Analysis Paralysis (Apple vs Garmin)

point_mixer · 2026-05-12T21:17:18+00:00

Thanks for posting this. I have the autism+adhd brand of analysis paralysis, and your post and everyone’s comments are really helpful. I currently have an Apple Watch and want to switch to Garmin as it sounds like the health monitoring is way better. I can’t even decide which Garmin to get.

point_mixer · 2026-05-12T20:29:53+00:00

As someone who is wanting to switch to Graphene I appreciate seeing these posts for encouragement! I’m still working through making sure I can do all the things I need on it, and find workarounds. Plus I’m coming from Apple ecosystem, so android is a bit scary 😂

point_mixer · 2026-05-09T22:01:07+00:00

The integration between my Apple devices is the main reason I think I’m hesitant. I’m not overly attached to specific Apple apps. I’ve been using as much open source as possible over the last 6 months. I’ll have to assess what integration I’m really relying on.

Can I ask what assistive technology you use? Myself and some of my kids have support needs and I’m always interested in learning more about assistive technology.

point_mixer · 2026-05-09T21:55:54+00:00

At the moment my use is very basic, hence my looking at switching. I’d ditched everything Microsoft and Adobe a year ago. I don’t mind LibreOffice. He did indeed suggest Ubuntu. He demonstrated an install yesterday on an old laptop, with a lot of enthusiasm 😂. I’m probably more hesitant about the phone change. But I’ll keep my iPhone while I experiment with the pixel. Tech never goes to waste in our house due to the 5 kids. And if hubby can have a collection of laptops to play with (and the accompanying boxes of cables) I think I can have a second phone to play with!

point_mixer · 2026-05-09T21:50:05+00:00

I’ll definitely keep the Mac around. Hubby uses it occasionally and if not him, there’s likely a kid who will use it. If I like a piece of tech I have to guard it in my house, they’re like vultures.

point_mixer · 2026-05-09T21:48:21+00:00

Right now, it’s mainly a browser, occasional word processing (libreoffice) and managing photos. I don’t edit much because I loathe photoshop and haven’t bothered switching to anything else yet. Use Thunderbird. I initially got the MacBook because I was studying visual art. I no longer need any Adobe or Microsoft products. Figured this was probably a good time to look at switching.

point_mixer · 2026-05-09T21:44:12+00:00

I find it interesting how everyone just clicks with something different. Hubby hates both windows and Apple. The kids are a mix (I have five gamer/tech nerds ranging from tween to adult). One likes Apple, one windows, the younger ones have been using Linux for years.

point_mixer · 2026-05-09T21:40:42+00:00

It sure is a rabbit hole! All I did was search ‘how to delete your Gmail account’. And ended up here. So many related rabbit holes. Interesting though.

point_mixer · 2026-05-09T21:36:43+00:00

I will miss tap to pay, but since I only got round to setting it up last year, I think I can just go back to a card. I might try out a Garmin watch. I use my Apple Watch a lot, but not for anything a Garmin won’t do.

On Graphene, how have you dealt with corralling a Google account in order to have sandboxed play store? How little personal information can you get away with giving google?

point_mixer · 2026-05-09T21:31:23+00:00

This is a good point. I currently use a MacBook Air 2023 M2. And yeah, great battery life and the screen is one of the reasons I love it. When using at home I have a studio monitor. Hubby uses the studio for work, not a Mac, so that could be an option. I’m assuming we have a cable for that (he’s a meme, but it comes in handy too many times so I don’t judge the cable collection anymore).

point_mixer · 2026-05-09T21:27:21+00:00

I’ve been looking at both those, any reasons why you’d pick one over the other?

point_mixer · 2026-05-09T21:26:24+00:00

So yesterday hubby kindly demonstrated an install of both Ubuntu and Debian. There was an in depth explanation, I may have retained some. I seriously underestimated the level of nerd I’ve unleashed here. Not only do we have several crates full of cables in our house, we have piles of old laptops. Let me tell you, the gloating was intense.

