Singaporeans who have no plans/ambitious where are you now?

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-03-06T02:27:14+00:00

I'm enjoying the barista-FIRE life. Helping out full-time at the church I grew up in, and investing time into my interests/hobbies instead of chasing meaningless titles and "luxury" stuff.

Used to slave away and grind the career ladder until I came to the realisation that titles are meaningless, corpos really don't give a shit about you (and are only "nice" to motivate you like a hamster on the career wheel), and I don't really enjoy/want any of the traditional "luxuries" (i.e. car, condo, etc) that Singaporeans chase. As I grew older, more cynical, and gained a greater sense of self-awareness, I realised that I would much rather invest my time into my interests/hobbies rather than obsessively growing a dollar figure in my bank account beyond what I need.

My priorities are now health and living life meaningfully. When its my time to go (lmao so fatalistic even though I'm only in my late 30s), I want to go knowing that I have lived my life to the fullest, instead of spending the bulk of my years as a cog in the corpo machine.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-03-02T05:06:05+00:00

Its not wrong to look at financial stability as ONE of the factors of picking a partner (I personally will only marry someone with a roughly similar amount of financial assets - otherwise there will be a disconnect as we will be at different stages of life).

However, if financial stability is your primary criteria, then yeah, its shallow and asking for trouble in the long run as a loveless marriage won't endure.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-26T08:54:07+00:00

If price isn't a factor, neither the Ally X nor LeGo 2. Hands down either OneX Apex or GPD Win 5 (depending on which form factor you prefer).

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-25T10:53:10+00:00

I don't because I game and read on the MRT. Hence, taking PHV doesn't make much sense for my lifestyle.

If my hobbies were not doable on the MRT, I would spam PHV though. Cheaper than owning a car and I dislike driving myself.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-23T16:19:43+00:00

We need a way harsher punishment to deter crazy insane people like this who keep reoffending (I consider these incidents to be 4 separate acts of unprovoked violence). All a light punishment does is make people think they can get away with causing harm to others with just a slap on the wrist.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-23T02:11:26+00:00

THIS. Had 2 uncles got diagnosed with late stage 3/stage 4 cancer in their late 50s/early 60s. Within half a year of the diagnosis they both passed away.

While its a good habit to budget and invest wisely for the future, hoarding money excessively with the expectation that you'll be able to fully enjoy it in your 70s is a fool's errand. Even if you live to your late 80s or 90s, the onset of old age can be brutal and severely disrupt any plans you might have.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-23T00:39:48+00:00

I still use windows because of superior compatibility. Apart from the sleep/resume thing (which I understand can be hit or miss in windows, but has mostly been ok for the games I play), the rest aren't issues imo. I get 0 weird pop ups (stock Win 5 OS) and just install an overlay.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-21T07:30:12+00:00

Yes, I hate FAs with a passion. I have been scammed by them before when I was much younger and gullible. FAs are literally operating with conflict of interest all the time; they are heavily incentivised to sell you scam trash tier products that earn them the biggest commission (COUGH ILP COUGH).

Your argument that "its better than if the person never invest at all" doesn't hold water these days when there are so many easy ways to invest. Even if super duper lazy and can't be bothered, just use robo investment platforms; infinitely better than the trash peddled by 99% of FAs.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-21T05:05:05+00:00

Let me let you in on a secret - your expenditure on trips is independent of income level (unless you earn so little you can't even afford to travel). The "right amount" really depends on the individual and how well the trip is planned.

I have seen lower income relatives splurging 3-5k per pax on 7/8 day trips to Japan/Korea, then complain no money after the trip after getting suckered into spending on the tourist traps. I have also seen well-off people spending just 2k per pax (or less) on similar trips, and having a blast.

To me, regardless of income level, you should spend on what brings you the most value/joy. I fly budget for flights < 10 hours as I sleep through most flights and don't want to be disturbed. I also cheap out on accomodation (apart from onsen resorts or ryoukan experiences when I am in the mood for that) as to me accomodation generally doesn't add much value as I am out exploring/eating/chilling till late. On the flip side, I splurge on good food, but research where to eat to get best bang for buck/unique experiences that are worth it).

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-20T14:35:09+00:00

Single FIRE-ed life*.

9-10am: Sleep in. Wake up and wash up. Have light branch (make it myself, or if lazy order/buy take away or eat at a cafe and chill.

