Mixed Ecosystem Discussion

[Frankied22]

I have been thinking about this for quite awhile and wanted to just pose a question to those of you on here that use a mix of devices. How do you use a mixed ecosystem of devices and services? Does it work well for you?

I have been using Apple products since I got a 3GS back in 2009 and since then I have found myself slowly getting more and more into the Apple ecosystem. I can't remember the last time I didn't have an iPhone and a Macbook Pro. However, I have always had custom built pcs for gaming and always tried out Android devices over the years. I never really got too heavy into Google services because over the years I have seen them introduce and drop so many products so quickly I just lost faith in them in anything outside of search, email, youtube, maps, etc. Also, as privacy and data collection has become more of an issue I have gone even further away from Google services. I use DDG as my search, Apple Maps, third party ad free youtube app on iOS, etc. to limit their data collection on me. Things have changed a lot over the years and while I still feel like I enjoy the Apple ecosystem the most, I can't help but feel that I may be letting myself become trapped into one company's vision of the world when there are other, better, alternatives out there.

When I use my gaming PC I can't help but feel like I have all this power at my fingertips and I don't use it for anything besides gaming because I have conditioned myself over the years to think I need a Macbook Pro and macOS to get anything done. I really don't mind Windows 10 however, and I feel like Microsoft has come quite a long way in a short time in terms of services and hardware. I think the new Surface Laptop looks great. I think Office and Outlook at great. OneDrive works wonderfully and much better than iCloud Drive. When I really sit down and think about what keeps me in the Apple ecosystem it really is just a few things at this point. iMessage is probably number 1. Most people I talk to have iPhones and they use iMessage. Not having this on my PC is just annoying and I use it so much on my MBP every day. Also, something as simple as browsing the internet on my desktop and wanting to send something I am looking at to my imessage group chat. Firefox tab syncing kind of gets the job done but it is not as seamless as just copy and paste into messages.

I am just going to stop right here because otherwise I will write many more paragraphs on this "what's the best setup" topic but I just wanted to know what you all use. Are there a lot of you out there using iPhones but nothing else Apple? Are you using mostly Google services? Are you using Microsoft services? Are there any tips or tricks you'd like to share about crossing that bridge between Apple's world and the rest of the tech industry? Do you feel like there is a wide disconnect between your iPhone and your other devices?

 

[kazmac]

I've tried using Windows and Android at the same time as using my iMac, and I will try again. Right now I am still Apple at home.

The only things keeping me at Apple now is the art apps and I am used to it. I've tried Windows a lot since late last year and will try again. Possibly another Surface device and a Concept D laptop from Acer (if the keyboard and display work for me).

Of course if Apple magically fix the keyboards, touch irresponsiveness on all iPads and the software and I can still use VLC, then I'll stick around. My beefs with Apple are well known and reading all the issues with Catalina is troubling.

That said, I am doodling traditionally and much prefer the feel of pencil on paper (I haven't tried a Wacom yet), but I am more inspired to draw digitally than traditional. Go figure.

So I am in limbo.

 

[Falhófnir]

I'm pretty happy with the iPhone offerings and rumoured pipeline, a little expensive, but not insurmountably so, particularly now I've stopped chasing the latest and greatest and am content to stick with a model at least 3 years. I'm very happy with the iPads, there's a good selection available and all but the very top storage configurations of the Pros aren't too bad on price, either. With phones I'm keeping an eye on what HMD (Nokia) are doing, but I'm not now anticipating a move despite heavily considering it when it looked like Touch ID was going away in favour of Face ID for good.

OTOH I'm heavily considering leaving Macs altogether once the Surface Laptop 3 is available here, and I've seen what (if anything) Apple release later this month, as there's simply not a model in the lineup which ticks all the boxes for me. I either compromise on a 13" model (which isn't what I want) or I pay massively over the odds for the 15" (& even more so 16") Pro (which is a material waste of money when I'm paying off a student loan and saving to move out). The sole model I could potentially see myself with in the future would be a (as yet not even vapourware) 14" MacBook Pro if it joins the 16" for around what the current 28W 13" model retails for. I could probably get used to a 14.4" screen or so, though the Surface Laptop with a 15" 3:2 display, plenty of power for my usage and a comparably reasonable price tag looks like the best option.

