Paul Alvarez

My Tech Gear Check-in: Apple Watch

My return to loving wearing the Apple Watch everyday, again. I’ve always worn a watch on my left wrist. Back in high school and college, I stopped wearing one because smartphones became so popular and I always had my time on my phone. But towards the end of college,

My Problem with Writing Series

I am too slow to keep up causing things to change before I can finish. As I was finishing up my Tech Check-In for the iPad, something changed—something big, if you’ll excuse the pun. I realized that I wasn’t using my MacBook Air as much anymore and

Techuisite Digest

10.26.2024: iPad Pro reviews are useless, my current setup, and my tipping point with tech pundits. iPad Pro Reviews Suck I was finally able to get my iPad Air back from my wife, who was using it while she waited for her work-issued one. She originally got a

My Tech Gear Check-In: Mac

Part two of my check-in covers my Mac of choice. I started the year with a MacBook Pro 14-inch in Space Black, and what a gorgeous and powerful laptop it is. One could argue it is too much computer for me since I would never be able to push it

My Tech Gear Check-In: iPhone

Part one of my check-in starts with my iPhone. The last couple of months have been hectic. Not only has my work schedule been insane, but my personal life has also seen a lot of changes. From child care decisions, my wife starting a new job, financial hurdles that my

Techuisite Digest

06.05.2024: iPad Pro-only again, ditching the Magic Keyboard, and WWDC 2024 The M4 iPad Pro So, I did it again. I decided to move back from the Mac to the iPad-only life. Not only has my back and forth on Threads pushed me to want to prove that

Techuiste Digest

05.19.2024: iPad Pro Craze, Threads, and my new Chromebook iPad Pro Craze Since Apple's Let Loose Event, what has really gone loose, except for some love for the new iPads, is a lot of craziness about the iPad Pro's worth and place in Apple&

Conflicting Interests

I have so many things I want to do; I get stuck not doing anything. Being conflicted isn't new for me, and is related to my recent post titled Overlapping Tech. I have a lot of interests which lead me to buying a lot of gadgets that share

Frustrating iPad Hot Takes

Interesting but mostly wrong. Now that Apple has finally announced new iPad Pro hardware, that many have been waiting for. I thought it would be good to gather some hot takes from well known Apple Pundits and Technology journalists on what these new hardware offerings mean for the iPad. I

Techuisite Digest

04.29.2024: Some more impressions of the MacBook Pro, TikTok ban, and iPhone RAM Frustrations The Great M3 Pro MacBook Pro I have not finished my review of the MacBook Pro that I have had now for over a month. Part of this is because I really want to

Where Does The iPad Mini Fit?

Struggling with the iPad Mini's place in my setup. I recently purchased a BaronFig notebook to use as a new journal after multiple months of attempting to make the iPad Mini my journaling device. It isn't that the iPad Mini is bad for handwriting; I just

Techuisite Digest

04.19.2024: Delta, iPad Criticisms by Apple Pundits, and a New Notebook. Before I get into the newsletter, I do want to discuss a few changes to how I want to run Techuisite. First off, I think the idea of paywalling things here to match the posts that are

Reviewing Technology

I am beginning to realize the flaws in some YouTube tech reviews. I recently purchased a MacBook Pro. I know, I know. I said I wasn’t going to; that I didn’t need one, etc., etc. But I saw an opportunity and I jumped on it. It was a

Techuisite Digest

03.26.2024: Affinity acquisition, YouTube tech reviews, and a Space Black MacBook. This will be the third and final Newsletter for March. I missed February, though I did have a good excuse, but I wanted to do an extra one this month to make up for it. I am

My Tinkering Laptop

Buying an old MacBook Air has been great for my tinkering needs. As I mentioned in my recent post, My Desire For Retro Tech, I bought a 2012 MacBook Air for mostly nostalgia reasons. Now that I am a parent of two, reflecting on technology that makes me happy, and

Techuisite Digest

03.21.2024: Using an old iPhone, Apple crave growing, and new iPad rumor craziness. iPhone 11 Pro Follow up (and returning to Dual-iPhones) When I decided to go back to two phones, and no longer use my work-issued iPhone 13 Pro with two SIM Cards, was about a week

Choosing A Mac Is Becoming Difficult

With the MacBook Air and Pro both so great, it’s hard to know which to choose. Currently, I am not in the market for a new laptop. I am really enjoying my Asus Zenbook 14X and with the addition of a 2012 MacBook Air running Ubuntu. I am very

FujiFilm X100T: A Great All-Around Camera

With the introduction of the X100VI, the entire X-series cameras become an even better bargain. Since the release of the FujiFilm X100, it has been a camera that I’ve always coveted but could never justify the $1000+ price tag. Even with the subsequent releases of the X100S, X100T, and

Techuisite Digest

03.06.2024: New kid, newish tech, and using ChatGPT more. To say I have a lot going on right now would be an understatement. My wife had our new baby boy at the very end of February which is what caused the delay of me writing a second Digest