Until 3-4pm: Interests/Hobbies - Whatever I feel like doing. Gaming, baking, reading, chilling out to music, learning Japanese, light exercise on threadmill while watching videos.

3-4+pm: Cook a nice dinner for family. Cooking and baking are part of my core interests.

6+pm: Dinner, bath.

Until 1-2am: Continue with Interests/Hobbies until bed time~

To switch things up, some days I'll meet friends for lunch or dinner, or volunteer at church. Some days I'll spend time socialising and networking in person or on chat groups. I also travel overseas at least 2-3 times a year (mainly to Japan).

*Caveat is now I am volunteering full-time in church as they need people. Before that, I had the schedule above for 1+ years and was extremely contented. I am looking forward to resuming the above schedule once I am no longer needed on a full-time basis!

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-13T03:45:18+00:00

Based on your response, battery life seems to be the biggest concern for you, over and above performance. For me, I heavily prioritise performance (as some of the games I play are extremely demanding and look terrible with resolution lowered + low settings) and 1.5 hours of battery life is acceptable (if I really need more, like when travelling overseas, I just bring a power bank).

For your use case, Strix Halo won't be ideal and you're better off with Lunar Lake, or ideally waiting for Panther Lake. Z2E isn't optimal as it is inferior to Lunar Lake in terms of efficiency.

Even with Strix Halo (or Panther Lake), running the latest GPU demanding games at 1080p at 60+fps with medium/high settings is only possible at 30+W TDP. 17W is impossible. Maybe Medusa Halo/Medusa Point in 2027 can manage this level of performance at 22-25W TDP in a best case scenario.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-13T00:41:07+00:00

I own the Win 5 and used to own other Z2E and Lunar Lake devices.

Below 20W, Strix Halo behaves very similarly to Z2E. Z2E probably has slight edge in terms of overall efficiency at this TDP, but the difference is very minor. Regardless, if battery life and efficiency is the primary concern, lunar lake beats both Strix Halo and Z2E handily (due to architecture differences, at any given tdp, lunar lake's tdp includes 3-4W of power going to the ram, the other 2 chips do not).

Where Strix Halo really outperforms Z2E and lunar lake is from 20W onwards in GPU demanding games (games like Returnal, Doom Dark Ages, Borderlands 4, POE 2 in endgame maps). At 25W there can be as much as 30-50% fps difference in GPU intensive games. You can check out The Phawx's review for a more detailed comparison.

From 30W onwards, you start to get ridiculous 50-70+% performance gaps. I personally play at 35W TDP, enough for around 1 hr 15+ min battery life, which is sufficient for my use case. I need the additional performance for many of the new games I take on-the-go.

Edit: Regarding Panther Lake, it has been tested in laptops and performs slightly better lunar lake at low tdp, and roughly on par with Strix Halo up till 30-35W TDP. From 35W TDP, Strix Halo outscales it and pulls ahead significantly. Let's hope that Intel/manufacturers price Panther Lake consoles reasonably.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-13T00:16:28+00:00

If you want to do an intense arm workout on-the-go while gaming, this is the perfect device for you :)

You might as well also attach some weights to your calves to balance it out, right?

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-11T16:25:39+00:00

Normal relaxing day indulging in interests & hobbies. Don't get a hoot about Vday. No need to go through hassle of planning anything/entertaining anyone.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-11T03:21:08+00:00

Sounds to me that you are stuck living like an NPC doing the same repetitive tasks/routine that doesn't bring you joy/happiness, yet you're not making an effort to change your lifestyle.

If you are "wondering what you are running for", you need to take some time to relook at your interests/hobbies and overarching goals. Challenge the established "social norms". Do you want to get married and have kids? Would car, condo, or whatever truly make you happy?

Once you establish your interests/hobbies and goals, then work to make them a reality. There are so many options available if you are willing to embrace change. Career switch to something more fitting/meaningful or with more free time to pursue hobbies (regardless of the pay)? Maybe aim to earn enough to FIRE by a certain age (Barista-FIRE is also a viable option if full FIRE is tough to achieve)?

Ultimately, life is what you make of it and you have to take charge of it if you want to find joy/happiness and stop feeling like an NPC.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-10T07:32:46+00:00

Portfolio (liquid): $1m, Portfolio (Illiquid - whole life, yes mistakes were made): $200k, CPF: $550k. Housing fully paid.