I've currently got an ageing Windows gaming laptop and I find iPhones and iPads play perfectly fine with it via iTunes for Windows (and even just drag and drop for photo backups). I don't use handoff/ continuity, so that's immaterial to me.

TL;DR Apple's muddled, gappy and overly expensive Mac lineup is pushing me towards going iOS only, with a Windows Machine above it. In my experience this sort of set up works pretty well.

 

[LeeW]

The majority of people I know are in a mixed ecosystem. The iPad is the goto device for tablets, it is the one device they got right in terms of screen, battery life, apps and provides a great overall portable experience for the masses. Phones are a mixed bag, many are happy with a cheaper Android device and most are happier with a Windows laptop or PC than a mac of whatever variety. If you want to be all-in with Apple it has benefits at a high cost, that suits many and why not, it is all about choice.

Whilst Google had picked themselves up in the hardware market they have dropped, in fact, lost the ball completely with the Pixelbook and Pixel Slate. Microsoft, on the other hand, has a lot of people sitting up and taking note with the new Surface Laptop being upgradeable, the Neo, Duo and Pro X. I am excited by what is coming from them. The last time I got excited by Apple was the watch, nothing since.

I could actually see me all in the Windows/Android ecosystem in the future if they get these devices right.

 

[sracer]

I have been thinking about this for quite awhile and wanted to just pose a question to those of you on here that use a mix of devices. How do you use a mixed ecosystem of devices and services? Does it work well for you?

I have been using Apple products since I got a 3GS back in 2009 and since then I have found myself slowly getting more and more into the Apple ecosystem. I can't remember the last time I didn't have an iPhone and a Macbook Pro. However, I have always had custom built pcs for gaming and always tried out Android devices over the years. I never really got too heavy into Google services because over the years I have seen them introduce and drop so many products so quickly I just lost faith in them in anything outside of search, email, youtube, maps, etc. Also, as privacy and data collection has become more of an issue I have gone even further away from Google services. I use DDG as my search, Apple Maps, third party ad free youtube app on iOS, etc. to limit their data collection on me. Things have changed a lot over the years and while I still feel like I enjoy the Apple ecosystem the most, I can't help but feel that I may be letting myself become trapped into one company's vision of the world when there are other, better, alternatives out there.

When I use my gaming PC I can't help but feel like I have all this power at my fingertips and I don't use it for anything besides gaming because I have conditioned myself over the years to think I need a Macbook Pro and macOS to get anything done. I really don't mind Windows 10 however, and I feel like Microsoft has come quite a long way in a short time in terms of services and hardware. I think the new Surface Laptop looks great. I think Office and Outlook at great. OneDrive works wonderfully and much better than iCloud Drive. When I really sit down and think about what keeps me in the Apple ecosystem it really is just a few things at this point. iMessage is probably number 1. Most people I talk to have iPhones and they use iMessage. Not having this on my PC is just annoying and I use it so much on my MBP every day. Also, something as simple as browsing the internet on my desktop and wanting to send something I am looking at to my imessage group chat. Firefox tab syncing kind of gets the job done but it is not as seamless as just copy and paste into messages.

I am just going to stop right here because otherwise I will write many more paragraphs on this "what's the best setup" topic but I just wanted to know what you all use. Are there a lot of you out there using iPhones but nothing else Apple? Are you using mostly Google services? Are you using Microsoft services? Are there any tips or tricks you'd like to share about crossing that bridge between Apple's world and the rest of the tech industry? Do you feel like there is a wide disconnect between your iPhone and your other devices?

Before explaining my mixed-ecosystem setup, I think it would be helpful to address some common misconceptions.

