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She knew what she wanted.
Well almost.
He just felt that going to a Verizon store would help confirm all of his research and all of his intentions.
My wife, you see, has clung to her Samsung Galaxy S7 Longer than I’ve held onto the idea that humanity needs courtesy to survive.
However, he had recently realized that his S7 would need a dignified burial. She had done her research.
Her guts and sense of frugality told her that maybe it was time to switch to Apple.
Well, his intestines were a bit upset at the idea. Apple, for her, represents the work of the devil. But then she saw the iPhone SE 2020 and felt it could be for her. That is, unless you have opted for a Galaxy S10e.
I admit that the idea of SE had slipped into his consciousness. But she did her own research online, turning down phone after phone on the Verizon website, and concluded that she still needed to see her chosen ones live, at a Verizon store.
He made an appointment and I put the mask on so no one at Verizon could see my facial expressions.
Do you want an iPhone SE? Well, Ta-Da!
We were greeted outside by a burly guard who explained that we were four minutes early. They value efficiency and security at this Verizon store.
Once admitted to the sanctuary, we were greeted by a vendor of a few years and we polished it up. To prepare for us, he put on his gloves like a proctologist. Or a vet.
This was not going to hurt at all.
“I need to update my Galaxy S7 and I am interested in the new small iPhone,” my wife began.
The seller’s expression betrayed nothing but friendliness. He happily escorted her to the Apple part of the store and showed her the phone. She was even allowed to pick it up.
She was happy with its size, but still worried about the big move from Samsung to Apple.
“Some things will be new, but not many,” said the seller. “If you go from iPhone to Samsung, it is not much different. Samsung was sued so many times for copying Apple that going from your S7 to this SE will not be too difficult. If you have the Google phone there [he pointed], that’s pure Android. That would be much more difficult. ”
And then she innocently added, “A lot of people still don’t. Or they won’t.”
I could feel my wife waver a bit. Was she doing the right thing? Was this a betrayal of your principles? Would people make elitist jokes at her expense?
The seller remained calm. He said, “I don’t care which phone I buy. The LGs over there, the Motorolas. Or even those folding phones.”
Interestingly, he did not offer to demonstrate any of these phones. Instead, he exuded serenity, as if he knew the next question.
My wife asked, “So what is the Android equivalent of this cheap Apple phone?”
Yes, we also have Samsung. Expensive
We passed by Samsung, a literal division in this store.
“When their phone came out,” the salesperson began, “it was a premium phone. So the equivalent is this. Everything is better because the technology is five years newer. The screen is better. And it has 5G.”
Was he talking about the S10e that my wife had placed on her short list? No way. She spoke poetically about the Galaxy S20.
“5G,” my wife said. “What does that mean?”
“Well, right now in this county, it doesn’t mean anything. But when all the towers have been changed, it will mean everything will work faster.”
“But this S20 is more expensive than the SE,” my wife replied. “What is the actual Samsung equivalent of that SE?”
The seller needed to look at his iPad.
He replied, “It’s the 10e, which means economy, but we don’t have it on display. What we have here is the A51. It’s cheaper and has some modern technology, but not as much as the S20.”
My wife took the A51. “It is too big for my hands,” she concluded.
I could see his eyes returning to the forbidden fruit. Did I mention that I had written an entire column on why my wife would never buy the S20?
“But this S20 is not much bigger than my S7 and it looks good,” my wife said now.
Suddenly, we were not counting the cost.
“So what is the Apple equivalent of this S20?” she asked.
We walked back to the blue corner.
“We don’t have it on display right now, because too many people kept playing it,” the salesman began.
He pointed to a photo and said, “But that’s it. The 11 Pro.”
Now we were on the edge of the abyss. My wife wasn’t really interested in 11 Pro. Her head had turned like Linda Blair in The Exorcist. Well, metaphorically.
He asked the seller to compare the S20 to the 2020 iPhone SE. The seller had a 20-20 vision on this one.
“Well the S20 reacts very quickly,” he said. “This Apple reacts quiiiiickkkkkish”.
It was like watching a redwood fall in slow motion. The seller’s eyes had a tiny glint. “Don’t get me wrong,” he said. “They are still faster than your S7.”
“So what is the price difference between the S20 and the little iPhone?” asked my wife.
“I just viewed your account and there is a sale on the S20. It is $ 200 off,” said the seller.
Of course yes.
One more question, one more calculation, and the price difference was revealed as $ 10 a month.
For the next, oh, who knows how many years? It did not matter. My wife was sold. The salesman had played it patiently and just meeting the S20, holding it, looking at it had made my wife change her mind.
The math (after) adds up.
I have written once or twice about the irrationality of human beings.
I have also written about the dangers of phone companies, and Microsoft, trying to sell all of their products online.
Seeing my wife, whose normal interest in technology lies in getting upset when it doesn’t work, be seduced by a shiny modern phone shows the value of physical experience.
“My phone is not what determines my happiness,” my wife said when I asked her if she loved her new phone. (Did I mention it’s scientific?)
“What I’m using this for more than the other is for health reasons,” he rationally explained. “The S7 probably had the health features too, but having a new phone makes me want to use more bits.”
There are downsides. “I’m still getting used to the length, but I like how light and narrow it is.”
The tightness is what makes it more comfortable, he says.
“So it’s worth $ 10 more a month for two years?”
“Yes.”
“Wait, but that’s only $ 240. Your S20 was at least $ 800 and the SE was just $ 400. Where did the other 160 go?
“Who cares?”
