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iPhone 13 Pro Max What makes a person a power user?
- Thread starter AdamNC
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ChoiMinji
macrumors 6502
Using the phone with the power cord plugged in makes me a power user.
Shirasaki
macrumors P6
Power user is defined by other people’s understanding of what power user is. Of course, someone can also claim themselves to be a power user. Things like taking hundreds of phone calls a day, tinker with their iPhone, use specialised apps, use iPhone in creative ways (cant think of an example off top of my head), you name it. Heck, if someone streams their mobile game gameplay on iPhone and let viewers to see, they might also think they are a power user.
there is no agreed definition. It is a meaningless term, the same as ‘general purpose computer’ We’ve seen a lot recently.
i always thought the term described the amount of hours the phone was in use. but then i always saw battery posts and people claiming to be a power user with 2-3 hours SOT per day 🤷♂️
Ralfi
macrumors 601
Take it literally - someone who uses a lot of (battery) power in a day.
Power Cycling stats & how often people chew through them may also tell a story.
Power Cycling stats & how often people chew through them may also tell a story.
Al Rukh
macrumors 65816
I truly don’t think the term is defined by how much you use your phone or what you do on it; whenever I've witnessed people using the term they seem to use it to try and distinguish themselves as somehow better, more authoritative or more knowledgable than other people. It’s a perceived status indicator rather than actually a real thing.
Jackbequickly
Suspended
If you are living on your phone and can’t be separated from it, you are a power user with a neck ache!
Abazigal
Contributor
I'd say it is how much of the capabilities you use of the numbr of apps in a day rather than time spent. 8 hours a day sounds like a lot until you realise most teenagers reach that just on social media!
My iPad Pro might get used for web, LiDAR scanning, video creation/editing, zoom meetings, email, IM, CAD, image editing, writing and gaming in the space of one typical day. That to me is power use.
A phone is a little more difficult to pin down because its capabilities are as high but it is not as convenient. I'm not going to do finicky image editing or CAD on an iPhone! With the latest iPhone Max I would say if you are regularly shooting video to external, shooting RAW photographs or actually making use of that PS4-level gaming then you're probably a power user.
My iPad Pro might get used for web, LiDAR scanning, video creation/editing, zoom meetings, email, IM, CAD, image editing, writing and gaming in the space of one typical day. That to me is power use.
A phone is a little more difficult to pin down because its capabilities are as high but it is not as convenient. I'm not going to do finicky image editing or CAD on an iPhone! With the latest iPhone Max I would say if you are regularly shooting video to external, shooting RAW photographs or actually making use of that PS4-level gaming then you're probably a power user.
eyoungren
macrumors Nehalem
I will offer a third definition, one that I assumed was the case until a while back. I come from the old PC world of the 80s and 90s where a power user was defined as someone who knew a lot of tricks or shortcuts or lesser known things that allowed them to get things done faster.
A very simplistic example: a power user would have been someone knowing copy/paste by using keyboard commands instead of the mouse and Edit Menu. In the context of the iPhone it would mean knowing the little things that most people do not.
So that's what I always assumed a power user on an iPhone was - until someone told me no, it meant someone who's on their phone all the time.
🤷♂️
A very simplistic example: a power user would have been someone knowing copy/paste by using keyboard commands instead of the mouse and Edit Menu. In the context of the iPhone it would mean knowing the little things that most people do not.
So that's what I always assumed a power user on an iPhone was - until someone told me no, it meant someone who's on their phone all the time.
🤷♂️
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headlessmike
macrumors 68000
In my circles, a power user is someone that only runs their computer from the command line. Pointing devices are for noobs. The equivalent for a smartphone user must be someone that doesn't use the touch screen I presume.
Yeah they use a stylus 😂. And 3.5mm headphone jacks, and microsd card slots 😂
headlessmike
macrumors 68000
If you are able to look down on any other user's usage of the same software/hardware, you can claim the title of power user.
Or something like that.
It sounds like a joke but it's actually one of the most realistic definitions that can be made.
Or something like that.
It sounds like a joke but it's actually one of the most realistic definitions that can be made.
IMO power users are those individuals who get value add (as defined by the individual) out of having strong hardware available for whatever it is they do. Easy.
Timpetus
macrumors 6502a
For me, it means someone who is pushing the boundaries of what their device can do. On a Mac, that might mean someone who is turning off Gatekeeper to install special software, or someone who is using terminal commands all the time to access parts of the OS that are hidden from those who only use the GUI. Regular users run into a strange problem and give up or call someone else to help them figure it out. Power users will do whatever they can to find a solution or workaround themselves.