Re: Privacy. The reality is that there is no privacy. Even if you never created an account anywhere on the internet, companies have a full portfolio of your private information. Even companies you've never done business with have that information. Any company claiming to protect your privacy is either (A) being extremely narrow in their scope of protection or (B) simply engaging in marketing hyperbole.

So while Apple claims to value your privacy, and they have control over what they do within iOS/macOS and their 1st party apps, they have no control over what happens when you use Safari to visit a website.

Re: Universally Best Solution. Fans of their favorite platforms/ecosystems tend to go to the extreme of "their solution is the best, the alternative is the worst". If a platform is viable and has been around for a long time, chances are there are elements of it that are quite good.

Step 1. Examine your own priorities first. Anything any of us say will only be of value to the extent that it aligns with your priorities. It's also possible that we might bring up a point that you had not considered... and THAT would be helpful in pointing out something else you need to consider.

What are your priorities? Price? Flexibility? Performance? Reliability? Interactions with others? Cater to your preferred method of working? Defining a method of working for you to conform to? etc.

My top priority: Freedom.
I want to use what I want, when I want, how I want at a reasonable expense. I don't want to conform to some soul-less corporation's idea of how I should do things. I am not loyal to any brand. I'll go with whatever device from whatever company that provides the greatest value (not the same as lowest price).

The result of this "vision" is a wide variety of devices that I enjoy using for different things at a fraction of the cost that others spend for more restrictive solutions. Whether it is dealing with the crunch time of a deadline, investigating how to do something for the first time, exploring new ways to do current tasks, or leisure and entertainment, I really do enjoy the use of my devices.


My hardware:
Home Office computer: 2017 21" iMac. This is the entry model (8GB RAM/1TB spinner HD) and does the "heavy lifting" of video encoding, DVD ripping, audio editing, etc. I have Jump Desktop installed for easy remote access to it from my other devices.

Multimedia Server: 2013 21" iMac. This was my previous home office system. In 2017 the hard drive failed... but I was able to clone it to an external SSD and re-purpose it as my Plex server.

Portable Home Office: 2017 i7 13" Macbook Air. It is my portable "powerhouse" for when I need my home office-like functionality on-the-go. Love all of things that it has that the new MBA's don't. I don't use this every day.

Portable 2-in-1: Google Pixelbook. The Pixelbook has replaced my 12.9" iPad Pro+smart keyboard+Pencil as my portable notebook/tablet device. It is so superior to the iPad Pro in nearly every way (and every way that is important to me). A true desktop-strength web browser, runs mobile apps (Android), runs desktop apps (Linux), runs a few Windows apps (via CrossOver), full support for USB peripherals, extended display, full mouse support, etc. I use this nearly every day.

Portable Gaming system: Asus 103MA notebook. This is an 11" Win10 notebook with Emulation Station and tons of emulators and games.

Productivity tablet: 2018 9.7 iPad. This, coupled with the Apple Pencil has replaced all of my paper project notebooks, journals, and planners. I use it for other things as well but this is what I use it primarily for every day.

Leisure tablet: 2019 Galaxy Tab A 10.1. When it comes to leisure, Android tablets have the edge IMO and the Tab A is a great option. I first explored the possibility of how Android tablets would fit into the mix by buying the inexpensive Fire tablets. I learned quite a bit of what that limited (relatively speaking) device could do and knew that an unfettered alternative would be even better. Game emulators, streaming video services, etc. This one stays in the living room next to my chair.

Streaming Devices: Roku, Fire TV, Chromecast (also Chromecast Audio). Each have their strengths, but I have to say that since Roku started removing access to private channels (It was really great to be able to create your own custom channel) I find myself using the Roku less and less.

The Fire TV is fantastic. The apps from the app store are fine, but being able to side-load other apps/channels is where it excels. For something that is so locked down out-of-the-box, it really is the most flexible of the lot.

