iPhoneI will admit it. I can’t live without the technology we have today. Yet, somehow, in decades past, I did. I recently started thinking about how much I rely on my iPhone (and consequently, my Mac and Apple Watch). How did we live without constant reminders, music, access to unlimited knowledge, organization, and games at our fingertips?

iPHONE BASICS

  • Music – I listen to music all day through my headphones and when I get on my motorcycle, the Bluetooth on it takes over so I am listening to the same playlist and song.
  • Calendar – my wife’s and my calendars sync through iCloud from our computers to our iPhones and even our watches. We keep a half dozen different calendars for a variety of things like Personal, Work, Financial events, birthdays, holidays, repairs & medical, RV park reservations, and even one for the dog’s events such as grooming or medication. We also add alerts to remind us a day or two ahead of upcoming calendar events.
  • Reminders – pop up notifications to make sure I get things done. Sometimes scheduled months in advance. Also special reminder lists such as Today, This Week, etc. We schedule dates AND times.
  • Contact Lists – synchronized with iCloud and my Mac’s contacts.
  • Photos – organized by album, date, and location. Did I mention my wife has a couple of terabytes of photos digitized?
  • Firefox – web browsing
  • Siri – voice control for almost everything
  • Google app – All the knowledge in the universe in your pocket

PERSONALIZED IPHONE ACTIVITIES

  • Our Groceries – iPhoneBy utilizing the same app login, my wife and I can share a grocery list and it syncs so if she adds or removes stuff from the list, it changes on mine.
  • Weather Bug – Hourly weather forecasts used everyday.
  • Roboform – Syncs, logins, bank info, credit card numbers, etc with Mac app and the Roboform cloud so I always have access to passwords. handy if you have hundred of passwords like I do.
  • Lose It & Strong apps – Logs calories burned, exercises, and has an incredible and customizable database of foods. You can also scan new foods in using bar codes. Set weight goals and it graphs your calorie burn and progress. Strong has programmable exercise routines.
  • Planet Fitness – Check-in with a bar code.
  • Waze & Hammer – Step by step directions. Hammer is Waze for RVs & semis.

PERSONALIZED ENTERTAINMENT

  • Marvel Unlimited & ebooks – Read everything in the Marvel comics catalog (I can do this on my iPhone, but prefer using my iPad.)
  • Solitaire, Phase Ten, Blackjack, Royal Match – Killing time for free
  • Bravo & Poker Atlas – Find the closest poker rooms and sign up to play
  • Chegg Study – Study/refresh with custom made poker flash cards
  • Bravo & Poker Atlas – Find the closest poker rooms and sign up to play
  • Nash – Poker income tracker, reporting, graphs
  • IMDB – Search any celebrity, movie, etc. for facts.

UTILITIES

  • iPhoneStarlink – Set-up & stow internet satellite at every stop
  • Speedtest – How fast is my Internet connection?
  • Evernote – Database of text files, PDFs, and journal entries in a searchable database that syncs across the cloud, iPhone, iPad, and my Mac.
  • Dropbox – Files that syncs across the cloud, iPhone, iPad, and my Mac.
  • FOBO2 – displays air pressure in motorcycle tires on iPhone and Apple Watch.

Except for a very few of these, I use all these apps almost every day. And oh yeah, I even use my iPhone to make and receive phone calls.

My typical day is:

  1. Get up using my iPhone’s (in sideways Standby mode) alarm.
  2. Taking a shower while listening to music Bluetoothed from my iPad to my Amazon Touch.
  3. Checking the forecast on Weatherbug to decide what to wear (shorts or jeans).
  4. Checking email on my Mac while listening to music from my iPhone on Bluetoothed AirPods.
  5. Making business calls on my iPhone.
  6. Reading on my iPad during breakfast (while still listening to music).
  7. Logging calories on LoseIt on my iPhone.
  8. Handling Reminders and Calendar events as notified by my preset alerts.
  9. Listening to music while working out. Logging into gym with Planet Fitness app.
  10. Lossing exercise routines in Strong (app) and LoseIt.
  11. Using Our Groceries to pickup list from store on way home from gym.
  12. While riding motorcycle, look at my Apple Watch to see who is calling me on my iPhone to see if I need to pull over or not.
  13. Signing up and finding local poker games on Bravo and Poker Atlas.
  14. Playing Solitaire, Phase Ten, Blackjack, or Royal Match while waiting at poker room for game to start. Maybe reviewing Chegg Prep poker flashcards or re-reading “Concepts of Texas Hold’em” in ebooks on my phone.
  15. Control music I am listening to (volume, tracks, playlists) on my Apple Watch via my iPhone and AirPods while I play poker.
  16. Logging poker session profits/wins/losses in Nash poker tracker app.
  17. Use photos from iPhone to update RVOnTheRoadYet.com blog.
  18. Tell Siri what reminders and times to set for me tomorrow and on a certain date.
  19. Use IMDB to look up the actors in the movie I am streaming to learn about their history.

Except for a very few of these, I use all these apps almost every day. And oh yeah, I even use my iPhone to make and receive phone calls.