My Desire For Retro Tech

Becoming a parent or maybe getting older is making me miss and want some of my previous beloved gadgets. Very soon I will be a parent to a second child. My wife is currently 37 weeks pregnant and to say we are excited would be an understatement. With that excitement

Overlapping Tech

Why do I feel weird about having gadgets share features? One of the problems that I continue to face is why I get so bothered by having gadgets that share the same features or uses. I have been in a weird minimalism obsession after watching The Minimalists years ago with

Asus Zenbook 14X Review

A true competitor in an Apple premium world. After using the iPad Pro for some time and going through my Pro Computer Guilt phase, I decided that I wanted a computer that did more for me. Not in the sense that the iPad Pro couldn’t do everything, but I

The Immersive Hype Is Real

My thoughts on trying the Apple Vision Pro. After listening to all of my favorite tech podcasters give their first impressions of the Apple Vision Pro, I thought I would follow what John Siracusa did on ATP and schedule a demo at my local Apple Store. My local Apple store

Techuisite Digest

02.09.2024: My PKM progress, Asus Zenbook 14X, and my iPad-only journey update. I have an appointment to try out the Apple Vision Pro this weekend. I wanted to share my thoughts on my next Digest but felt I should get this out now since we are almost in

Pro Computer Guilt

After years of getting myself the computer I want, I now only focus on the one I need. The Mac is an outstanding computer. It has been my go-to computer for 16 years now. Before I started using a Mac, I, like many others, was introduced to Apple first with

Techuisite Digest

01.29.2024: iPad Mini follow-up, Returning to the Mac, and Creating a PKM system. This is my first paid post, so as of right now, no one will see this full post since I don't have anyone signed up as a paid member. This is okay. Blogging

My Favorite iPad

The iPad Mini continues to move through my life, and I think I know why. If I can give you a true TL;DR for this post, it is that the iPad Mini (6 currently, but previous models also apply) is my favorite iPad of all time. I have loved

Techuisite Digest

01.14.2024: Kindle Scribe more thoughts, iPad Mini, and Vision Pro pre-orders This will be my first Techuisite Digest since moving to Ghost. This is the free version, but the next will be for paid-members only. Like how it was on Substack before, I plan to do one unpaid

Kindle Scribe Review

A Kindle lover testing out Amazon’s newest and biggest model. During my journey of trying to figure out the best iPad last year, for a moment, I used and tried out an Onyx Boox Note Air 2 Plus. I had never used a device with such a large e-ink

iPhone Blogging

A simple process to post to my personal blog from my iPhone. I briefly mentioned this on my personal blog, Alvalog, but I wanted to create a proper blog post detailing the steps to set up a blog for posting from my iPhone. I recently migrated Techuisite from Medium to

An Update for Techuisite

Some may have noticed, but Techuisite.com has been moved from my Medium Publication to a new website hosted by Ghost. Having my own website where my Techuisite Domain lives has been something I have been thinking about, and talking about, for a while now and decided to finally make

Jumping to the M-Series iPad Pro

Bought an M1 iPad Pro to get the most out of the iPad-Only life. If you are subscribed to my Substack, Techuisite Digest, you have probably heard about my journey of returning to my desk. My garage/office has been a mess for months due to a lot going on,

Techuisite Digest

12.15.2023: Alvalog.net and Techuisite Wishlist Not thrilled with Substack’s response to some feedback regarding troublesome views being shared on their platform. Not sure if I am going to keep my newsletter here or move elsewhere, but I will keep you updated.  In the meantime here is

My New Favorite Markdown Editors

An update to the best markdown-supported text editors on Windows, Mac, and iPadOS. This is an updated version of My Favorite Markdown Editors, which I published on November 9th, 2023. The only change is me adding a separate pick for my favorite markdown editor for the iPad. Since I was

iPhone Nostalgia

Why do I tend to miss older versions of tech years later? As the days grow colder and the holidays approach, work becomes lighter, and stress is low. More conversations and chit-chat occur in my department, possibly because projects slow down at the end of the year. We still complete

Music Collaboration In iOS 17.2

This new feature has helped the pain of moving to a new Apple ID. It has almost been three months since I wrote One iPhone, Two SIM Cards where I decided to use my work-issued iPhone 13 Pro as my main, only, phone and added my personal eSIM to it.

Techuisite Digest

12.06.2023: M1 iPad Pro Upgrade, Desk Setup, and iMessage on Android It's that time of year that feels both slower and really fast. Christmas is fast approaching, but work feels quiet and slow. While I used to love this time of year, the last few years,

Techuisite Digest

11.25.2023: MacBook Pro Disappointment, iPad Power User Beef, and iPad-Only update. I hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving. I have slowed down my writing a bit due to my entire house swapping different illnesses with each other, but I hope the long weekend will give me time to

Is Apple Failing Their iPad Power Users?