I think it depends on the user in regards to how news outlets, youtubers, etc. discuss a device being good for a "power user." IMO I have 3 categories for a power user. 1st being someone who uses a select few apps but use those apps throughout the day that drain the battery a lot this can be someone using a work phone heavily for emails/reviewing documents/etc or those who just browse a lot of social media, but again basically only use it for social media/content creation. 2nd is kind of similar to the work and content creators, but more so specifically folks that use heavy battery specifically for multitasking, and the only reason I personally put a separate category for multitaskers is some devices are heavily geared towards these folks, this can be with like tablets, or the folding devices, the phones with built in pens, etc. 3rd is those that use their phone for personal use but do a little of everything like banking, gaming, social media, maybe content creation related stuff, heavy web browsing, basically just using their phone as a jack of all trades replacing a traditional laptop with their phone/tablet.
Edit: I wanted to add that for multitasking, I am not just talking about light use bouncing between two apps like texting someone about a article and bouncing between both. I am talking about they adamantly need two+ apps open at the same time and are regularly doing that fully utilizing stuff like slide over or the split screen on the iPad or for the folding devices half and half screens with other apps on top maybe while taking notes with the pen.
Edit: I wanted to add that for multitasking, I am not just talking about light use bouncing between two apps like texting someone about a article and bouncing between both. I am talking about they adamantly need two+ apps open at the same time and are regularly doing that fully utilizing stuff like slide over or the split screen on the iPad or for the folding devices half and half screens with other apps on top maybe while taking notes with the pen.
BanjoDudeAhoy
macrumors 6502a
That (teenagers on social media) may well be true. And how unhealthy, worrying and sad that is…
antiprotest
macrumors 601
As some people have stated, there might be no hard definition of a power user, so I will just tell you how I loosely conceive of it, and what I mean when I call myself one.
A power user, to me, is not mainly about how much he uses a device, but about how much he knows about it, what it can do, how to use it, how to troubleshoot it, etc.
He would know more than the average user, but he might not be a technical professional or a developer. A technical professional or a developer, of course, would also be a power user.
What is someone like who is NOT a power user?
I have met some teenage girls who used their iPhones more hours than I do, but they complained that the iPhone keeps "sending them notifications" -- they said this as if that's one of the design flaws of Apple or the iPhone. And when it was mentioned that they needed such and such an app to this this or that, they said they didn't want to get more notifications.
When I brought up the fact that it was the apps that were responsible for the notifications and not Apple as such, and that they could customize their notifications with each app -- they could turn notifications on or off, choose whether they make sounds, display on the lock screen, etc. -- they had no idea. They had never heard of such a thing.
And they had been putting up with this issue for years. This meant that, for the years they had been using their phones, they had never gone through the settings app to discover this themselves, nor had they actively searched for answers about their phones.
I have come across people like these, surprisingly often with this exact issue with notifications (that's why I like to use it as an example, but sometimes with other issues that you and I have long taken for granted.
Now, these are NOT power users.
A power user, to me, is not mainly about how much he uses a device, but about how much he knows about it, what it can do, how to use it, how to troubleshoot it, etc.
He would know more than the average user, but he might not be a technical professional or a developer. A technical professional or a developer, of course, would also be a power user.
What is someone like who is NOT a power user?
I have met some teenage girls who used their iPhones more hours than I do, but they complained that the iPhone keeps "sending them notifications" -- they said this as if that's one of the design flaws of Apple or the iPhone. And when it was mentioned that they needed such and such an app to this this or that, they said they didn't want to get more notifications.
When I brought up the fact that it was the apps that were responsible for the notifications and not Apple as such, and that they could customize their notifications with each app -- they could turn notifications on or off, choose whether they make sounds, display on the lock screen, etc. -- they had no idea. They had never heard of such a thing.
And they had been putting up with this issue for years. This meant that, for the years they had been using their phones, they had never gone through the settings app to discover this themselves, nor had they actively searched for answers about their phones.
I have come across people like these, surprisingly often with this exact issue with notifications (that's why I like to use it as an example, but sometimes with other issues that you and I have long taken for granted.
Now, these are NOT power users.
Mitthrawnuruodo
Moderator emeritus
schnitzel-pretzel
macrumors regular
To me a power user is based on workflow, not hours.
For example, "power users" of the Camera functionality find themselves limited by the default camera app. It is not because they spend 5 hours a day taking photos, but because when they go to take one single photo, they may want to manually set the ISO, shutter speed, etc.
Power users run into issues when the default system configuration doesn't meet their needs and settings to allow them to customize the system aren't adequate.
If being a "power user" were based on simply using the phone a lot, then a teenager scrolling TikTok for 8 hours on Saturday would be a "power user".