With having a chromebook, Android phone, and Android tablet in the mix, adding a Chromecast simply made sense. I love being able to cast something from those devices to the living room TV on a whim.

Smart Speaker: Google Home Mini. We're not fans of smart speakers in general, but we like the "assistant" functionality... to add things to our shopping lists, inquire about information.

Speakers: IKEA Eneby (two 12", paired in stereo mode). I love, love, love the sound of these. They have a deceptively rich sound for being so small. They're attached via cables to a switchbox that takes input from my turntable, cassette deck, Chromecast Audio, and TV.

I have a lot more hardware than this, but these are what make up the "core" of what I use.



My Software:
Generally, I try to go with software that provides cross-platform support. I try to avoid anything that can only be used on a single OS or platform.

Productivity Suite: Apple iWork/Google Docs. These two packages are not only very cross platform, they have a surprising amount of functionality. If you include the web version of these, they are accessible from all of my devices. By standardizing on these two, I can start work on my iMac, continue working on it on my Pixelbook. (as an example)

I have a subscription to Office 365 for those times when we need to interact with people using MS Office files. But we almost never create documents with it.

"Office" mail/calendar/notes: Google Services. I use GS for mail, calendar, notes, etc. It just works so well on everything I have. I've installed "Fluid" on my macOS systems that allows me to have app shortcuts and windows for web links so they look and behave like standalone apps.

Content Creation: Audacity, Handbrake, iMovie, iDVD, Pixelmator, etc. Content creation for now is solely done on my macOS systems. I have alternatives for Windows and Linux, but at this point in time, I prefer the macOS options.

Not all of the hardware that I have is "needed" but I'm fortunate to have a nose for deals so I never pay MSRP for any of this stuff. 33% off is the average for Apple products, 50-75% off for everything else. If I had to reduce the hardware to a bare minimum, I easily could with minimal impact to what I can do.

 

[Expos of 1969]

Excellent post. Very informative and should be food for thought for ecosystem fanatics.

 

[LeeW]

Excellent post. Very informative and should be food for thought for ecosystem fanatics.

to be fair though that is exactly why people love the Apple ecosystem, few want such a convoluted high maintenance setup.

 

[Expos of 1969]

to be fair though that is exactly why people love the Apple ecosystem, few want such a convoluted high maintenance setup.

You have a point. Personal decisions of course.

 

[sracer]

to be fair though that is exactly why people love the Apple ecosystem, few want such a convoluted high maintenance setup.

I understand that for some people simply using devices from different vendors is "convoluted" but assuming that you are referring to something more than that, what about what I use is convoluted and requires high maintenance?

 

[370zulu]

I've been considering making a change with what laptop I will use moving on. At home and for work, I currently have a mid-2015 MBP 15" and it has been an excellent machine - likely the best I have ever had. I purchased it new and it was my second MBP that I purchased brand new. It is an i7 with 16GB ram and 500GB PCIe SSD - also has the dual video video cards. My battery is currently at 81% health and otherwise, the machine is still running very strong. My issues with Apple have been largely centered around the rough OS and iOS upgrades. I won't bash Apple because all OSes have their rough launches and bugs. That said though, I am seriously considering a move to PC. Windows 10 has been very stable for me on the second machine I use at work. I left Microsoft and PC machines back in 2012/2013 and have never looked back until now. For a living I am in IT architecture with a focus on Linux and UNIX OSes. I have long since lost my desire to come home and "work" on a machine. I just expect whatever I use to work. I don't play any computer games and I don't really create anything per se. My machine needs are very utilitarian by nature.

For mobile devices, I left Android before leaving PC back several years. I am really interested in staying with Apple mobile devices (save for maybe picking up a Surface Pro in lieu of a traditional PC laptop). I currently have XS Max and iPad Mini 5 and they work perfectly for my taste. I only have one complaint and that would be completely remove the memoji garbage (I could definitely do without that stuff).

