I’ve lived inside the walled garden that is the Apple ecosystem since 2009, when I got my first iPhone. Coming from a first-gen Motorola Razr, the iPhone felt like something straight from a sci-fi movie. The iPhone was sleek, futuristic, and simply ahead of its time. It was truly love at first touch for me. The Steve Jobs-era Apple had a particular mystique, and I was transfixed, completely under its spell.

Then I bought my first MacBook in 2012. Ditching Windows, that I'd used since the early 1990's, required some adjustments. But Apple’s design and intuitive UI made it mostly seamless. Everything about the MacBook felt ultra premium, so much so that other laptops suddenly seemed clunky and basic.

When Apple rolled out the Watch in 2015, I was mesmerized all over again. I remember trying one on at the Michigan Avenue Apple Store in Chicago. Just like the iPhone before it, the Watch felt like a glimpse into some utopian future only there it was on my wrist. At first, I couldn’t justify the price, but the idea of what it could add to my life lingered rent free in my head. Two years later I handed Apple hundreds of my hard-earned collars and wasn’t disappointed.

Over the years, my Apple collection grew: AirPods, a HomePod Mini. The HomePod, in particular, brought back that old Apple magic. I couldn't get over how something the size of a tennis ball could produce such a rich, room-filling sound. Bravo, Apple engineers.

In reality the cracks in Apple’s facade started to show years ago, with the iPhone 6. A beautifully designed device, yes, but one that overheated in the sun and shut down in cold weather. In the case of the iPhone 6 Form had overtaken function.

Then came “Batterygate,” when Apple was caught throttling older iPhones with software updates, nudging users toward 2-3 year upgrade cycles. I’d suspected it for years, but seeing it proven in court was infuriating. And I can tell you firsthand: the throttling seems like it is still happening, albeit less aggressively.

Despite all this, I've stayed. I held out hope things would get better, and talking myself out of scaling the garden wall with excuses like:

Switching would be a hassle!

Android is too buggy.

Meanwhile, my son got a Samsung Galaxy S phone in 2018. He used it without a hitch for six years, and by 2024, its battery still lasted a full day. My iPhone, barely two years old, needed charging three to five times daily. My take on his new Galaxy S24 is more capable than my iPhone 15 Pro in many ways—for about the same price.

Then I discovered a company called Nothing. I bought their wireless earbuds) a year and a half ago, and they’re still working flawlessly. This made me take them seriously. But when I watched one of their product launches, something happened: I felt that old excitement all over again. The kind of buzz that Jobs-era Apple products used to inspire in me.

Recently both VisionPro and Apple Intelligence have flopped. This was the final straw. It’s clear that Apple has lost its edge. The innovation, the risk-taking, the magic has officially vanished. Maybe Apple is a victim of their own success and has become too big to make the kind of pivots and take the risks they need to to keep pace with innovation?

How strange to think that a company called Nothing will be the proverbial ladder that finally gives me courage to climb out of Apple’s walled garden.

I can never imagine going back to a Windows PC but once my iPhone 15 Pro gets throttled into obsolescence, which will be probably in another year, I’ll be moving to the Nothing 3a Pro (or whatever their latest flagship is). My Apple Watch? The plan is to replace this with an Oura ring.

After well over a decade inside Apple’s walled garden, it’s time to poke my head out and see exactly how much the world has changed.

Be well, make the most of this day. Thank you for reading!