Many seem to hate the direction of the iPad and the threats keep coming. I have gone over this a few times already. About two years ago before iPadOS 16 was announced, I wrote about how I felt iPad Power Users were expecting too much. I went over their unrealistic

My Favorite iPhone Apps of 2023

These are the apps I found myself loving and using the most this year. This year has been pretty slow for new apps on my iPhone. Maybe because my transition to my work phone forced me to use apps differently since I am now trying to separate my work and

Techuisite Digest

11.12.2023: Drafts, iPad hate, and a sudden eagerness to write more. I know I keep doing this, but I have been rethinking my writing online again and have made some decisions. All of the Techuisite Posts, or posts that originate on Medium under my Techuisite Publication (Blog), are

The Best Feature on iPadOS

I can’t believe I forgot about this feature after going back to iPad-Only. When I wrote about going back to the iPad-Only life a few months ago, I talked about how Stage Manger was something I found appealing, but not ground-breaking. I showcased how I could only really get

Apple’s M-Series Mac Concerns

The future of Apple Silicone is looking a bit worrisome with the new MacBook Pro. After writing my post Does the iPad Need More Love?, the dust began to settle on the exciting, Scary Event that Apple had on October 30th. The M-Series chip progression is definitely exciting, but there

The Apple Watch Design is Boring

Other than the Ultra; the lineup feels lazy and uninteresting. My Apple Watch SE isn’t totally unusable, yet, but the battery life is starting to get worrying. I am not ready to start looking at replacing it, but when I look at the options available for the Apple Watch

Does the iPad Need More Love?

The Mac has had big improvements over the last few years but what about the iPad? Over the last few years, we have seen a big turnaround in how Apple has treated the Mac. There were rumors that Apple was going to move away from pro desktop computers like the

My Favorite Tech Accessories

My essential gadgets are that much better with these awesome accessories. Right now, I am in a very happy place when it comes to my technology setup. My computer, phone, and gaming devices. The iPad Pro has definitely sparked a fire in me to write more, and I am noticing

The Coveted Apple Pencil

If you are not a creator, do you need the Apple Pencil? I recently wrote about the Apple Pencil in my most recent Techuisite Digest Newsletter, and realized that I had more thoughts regarding Apple’s announcement of the new USB-C Apple Pencil, and the Pencil in general. Since getting

The More Apple Gives, The Better It Gets

Apple's older model Macs and iPads become better deals when they continue to upgrade. Upgrading tech devices often isn’t necessarily a new thing. I remember upgrading to every SideKick that came out after finally getting mine after almost a year of the first model releasing. The SideKick

Kindle 2022 Review

Amazon’s cheapest Kindle got so much better. After moving my setup from a MacBook Pro and Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite to an iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard, though my tablet needs were satisfied, reading on the 11-inch iPad Pro was not ideal, compared to the S6 Lite. When

Techuisite Digest

10.27.2023: My lack of need for Apple Pencil, Kindle Review, and finding time to write is hard. Not many behind-the-scenes updates right now. Substack has been renamed to Techuisite Digest, Medium continues to host Techuisite.com, and I have a new, unfinished, home for my personal blog, Alvalog.

Techuisite Digest

10.17.2023: iPadOS 17’s Stage Manager, deciding on a Kindle, my return to technology news I recently decided to make my blog Techuisite separate from my newsletter, which I now call Techuisite Digest. I have been switching things up quite a bit ever since Medium decided to make

Techuisite Digest

09.30.2023: iPhone Titanium’s, iPad-Only thoughts, AirPods Pro 2 AppleCare+ Frenzy I want to do at least two of these Chronicles a month. Ideally, I would like to do one weekly, but once I get some paid subscribers, I will put a couple behind a paywall and the

My Return To The iPad-Only Life

I have officially transferred back to the iPad Pro from a Mac. Since writing A Writers iPad Lust, I have used the iPad Pro 11-inch with the Magic Keyboard almost daily. I wrote a couple posts on Medium and Substack, some minor code on my landing page, techuisite.github.co,

One iPhone, Two SIM Cards

Living with a personal and work phone number on one phone. Since moving over to a single device, a couple of months ago, one of the stipulations was being able to keep my personal phone number. I knew I was going to move away from AT&T, but I

Techuisite Digest

09.11.23: Some updates and news from me and technology. iPad-Only Update After writing A Writers iPad Lust, I have been using the iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard a lot! Writing text, as I mentioned in my post, is excellent on the device. What is not so excellent? Writing

A Writers iPad Lust

Using an iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard continues to be a writer’s dream machine. I am currently still in my Systems (Not Tools) Theme this year, but I can’t help but lust over a device that I have been going back and forth too for years now. To

No More Dual-iPhone

Moving to my work iPhone as my main phone. Since I wrote the post on Dumping My Personal Phone back in January, I have been contemplating making the switch. The reason for this is because my Pros and Cons list was changing quite of bit from where it started. Here

The iPad Mini Deserves ProMotion

Apple perfected the smallest iPad at the time, but it needs some “refreshing.” I have been getting a small uptick of traffic on my iPad Mini 6 review I wrote almost two years ago and decided to reread it myself. I forgot how much I loved the device, especially since

My Mid-2023 Tech Bag Updates

I have made some big changes since my last overview. Since the beginning of the year, when I did my Tech Bag Review, quite a few things have changed. Some very small but some pretty major changes — my bag, for instance. So I thought it would be good to do