Thank you for this post and all of the perspectives so far. I have sub'd and am very interested in additional viewpoints.

 

[LeeW]

I understand that for some people simply using devices from different vendors is "convoluted" but assuming that you are referring to something more than that, what about what I use is convoluted and requires high maintenance?

Devices from different vendors are more common than not, that is not convoluted, that is normal. But the masses use 2 devices and still achieve the same whereas you use 6.

1. Desktop for a home office
2. Desktop for a Plex server
3. Laptop for a portable home office
4. Laptop to replace your iPad Pro
5. An Ipad for productivity
6. Android Tablet for leisure

So 2 desktops, 2 laptops and 2 tablets, that is convoluted and people (the masses) don't want more devices, they want less. Desktop, laptop, tablet at most (plus phone of course).

Not criticising your choices, whatever works for you, my point was more in relation to the comment by Northern Man.

food for thought for ecosystem fanatics

The Apple ecosystem when it works, works well for most, I am sure most would rather be 'ecosystem fanatics' than want the number of devices you choose to work with and separate concerns by way of multiple devices that all achieve the same thing.

 

[sracer]

Devices from different vendors are more common than not, that is not convoluted, that is normal. But the masses use 2 devices and still achieve the same whereas you use 6.

1. Desktop for a home office
2. Desktop for a Plex server
3. Laptop for a portable home office
4. Laptop to replace your iPad Pro
5. An Ipad for productivity
6. Android Tablet for leisure

So 2 desktops, 2 laptops and 2 tablets, that is convoluted and people (the masses) don't want more devices, they want less. Desktop, laptop, tablet at most (plus phone of course).

Not criticising your choices, whatever works for you, my point was more in relation to the comment by Northern Man.

Thanks for the clarification. I understand the context of your comment and was interested in your feedback.

As I mentioned, I don't need all of those things. I enjoy having a bunch of options. My hope in sharing all of that was to offer ideas of how some of these things can be used.

When I retire, I plan on downsizing to just 2 devices (beside a smartphone)... if I were to choose those 2 devices today, they would be... the iMac and Pixelbook... and I'd be able to do everything with them that I am currently doing and not really skip a beat.

 

[LeeW]

As I mentioned, I don't need all of those things. I enjoy having a bunch of options. My hope in sharing all of that was to offer ideas of how some of these things can be used.

Many of us have that multi-device setup, I have PC, Windows Laptop, Mac Mini, Pi, 4 disk NAS for Plex and the list goes on. I think it is just that the changing face of tech for people nowadays is that they want to get to one device does all. Where they need to have more they will either go all in with Apple or mix and match to suit their needs.

My daughter calls me a dinosaur that I even want a desktop machine, she says phone and a laptop, possibly a tablet for some use cases is all anyone should ever need to achieve whatever you want. That's millennials for you!

 

[kamikazeeMC]

I've always used desktop PCs I've build myself, mainly as a big gamer but also some productivity and creative work (some Windows only programs). I had one Apple computer a Macbook from ~2008 which I used when I didn't want to sit at my desk.

For phones I've gone back and forth between iPhones (owned 7) and Android (also 7), I get bored of iOS and wanting to see where Android is currently at, but end up crawling back because of iOS's UI/UX consistency and I find myself just using the device despite it's shortcomings, where as on Android I pick it apart and it's on my mind.

Recently I've been thinking of going iPP as a desktop replacement as my uses have changed and could get away with it. Also took time moving my email from Gmail to Outlook (have a Mac email, but only have iCloud and Apple purchases linked to it). Along with possibly picking up the iPP, I was thinking of diving into the ecosystem using iCloud drive for storage.

With recent (political) event's, while I don't let that dictate my purchases, I've been having second thoughts of putting all my eggs into one basket. For now I like what Apple is doing with the iPhone and iPad, but if that changes in the future it will make leaving harder.