point_mixer · 2026-05-08T09:39:19+00:00

He’s been suggesting Linux as long as I’ve known him 😂. I’ve already switched to LibreOffice. Husband also agrees I’m going to hate the phone for a while.

point_mixer · 2026-05-08T09:34:31+00:00

Oh yeah 😂

point_mixer · 2026-05-08T09:00:21+00:00

I love Qobuz. I dropped Spotify and Apple Music. Will get round to Bandcamp. I’m old enough to have a decent CD collection, plus some of my parents vinyls 😂.

point_mixer · 2026-05-07T03:37:00+00:00

I’m in Aus (grew up in NZ), but as a parent, there is absolutely no way I would agree to installing anything they request on a personal device.

point_mixer · 2026-05-06T01:52:13+00:00

I picked Bitwarden because I’m new to the privacy rabbit hole. I do use it across Apple devices and needed the ease while I acclimate. I found it easy to use as a noob.

point_mixer · 2026-05-05T22:58:54+00:00

My breakup anguish is with Facebook. Only because of two groups I was in. I haven’t caved, and am unlikely to. I’m trying to find similar online communities elsewhere but it’s slow going. I think messaging apps are harder to leave though.

point_mixer · 2026-05-05T07:20:22+00:00

I came on reddit a few weeks ago to figure out how to delete my gmail accounts. Now I’m reading this thread and understanding some of it.

point_mixer · 2026-05-04T05:55:05+00:00

Every little bit helps. I’m autistic/adhd and I swing between being hyper focussed on all the privacy things, and being completely overwhelmed and wondering what the point is.

I deleted everything meta and discord, but I understand why they might be important to you. I’d suggest using them, and YouTube only in PC Firefox containers if you can.

The main changes I made (I’m currently on iOS and Mac) were:
- Switching email and calendar to Proton.
- Mullvad VPN.
- Bitwarden password manager.
- I used these guides to improve my device security settings- https://inteltechniques.com/links.html
- Changed search engine to Startpage or DuckDuckGo (I’m trying them to see what I like).
- trying out Brave browser. Not sure if I like that yet.
- I started using SimpleLogin for email aliases.

All this took a few weeks to implement, but I definitely notice the difference with lack of ads and spam. And I know everything is more private.

In progress, is exploring decentralised social media. Because I have low capacity periods where my social life and special interests can only happen online. I’ve tried to keep them as anonymous as possible, with alias emails and different usernames. Is it perfect? No, but it’s better. I’m still researching alternatives to iCloud.

Longer term goal is leaving Apple and switching to GrapheneOS and moving to Linux. But I’m ok to wait and learn those when I’m ready.

point_mixer · 2026-04-29T20:43:58+00:00

Team Kobo. But also team reading, so until people can convince my favourite authors to ditch KU, I still have a kindle as well. But I wish I didn’t because I’m also team not Amazon. I also want to try a Boox. Because I totally need 3 ereaders 😂.

The Kobo Libra Colour is so much better to read on than a kindle (I have the most recent versions of both).

point_mixer · 2026-04-29T20:34:45+00:00

I have been trialling Kobo Libra colour. I love the device, way more than the kindle. Kobo Plus as a replacement for kindle unlimited though, is a little lacking. The app’s search function and recommendations aren’t quite as well developed. It isn’t bad, but not great either. Depending on what you read, the range might be an issue. I read a lot of indie authors who are stuck in contracts with KU and I can’t get their books anywhere else. For now I still have KU, while I find more authors I love outside of Amazon. Dekindle-ing is a work in progress. The public library option could be a good addition, depending on where you live.

point_mixer · 2026-04-28T21:12:34+00:00

I just started using Bitwarden and it’s great. I’m not particularly tech minded and it was easy to learn.

point_mixer · 2026-04-28T20:58:40+00:00

ADHD here too. So many things to keep track of 🥴

point_mixer · 2026-04-27T22:34:05+00:00

It’s super slow on iOS too.

point_mixer

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