Since that fateful day I received my first iPhone running iOS 4, it has been more than 11 years. Yesterday, I said Apple is one of three life changing things in my life. This brings me back to the very early days of using iPhone and iOS. The good old days when I truly enjoyed using iOS. Those days can never come back but as long as I remember them, they are always somewhere in me and I can always…

IOS was fairly basic in the beginning. It does everything you expect from a phone and nothing else. There weren’t even copy & paste before and you cannot change the wallpaper. However, it was nice because of the design because they all feel real. When you are using those native apps, it is like you are doing them the way you do in real life. It makes iOS so simple to use.

I spent weeks registering my first Apple ID simply because it wasn’t working not until iOS 4.2.1. Finally, I could download apps from the AppStore. I miss the old way of downloading apps because the blue bar is just too cute. You could download everything and get everything in your pocket. It was way ahead of my old Java phone. There were those toolbox apps with 100 tools and they were so popular. You also have apps like I am rich which causes a lot and did nothing.

The next thing, I still remember is the notification center. You can access it by pulling down the status bar and a material like menu will be visible. It was a great addition to iOS. Later, we also have a bottom menu by pulling up from the bottom. This lasts for a long time until iPhone X was released. Now, you have double menus from the top.

Siri was a big one when it was announced. I remember it was for iPhone 4s or 4 only so I couldn’t use it on my 3GS. However, I tried jailbreaking the device so I managed to access it as well but it was slow because I was in China. Apple used to do things like this but, to be honest, I don’t mind. I would rather pay more to have a desktop like environment on the iPhone. This was what Apple did pushing users to buy new phones and also, older devices got very slow after a few upgrades. This is no longer true because new chips are very powerful.

Since iOS is a closed system, there are and will be people trying to go against it and that’s why we have Jailbreak. It was always around and I did the same to my iPhone. This is how I got interested in programming eventually and this is why it is life changing. I started programming early because of Apple and iOS. I also found out what I enjoyed doing even now. Apple gave me my dream and now, Apple lost that dream temporarily but I am sure it will be back one day.

IOS 7 introduced the simplified design or should I call it flat design? It is everywhere now and I understand. The brand is so well known so there is no point in having a complicated logo. Everyone knows the logo and that’s why simpler is better. However, it seems that people are pushing it too far. This is the problem when you simplify things.

After iOS 7, I don’t really remember many things but iOS is always improving slowly. Now, iOS 15 is out and what’s different from iOS 7? There are lots of new features but there aren’t memorable anymore. I know they are there but I cannot remember them. I mean we have widgets, a better lock screen, more settings, 3D Touch, Face ID and so many more. They are nice but it is just not that amazing anymore and that’s why it is boring nowadays.

When I look back, iOS was always there with me since iOS 4. I remember when I first got my 3GS (the day before 4 was released in China), I wanted to install Flash on it. Those guys were like no way because there was no such thing on iOS. Now, Flash is also dead. Things change over years and so do I. It is very hard to use words to describe my feelings. It is nostalgia, sorrow, joy, betrayal, trust, dream and everything…