Not too sure what setup to go with now, liking the new Surface Laptop 3, could pair with an iPad Air to fill my dable into illustration (not really a fan of the Surface Pro, I think it does an average job of laptop and tablet. As for the Pro X, not too sure on Windows running on ARM, performance, compatibility and Windows on a tablet environment). Also looking forward to the Pixel 4 event.

 

[Frankied22]

Thanks for the level headed replies so far and adding to this discussion everybody. It is a pretty wide topic and there are lots of different setups.

@kamikazeeMC
I was doing what you are considering for the past few years. I was slowly switching everything to Apple and essentially putting all my eggs in one basket. While I agree it is nice to have everything share a UX/UI consistency I can't help but feel a little trapped now because I rely on Apple for so much and don't take enough time to test drive other solutions that may be better while also being platform agnostic. Also, Apple design is started to become a little all over the place in my opinion. Not nearly as bad as other companies but I can start to see some cracks and questionable design decisions. I always had the view of Microsoft being the old dinosaur and the bland corporate company but now out of nowhere it seems to me they are really hitting the gas and releasing great updates in both hardware and software. I moved from iCloud Drive to OneDrive recently and it works so much better and it is great to have it available across all my devices. I got sick of waiting for Apple to release shared folders. I always viewed Outlook as some old crappy email client that people just use because it is forced on them at their office, but again I was surprised. Outlook on iOS is great and I love that they already added dark mode to it. It's also really nice on my desktop PC too. I think iOS and macOS mail still might be my favorite but right now I have really annoying bugs in it on both iOS 13 and macOS Catalina. Music is another area I have switched. As soon as Apple Music came out I jumped on board and kept tricking myself into believing it was better than Spotify. Here we are years later and it is still sluggish, the queue system doesn't make any sense, there is no handoff support between Apple devices (but yet I can switch what I am listening to between all my devices on Spotify in a breeze), the new macOS app is garbage, and worst of all the recommendations are still complete trash. Apple has like 12 years of my iTunes listening history and Apple Music listening history since it released and it still sucks at recommending me songs. Meanwhile I jump right back into Spotify and I am instantly getting songs I really like and have never heard. Also, their mobile app is lightning fast, has quick swipe gestures, and the desktop app is very quick as well whereas on Apple Music if I go back a page it takes forever to reload and loses my browsing position. I think I am officially going to stick with Spotify. The only things I still don't like about Spotify are I can't upload my own music, there is a limit to how many songs you can have in your library, and it is not as album focused but more playlist focused.

I was starting to do the same with iWork and Office. I viewed Office as some cludgy suite that people were just used to because it is the de facto software for workplaces and businesses. Again, Office is actually pretty nice and I don't think iWork can compete. Pages and Word are pretty close but Numbers is a joke compared to Excel.

My biggest problem on Windows is PDF management. I cannot find a replacement for what I need to do with PDFs without getting stuck in Adobe's stupid subscription model. On macOS I can easily do simple PDF tasks right in Preview, and for more advanced stuff I have PDF Expert. It is a joy to work with PDFs on my Mac. It is a nightmare on my Windows PC lol

 

[kamikazeeMC]

I can't help but feel a little trapped now

I've been doing research over the past few weeks on workflows to suit the iPP, I've been too focued on wanting to escapse sitting at a desk and also start illustrating (as a hobby), but now have started thinking for the next setup after. Would I find going iPP only too restricting and go back to a traditional computer? So it would be best not to move my whole setup to Apple, currently only a X, iPad Mini 2, Watch 3, AirPods and Music.

Apple design is started to become a little all over the place in my opinion.

I also feel this way too, just in areas that don't really affect me, but that could change.

iCloud Drive to OneDrive

While I don't use folder sharing, I do notice Google/One drive being much faster to upload to vs iCloud.

believing it was better than Spotify

One thing I miss about Spotify is it would create separate playlists based on genres of the music I listen to. I didn't get to try out curated playlists at the time, but it did have a wider range of Asian music at the time. Will give it another try next Android phone I have. For some reason I just have to use Apple Music with an iPhone.

