to swap out my regular SIM card when I get out of the country. Imagine cancelling my eSIM profile and then applying for one again. Much inconvenient.



I’m quite satisfied with the battery performance of the XR. One up side of using an LCD screen instead of an OLED screen like the X/XS is that it used much less power. My XR could easily last until early in the evening on normal use from a full charge. I know the iPhone XS has better specs and an extra camera, for the price, the XR is just the perfect iPhone for my budget. It is no coincidence that the XR is the best selling iPhone in the world right now. Yes even outselling the X and the XS. I got the feeling I will be using the XR for a few years, 4 years at least. My next iPhone would be a 5G-enabled phone or at least one with two cameras. Those would be terribly expensive at launch so I’m in no hurry to get my hands on them.

Samsung Tab A 10.1

Since I sold my beloved iPad Mini 4 Wi-Fi & Cellular last year, I’ve been yearning to use a tablet again. This time something with a stylus so that I could (hopefully) draw and jot down notes. When I finally saved enough money to get one, I set my sight on the Samsung Tab A 10.1 tablet with stylus.





As always, if you know me, I got a secondhand unit. I couldn’t think of a reason to buy a brand new unit when a used one would work just as well. Plus this one that I got was in near perfect condition. As the name suggests, this is a 10.1” tablet which is just slightly larger than a regular 9.7” iPad. Performance-wise, it was quite average. Not exactly top notch since this was an older model. One thing for sure, you can’t play PUBG Mobile on this tablet. Sure you can install it but the game play was excruciatingly laggy. Anything with moderate to high graphics is a no go.





If you can’t play the latest games on it, what do you do with this tab then? Well, there’s the stylus which was the standard Samsung-quality stylus that you would expect from them. If you’ve used a Note phone before, the experience is similar. Pressure-sensitivity is good, palm rejection works beautifully, all the usual suspect. It was fun scribbling and drawing with the stylus at first, at least in the first 2 weeks. After that you kinda forget all about it.



The 4G/LTE support is a bonus. Watching movies/YouTube/Netflix on the big screen was quite pleasant. However the big screen is also one of the major drawbacks of this tablet. It is definitely too big to carry around everywhere. A smaller 7” or 8” tablet would be ideal. Eventually, I stopped carrying this tab anywhere altogether because of the lack of portability. Sold this tablet about 3 months later.

Serene Heights review

It’s been 5 months now since we moved to our new Serene Heights home and it’s been largely a pleasant change from our previous place. Obviously, this new house is much larger than the 813 square feet apartment we had before. It has a porch where we could park our car and the bike. Even a little strip of land underneath it where we could grow plants or grass if we want to.

Did I find any defects? Sure we did but they were promptly attended to. At first we used to shoot an email every time we find one. Eventually we got hand of the subcontractor’s number and just call the Bangladeshi directly for defect repairs (thank you Zapor!). The usual ones are leaking roof, clogged pipes and drain, uneven flooring/tiles and paint jobs. Nothing too serious that they cannot fix.



For now the girls Mia and Hana are still going to SK Taman Desaminium back in Taman Puncak Jalil. Like I said before, we could not find a suitable/proper nursery and transit that meets our requirement. The one that we found in Alam Sari only cater to schools around Bangi. And the one in Semenyih are difficult to find. So at the time being we are resigned to waking up at 6:00 AM every morning (earlier if Mia had to go to hockey practice/competition).

Like I said in my initial review, many of our neighbours have not moved in yet. I dare say only about 1/3 of them did as of writing. I have met a few across the street and when they hold open houses/housewarming. Many were still renovating their houses before moving in. One thing I can say for sure is that my neighbours here are a wealthy lot. All of them have at least 2 cars each if not 3 or 4. Almost all of them have air-conditioning installed. They have done some kind of renovation to their houses, at least plaster ceiling and elaborate light fixtures. Some have auto gate installed. We naturally have none of the above. Don’t have the budget for any renovations and can’t afford to pay the expensive electricity bill once we installed air conds. My wife and I agreed that our main priority for now is a proper kitchen cabinet and perhaps a new sofa for the living room. There is absolutely no rush to fill our home with the bestest and most expensive thing. We have all the time in the world.

That said, the bedrooms upstairs get pretty hot day or night (in the afternoon especially). We get sweaty within minutes of entering the room. If I had it my way, I’d install air conds in every room. But as I said, can’t afford it now. As a result, everybody basically spend most of their time downstairs usually in the living room where it is much cooler. Even the guest bedroom is less hot than upstairs.





Presently, the neighbourhood currently looks nothing the beautiful surrounding like in the developer’s brochure. The lake waters are still brownish-orange in colour and the trees and parks are still in progress. I imagine it would take a while before they take shape.

In term of amenities, there’s not much to show within 5KM radius. Sure there’s one or two sundry shops and a couple of roadside eateries but that’s about it. No proper grocery stores or restaurants or specialty shops until 10KM away from the township. We usually do our monthly grocery shopping at Tesco Bandar Puteri near Bukit Mahkota or sometimes at Jaya Grocer in Bangi Gateway. It is not until recently that I discovered the little enclave called Sungai Tangkas next to the Bangi Komuter station which is lined up with quite a few grocery stores, restaurants and other shops and services. Nowadays if I wanna get something quick, I’d just ride my bike there to Sungai Tangkas. Although we are nestled right between Semenyih, Kajang and Bangi, we preferred to do most of our shopping in Bangi, usually Section 13 or the Bangi town centre which are undeniably more hip and happening. Semenyih or Bandar Sri Putra just don’t quite got that pull compared to he former.

Location-wise, Serene Heights is strategically located in the middle between Semenyih, Kajang and Bangi. Broga hill is just 20 minutes drive away, Kajang satay another 20 minutes, Bandar Baru Bangi - 15 minutes and also 15 minutes to Nilai. Port Dickson is an hour and a half drive away, Putrajaya - 30 minutes and KLIA another 30 minutes. In hindsight, although we are now a little bit further away from Seri Kembangan and KL, we are actually much nearer to a few other places of interest so it’s not all doom and gloom. That said, I must admit riding 45 minutes every week day to work feels quite tiring sometimes especially during bad weather days. Am I tempted to get another car? Sure but it’ll cost me a lot in the long run and I’m just about to settle the outstanding loan of my other car next year. Perhaps someday but not any time soon.



Moving to Serene Heights is a momentous landmark in our lives. It is a huge step forward for us literally in term of distance and figuratively in term of expenditure. Unless somehow either of us suddenly become a billionaire and can afford to buy another house, we’ll pretty much spend the rest of our lives in Serene Heights. I see this place has a big potential to develop further. It is maybe a sleepy hallow for now but that’s exactly how Taman Puncak Jalil was when we first moved in over a decade ago. 10 years for now, Serene Heights and the surrounding area would become a bustling suburban area with schools, malls and other modern amenities. As for now, I’ll enjoy the serenity and quietness this place has to offer.