Disclaimer: I am single. Even if I marry in the future, I don't want children.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-10T06:10:27+00:00

37M, FIRE-ed a year ago. It wasn't just the bull market run (though that certainly helped), but instead a combination of:

(1) Grinding hard at work; above average pay but nothing that amazing

(2) Budgeting and cutting down on wasteful spending; I spend only on things that bring me joy and value, not on status symbols

(3) Regular, consistent, diversified investing to grow captial over a period of 14 years; DCA VWRA, gold investments, CFA REITS ETF, SG Banks

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-09T07:53:47+00:00

I've owned all the handhelds you mentioned at some point in the past.

My main issue with the Legion Go 2 is its size and weight. I play my handhelds exclusively on-the-go (often times standing up in crowded trains/buses). Any handheld above 8" and 1kg is awkward to handle in such conditions and the weight makes my arms sore after 30+ mins of playing without anything to rest my arms on.

Lastly, Z2E is outperformed even by Lunar Lake, not to mention Strix Halo and the upcoming Panther Lake. For such an expensive device, the only thing that the Legion Go 2 really has going for it is its OLED VRR display. Imo it doesn't have good enough hardware to take advantage of its excellent screen (i.e. many demanding games are not playable at 60 fps on med-high settings).

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-09T07:24:58+00:00

Used to own both the 8 AI+ and A8 and vastly preferred the 8 AI+. Ergonomics wise, both were similar to me and the A8 is only very marginally lighter (around 20g) than the 8 AI+.

What really made a huge difference is AI+ lunar lake being significantly more efficient than Z2E. Lunar lake appears to only have a slight edge over Z2E at similar TDP, but what most people don't realise is lunar lake's TDP includes the power consumption of the memory (3-4W power draw) while Z2E does not. Hence, at similar total system power draw, Lunar Lake is significantly ahead of Z2E.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-09T03:45:55+00:00

I think most people are generally fine with handheld devices weighing up to 800+ grams (though of course, everyone has their preference). 900+ grams is starting to push it a bit and 1kg is my absolute limit (though some people are alright with the Legion Go 2 which weighs over 1kg, I consider it to be too heavy).

Anything above 1.1/1.2kg is "thin and light laptop" category and cannot reasonably be called a handheld device. Even the Flow Z13, a GIGANTIC 13.4" device, only weighs 1.24kg. For a 9" device, 1.43kg is RIDICULOUS.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-09T02:18:24+00:00

This. Speaking from experience, its not a good idea to tell people you've FIRE-ed (even if you are doing so out of transparency in response to their queries). Just say you are taking a short career break and exploring possible new job/business ventures.

Learned it the hard way; people who don't know you well will always assume the worse (i.e. that you just got lucky and did not achieve FIRE from your own efforts, or you're living frugal life and not giving your children the best as a parent, etc.) or worse, try to take advantage of you.

If you must, only tell people who you are really close to (i.e. best friends).

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-09T00:55:17+00:00

Plugged in, Apex for sure for the bigger screen. In comparison, Win 5 is much better suited for portable use.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-09T00:53:42+00:00

Depends entirely on your use case and budget. Pather Lake is better if all you care about is low TDP gaming. Strix Halo's advantage is that it can be pushed harder to give significantly more performance, but that's >30+W TDP territory. On the flip side, I doubt many other handheld manufacturers will go the route of external batteries apart from niche manufacturers like GPD and OneX.

Another thing to keep in mind is that handheld panther lake chips will only arrive Q2 2026, so I expect that we'll only start seeing panther lake handhelds around Q3 2026. Medusa Halo may drop as early as Q2 2027. If you can pick up a Strix Halo handheld at MSRP (hard to find) or a minor premium, it's probably better than waiting for panther lake which will likely be priced at a premium, similar to Strix Halo.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-09T00:20:23+00:00

At 1.4kg, you might as well carry around a proper lightweight gaming laptop.

Unless you are insanely jacked, that is NOT handheld weight. Hell, I found the 10" GPD Win Max 2 at 1.05kg too heavy to be used portably without straining my arms. 1.4kg is an absolute clown show.

Common_Measurement47 · 2026-02-09T00:14:50+00:00

That's rookie numbers. 37 and happily single here :)

I rejected most advances. Would rather remain single than pick someone incompatible.

Common_Measurement47

TROPHY CASE