 

[2984839]

At home we have 2 Windows 10 desktops, 2 MacBooks, a Linux Mint desktop attached to a TV, at least 8 OpenBSD laptops and servers, a Gentoo laptop, a FreeBSD server, and both Android and iOS smartphones.

All backups are done over rsync to the FreeBSD server. I have Acrosync on the Macs and Windows machines for this, and a shell script on the OpenBSD and Linux stuff.

I'm using VLC for music on everything except the PowerBooks and my T23, which use mplayer.

Email is done through my own OpenBSD server hosted on Vultr, accessed via IMAP. I used to use Runbox for email (and it's good), but I'm starting to move away from it simply for the extra control.

Office software is all LibreOffice. I like it.

On the rare occasions I need to do audio editing, I use Audacity and it works great.

I use Gimp a lot for web development and it runs on everything.

I might think of some more later.

 

[servenvolley]

I just want to say, I love this thread/topic. Learning much.

 

[TopherMan12]

I have three primary ecosystems.

1) Mac Mini/iPhone/Apple Watch/iPad. This one is just about me and my devices working well together. Like the OP, the ease of iMessage and taking calls on my Mac is a key component here. I have been dabbling in Xcode for iOS development lately as a hobby as well.

2) Windows 10 Gaming PC. Steam. Epic Game Store. Xbox on PC. Etc. Most of my gaming is here except for PS exclusives I play on my PS4 Pro.

3) HP laptop for work. Visual Studio for .Net web application development with a whole bunch of tools.

I have all these connected to the same monitor and use the same keyboard and mouse between them. I used to have a USB sharing switch, but recently moved over to Logitech MX Keys and Logitech MX Master 3. They can connect to three bluetooth devices each. Works really well. My primary monitor is actually a 43" 4K TV. I use the multiple HDMI ports for each computer and the TV remote to switch between them. I also have a secondary 27" monitor that is shared between my Mac Mini and my work laptop with a two port HDMI switch I bought on Amazon.

So yeah.....a fairly complicated setup, but I have no problems moving between these computers and the ecosystems.

 

[Frankied22]

I have three primary ecosystems.

1) Mac Mini/iPhone/Apple Watch/iPad. This one is just about me and my devices working well together. Like the OP, the ease of iMessage and taking calls on my Mac is a key component here. I have been dabbling in Xcode for iOS development lately as a hobby as well.

2) Windows 10 Gaming PC. Steam. Epic Game Store. Xbox on PC. Etc. Most of my gaming is here except for PS exclusives I play on my PS4 Pro.

3) HP laptop for work. Visual Studio for .Net web application development with a whole bunch of tools.

I have all these connected to the same monitor and use the same keyboard and mouse between them. I used to have a USB sharing switch, but recently moved over to Logitech MX Keys and Logitech MX Master 3. They can connect to three bluetooth devices each. Works really well. My primary monitor is actually a 43" 4K TV. I use the multiple HDMI ports for each computer and the TV remote to switch between them. I also have a secondary 27" monitor that is shared between my Mac Mini and my work laptop with a two port HDMI switch I bought on Amazon.

So yeah.....a fairly complicated setup, but I have no problems moving between these computers and the ecosystems.

I tried to setup a way to switch between my MBP on my external monitor and my gaming PC but it got too annoying having to use a KVM switch to bounce back and forth between Mac and Windows hah. That setup with bluetooth devices sounds pretty interesting tho. It all just gets to disjointed when trying to use a mac and windows pc next to each other and keeping a simple setup. Most of the time I just use my MBP sitting off the to the side of my gaming PC and its external monitor.

 

[LeeW]

I tried to setup a way to switch between my MBP on my external monitor and my gaming PC

I only really used my PC for gaming when mac was my main device, so I just used to switch on the PC, start steam and then ran all my games through Steam on my mac whether I bought them through Steam or not. Was a solution that meant only needing to use my mac but still play anything that was for PC only.

