Experiment: Ecosystem without Apple
Learning to live without, at least for a little while.
Readers of my blog will recall that I live in a multi-platform ecosystem and believe that my various devices complement each other and work in symphony.
More importantly, as a tech enthusiast, it is just more fun. Apple has been boring lately, or the other tech companies have been doing more interesting things.
My ecosystem comprises:
- MacBook Pro M1 16 inch
- Sufrace Pro 11
- Mac Mini M1 (home server)
- iPad Pro 12.9inch M2 (monitor for MacBook Pro)
- iPad Pro 11inch m4 (the least used but around the house and travel iPad)
- iPhone 16 Pro (the glue that keeps me connected to my Apple family)
- Pixel 9 Pro Fold (my favourite device in the lot)
From today, as we speak, I will be remove Apple devices from my ecosystem. For almost 2 years, I have lived a mixed hardware and multi-platform software lifestyle.
Lately, I have been wondering what it would be like if my ecosystem didn't have Apple products. Instead of wondering, I figured, I may as well give it a go. I am in a lucky position to undertake this experiment without buying additional hardware, etc.
No Apple devices for 6 weeks starting on 1 June 2025 (today)
I am genuinely curious and excited to embark on this journey. I am prepared to cut my ties (at least for sometime) from Apple. This started almost 2 years ago when I moved away from Things 3 to Todoist and the main reason for that was that for me, Things 3 was the sticky glue that kept within me within Apple's walled garden. Todoist is just better and even if I am back in the Apple ecosystem, I would not switch to Things 3 because of the lack of features. Admittedly, even today, Things 3 is one of the most beautiful and joyful apps I have ever used.
Coming back to the topic, curiosity may have motivated me, but it was my recent feelings towards Apple that has pushed me towards this direction. However, I still believe I prefer Apple devices in my mixed ecosystem, but this experiment might prove me wrong. After all, I prefer macOS over windows.
Why six weeks?
Having previously done a week with Surface Pro, I know, 6 weeks is enough time to overtime early issues and give this non-Apple ecosytem a real go. Most people will struggle early on and give up easily. I giving myself time to find new solutions to the friction that likely will present itself in the coming weeks.
MereCivilian
Conditions Apply
Obviously, there are some conditions in place because each device in my multi-platform ecosystem has a purpose. This includes Apple devices. There are things that Apple devices do that I rely on them for that purpose. It is my genuine intention to switch those tasks to their non-Apple counterparts, but there are times that have no real alternative or other workflow issues.
I am documenting these here:
iPhone
I have moved my personal sim from my iPhone to the Pixel Fold. The ease of this process stemmed from the fact that Australian iPhones still include physical SIM card slots. However, when transferring my Apple Watch cellular plan to my Pixel Watch, my phone provider, Optus, kindly told me I can only switch to another Apple Watch or a Samsung Galaxy watch. The Pixel Watch 3 is not supported. Ironically, Optus sells the Pixel Watch 3 but cannot add a data plan on it. Go figure 🤷
A second issue involved Whatsapp, where iOS to Android data transfer requires initial Android phone setup.
When you setting up your Android phone, it will prompt you to transfer your WhatsApp data from iOS, but since I set up my Pixel Fold months ago, I can no longer go back in time. There are obviously third party apps that appear to do this, but for now, WhatsApp has become a sticky glue that forces me to keep my iPhone turned on. Essentially, I have linked my Pixel Fold and Surface Pro to the Whatsapp account on my iPhone.
According to WhatsApp:
You’ll need to log in to WhatsApp on your primary phone every 14 days to keep linked devices connected to your WhatsApp account.
The issue with the Pixel Watch and WhatsApp is the reason my iPhone and my Apple Watch are switched on. Both devices are in the guest room, which I rarely go into. I will use the Apple Watch for my runs because I want to be reachable to my family and also don't want to run with my Pixel Fold. Since it's winter in Melbourne, my outdoor runs will be limited, anyway. I am not intending to use my iPhone at all. From my perspective, it will be just a WhatsApp hub that keeps WhatsApp running on my other devices.
Obviously, iMessage is gone, but most if not all my communication is on WhatsApp, so that is more important for me.
Things I will miss on iPhone:
- inability to use the iPhone as a webcam, exploring Android options.
- Find-my because my entire family has iPhones
- Apple Health: I have set up auto sync so my Fitbit health data should sync Apple Health since my iPhone will be on.
- AirPods work better with an iPhone.
- Shortcuts: it cannot be understated the power of shortcuts and its ability to run on all Apple platforms. There isn't something like this on Android and Windows. I am not a huge shortcuts user, but I have a few shortcuts that I will simply have to live without.
AirPods
I have 4 AirPods. Yes, four 🤯.
Instead of selling them when I upgrade, I just keep them around the house and they are unbelievably useful. For example, I use the oldest ones, the original AirPods (from 2016), for meditation, and they're always in my bedside drawer. The AirPods Max are always in the study. etc, etc. Because they are all Bluetooth devices, I can pair them with my Pixel Fold, and I plan to continue using them. Having said that, I also own the Google Pixel Buds 2 and they will be the primary set of earbuds.
Apple TV
I have three Apple TVs in my home and I am not about to find replacements for them. After all, my family also uses them. Importantly, Apple TV remains the best smart box for your TV. I also have one of my older AirPods Pros that I use with the living room Apple TV while I am using the treadmill or when doing Apple fitness workouts. Therefore, that workflow will remain.
Apple Watch
I have two Apple Watches because of course I do.
I use the Apple Watch Ultra when I go outdoors for runs/walks or grocery shopping. My family uses a shared shopping list on Apple Reminders which thankfully I can access via the web app on my Pixel Fold but not on my Pixel Watch. None the less, because I cannot utilise my personal phone number on my Pixel Watch, the Apple Watch Ultra remains in my rotation but only when I need to and that will be limited because I do not see myself going for runs during winter.
The 2nd Apple Watch is for sleep tracking. The Pixel Watch can sleep track as well, but I have decided not to use any wearables for sleep tracking. I am kinda leaning towards the realisation that the sleeping data is not very useful for me.
After tracking my sleep for years, I know what my sleep habits are and as such; I have stopped tracking that from today. If I change my mind, I will use the Pixel Watch instead. My son now wakes me up whenever he wants, eliminating my need for a wake-up alarm; he usually wakes me before my Apple Watch alarm would have gone off anyway.
About two months, I moved my iPhone and Pixel Fold charging stand from my bedroom to another room in the house. That has been great for me. I recommend doing this. Since I slept with the Apple Watch, I knew if anyone wanted to reach me, the Apple Watch will let me know. In addition, thanks to exceptional third party SONOS apps on the Apple Watch, I can control sleep music, etc. In addition, I used the Apple watch to turn off lights, etc. All that I will have to forgo because I am choosing not to wear any smartwatches in bed.
Even though nobody calls me at night, I moved my Pixel Fold back to my bedroom, but it isn't near me. I have placed it in the far corner. Let's see how that works.
Apple HomeKit
Over the years, I have added many HomeKit devices and recently I have spent some time moving these devices to Home Assistant which now means almost all of them are available to me on Android and Windows. My automations on HomeKit will continue to run thanks to the Apple TVs in my home.
Let's see how well Home Assistant operates when it is doing most of the heavy lifting.
I took this opportunity to add devices that support Google Home natively or via Matter to my Google Home account as well.
Desktop commuting
Thus far, I have only focused on the mobile devices and notice the complete lack of iPads in my discussion. They serve a purpose but not a significant one. Anyway, the major discussion here will be the move from macOS to Windows.
It is no secret that I prefer macOS over Windows. Perhaps, because I have been using it for over 14 years and I have well-developed workflows and apps that I use. As humans, we get used to what we know and we have used in the past.
Therefore, I am curious how this experiment will go. Despite both operating systems largely doing the same things, both have nuance that are difficult to explain and its impact is difficult to document without living without one for sometime.
Windows over the years has improved and the Surface Pro provides versatility that macOS can only dream off.
Remember, there is a lot this Surface Pro will do in this experiment. It is replacing my 16 inch M1 MacBook, my 12.9 inch iPad Pro and my 11 inch iPad Pro.
The following macOS software (not an exhaustive list) I am likely to miss:
- Raycast
- Arc on Mac is profoundly better than its Windows counterpart
- CleanShot
- SetApp apps: clop, etc
- iStat Menus
- Bartender
- Parcel (thankfully, the web app will do for now)
- Little macOS gems that do one thing but do it so well, like Aldente, Clop, Default Folder X
- iPadOS apps that I use on the macOS: Hello Weather, Carrot Weather, Flighty
This was my desktop setup before this experiment:
I move the MacBook frequently so I figured posting two recent setups.
This is what it looks like now:
Last, as it is clear, I will not replace my Apple Studio Display. Buying another monitor for this experiment does not make financial sense to me. I have used Windows in the past with the Apple Studio Display with some success:
MereCivilian
I am excited. It feels like going on a trip, a vacation. I am a bit nervous 😟, a bit uneasy 😨 and looking forward 😺 to living the same life, but with a different tech stack.
May the force be with me and you, my dear friend.
Blog entirely written on:
- Surface Pro 11
- Ghost editor on Arc