 

[TopherMan12]

I tried to setup a way to switch between my MBP on my external monitor and my gaming PC but it got too annoying having to use a KVM switch to bounce back and forth between Mac and Windows hah. That setup with bluetooth devices sounds pretty interesting tho. It all just gets to disjointed when trying to use a mac and windows pc next to each other and keeping a simple setup. Most of the time I just use my MBP sitting off the to the side of my gaming PC and its external monitor.

Yeah.....there are button on the bottom of the mouse and on they keyboard for choosing your device. There is this functionality called Flow where the keyboard is supposed to automatically follow the mouse, but that worked once and then stopped. Going to call Logitech support at some point, but really isn't that big of a deal to just hit another button. Of course, I paid $200 for the keyboard and mouse combined so yeah.....feel like this should just work.

A cheaper option that I used to use:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CU4QD1I/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

....works fine, but introduces a few more cables. Trying to keep my cable management fairly organized these days so eliminating these helped a bit. This device only has a single port for your shared devices so I bought a small USB hub and connected both mouse and monitor to it.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003M0NURK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Switching between monitors, I use this:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079JQ9XXV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Works real well. Just a simple tap of the button. Only works between two devices though.

These are links from more order history, btw, I'm not a Amazon affiliate or anything. lol

 

[Frankied22]

Do any of you use Apple services on non Apple hardware? Like iCloud or Apple Music through iTunes on Windows? I have been using Spotify and Apple Music both for a couple months and while I think Spotify has way better recommendations and loads quicker, I find Apple music has better sound quality and I like that it is more album focused and not just playlists. I used to use iCloud for Windows but I just found it pretty buggy and slow, so I switched to OneDrive which works great across both platforms.

One thing that really annoys me daily is I have not found an easy simple and quick way to share something from my Windows PC to my iPhone. For instance, if I take a screenshot on my PC and want to share it in iMessage on my iPhone. I usually end up emailing it to myself and then getting it that way but it is pretty cumbersome.

On the browser side I have found Firefox pretty good for cross platform. I like that I can be viewing a page on my PC and quickly send that tab to my iPhone and open it right away. If Firefox is already open on my phone it will automatically load up the shared tab. Also, outlook on iOS can be set to open links in Firefox, which is nice since we can't set Firefox as our default browser on iOS.

 

[LeeW]

Do any of you use Apple services on non Apple hardware?

I try to avoid it, we all know that Apple only wants a good experience from their devices. I prefer OneDrive to Icloud in any event. It works great across both.

Spotify and Apple Music

Using Spotify, better recommendations, always gives me a playlist I can listen all the way through, with Apple music I am often wondering "why am I listening to this?". I get your point about playlists vs albums but again I think playlists are better, you get a more interesting listen than focussing on a single album. Which is of course not great if albums are your thing.

share something from my Windows PC to my iPhone.

Easy enough between Windows and Android, but again, Apple doesn't want you to have a good experience unless it is Apple to Apple. For a mixed eco-system the best tools are going to come from the Windows side, not the Apple side.

 

[Mikael H]

Are you using mostly Google services? Are you using Microsoft services? Are there any tips or tricks you'd like to share about crossing that bridge between Apple's world and the rest of the tech industry?

For cloud services I’m pretty much sticking to iCloud for my own use. Being a bit of a DIY kind of person, I have a range of “cloudy” services I run from my home, and which I can access from pretty much anywhere in the world I’m likely to be, either directly over the web or via a secure VPN tunnel. All of these services naturally run on Linux or BSD servers (physical or virtual), they have platform agnostic or multi-platform clients, and they’re unlikely to stop working on the whim of a single developer or company the way we’ve seen so often from both Google and Microsoft.

The bridge between Apple‘s world and the rest of the tech industry for me consists of ssh, Royal TSX, and Powershell, along with occasionally having to resort to Firefox rather than Safari for some badly written web services.