I was looking At upgrading to an iPhone 6, but sadly it didn’t end up going so smoothly as I first thought.

I like to recycle my gadgets before I upgrade. Every time I purchase a new piece of equipment its normally an upgrade, in my case an iPhone 5 to an iPhone 6.

My iPhone 5 had been a fantastic phone, I used it to take all my pictures whilst on my travels, but buttons stopped working, The photo quality was not that great and I was looking at getting a better Video Camera to film HD footage.

I had played around with an iPhone 6 for filming and was blown out of the water. I was aware that the iPhone 5s quality in photos had taken a jump from the iPhone 5 but I was waiting for the next model till I took the leap.

Recycle your gadgets to save cash

Before I departed from The Netherlands I sold my iPhone 5 on a market space to get the most cash for it. I find online market places in Europe a great place to maximize your sale price compared to other continents, the value is much higher. You can find loads of Facebook groups selling unwanted stuff almost in every city around Europe and full of people looking for a bargain.

I frequently used to use Ebay for this type of thing, but once you take into consideration the packaging, postage and time, its easier to sell direct with cash in hand around Europe.

Buying abroad can be cheaper

As I was flying into Kuala Lumper on my way to Thailand, I had a couple of days to find an Apple reseller and pick up a new iPhone. I always buy my expensive pieces of travel equipment abroad as it saves me a boat load. The UK has the highest tax prices and VAT, The UK always gets charged the most for everything (Unless your Norwegian or Icelandic of course!) and If I can blend a future purchase into the trip, then I use the savings to my advantage, When it come to buying a new iPhone, the savings were in the hundreds so it was totally worth it.

I do this frequently for health services, buying new clothes, new electronics or services, buying abroad can save you a lot of money, if you’re travelling then why not right? Keep an eye out for tax free shopping on your travels and be sure to fill in the correct forms and sort it out at the airport with enough time in hand. You can get an idea of where its cheap to buy Apple products abroad by reading this post.

Just check to make sure that it will be Unlocked before you purchase it, so you can use global SIM cards where ever you travel too.

Be sure to check out Apples Refurblished section too in each country, you might find a bargain. The goods are set back to a fully working standard and still contain the 1 year Apple care, its a win win! You can also get free Apple Delivery with Apple if you have a hotel address you can send it before you arrive if you have enough time.

Being without a phone was tough

Because I sold my phone in Holland to buy a new one in Malaysia This meant I had to be without a phone for 5 days. This was a fun and weird experience not having a phone on me for that length of time. I was constantly checking my pockets all the time, being in shock for a few seconds, then quickly remembering, I no longer had a phone.

Isn’t it amazing to think how much we depend on our Smart phones these days to feel connected? It was actually rather exciting to be without a phone for a while, working out how to deal with common situations such as how I’m going to contact my AirBnB host without a phone and discovering that all the pay phones had been recently removed and having to ask a help desk if they could let you borrow their phone for one call. Wow, how times have changed!

So, days had passed, I had reached Malaysia and it was time to get my new iPhone 6. I had looked into finding an official Apple store in KL but they only had resellers, that’s ok, I found the most popular one in the Petronas towers shopping mall and went along to pick up my new toy.

Excited, I headed straight to the closest sales assistant and asked for a new iPhone with a big grin on my face.

“Sold out”

Noooooooooooo, After 5 days I was at my limit, I needed to be connected with the digital world again, I was flying to Thailand the next day and I wasn’t sure how I would manage not uploading a picture to Instagram over the next 3 months, it would be like a hardcore addiction detox for me, I had coped so well over the last 5 days, I was very proud of myself, I wasn’t sure how I could go on any further!

Jokes aside, I asked when they would be getting a new shipment in.

“No Idea” was his reply…… Great.

I kind of got a little red headed with the shop assistant because I wanted to buy a new phone, but he was fed up with replying to the same question a thousand times, I guess he was unaware that I had been phoneless for almost a week and was struggling to keep on going.

However He did inform me he had one iPhone 6 plus in stock.

You mean the bulky oversize bendgate of a phone?

The one that doesn’t even fit in your pocket?

Hmmmmmmm.

I wasn’t left with much choice, it was either going big or go home.

Not having any form of communication device in my pocket started to scare me, I had already struggled with not being able to take photos in Abu Dhabi (I borrowed another travellers camera as we explored for 12 hours and then transferred his SD card onto my laptop, ha-ha!).

I just went for it! Screw it! Bulk me up Apple!

This was a massive step for me, I’m always worried about space, I try to buy the smallest items possible to make room in my pack. Have you seen how small my travel towel is??? Have you seen it!! It fits in my hand, I wasn’t sure how I would manage with a phone that doesn’t fit in my pocket.

However, I have been amazed with the overall experience and that’s why I wanted to share with you how I’ve managed to get on with this device:

My Experience with the iPhone 6 Plus

After I checked into my AirBnB apartment and settled down, I left my phone charging for a good 12+ hours whilst I slept to get over my jet lag. It’s a good tip to leave your phone charging until its full, this break in the battery and makes it last longer. After a backup, reinstall from the cloud (Got to love apple) My old phone was on my new phone and I could start to use my new iPhone 6 Plus.

Travel Video blew me away

Wow! Once you’ve filmed a video on an iPhone 6 plus your mind is going to be blown away, I just can’t get over the fact that it’s on a phone and its 2015, its incredible quality and packed full of useful features.

The only additional gear I use along with the iPhone 6 Plus for filming is a Jobby GorillaPod gripTight stand with phone attachment, along with a Røde Lavalier micropohone, both items are cheap, light wieght to pack and will add stability and better sound recording (which is double important for good quality footage) which will create a Perfect travel filming set up. In Fact, my Thai Cooking school video was filmed using the iphone 6 Plus, incredible hey!

Travel Pictures are incredible

Just like the iPhone 5 the photos are incredible and I still have no need to purchase an additional DSLR. I can do everything that I want to acheive with my travel photography. OK, you can’t zoom, but I’ve gotten by the past few years without a zoom, its something I’m happy to skip.

Here are some examples of some iPhone 6 Plus photographs:

(Close up of a flower, see how you can focus on an item, incredible for a phone!)

For more examples check out Apples taken from iPhone 6 Gallery, for more inspiration, stunning photography examples of whats possible!

I’ve started to write all my travel blogs on the iPhone 6 plus

This is something I had never done before, I found the screen too small on my past iPhones. With the iPhone 6 plus its like a dream! I love writing all my thoughts, like a brain dump and getting the meat of a post typed up when it crosses my mind, Rather than simply waiting in a line, I’m now jamming out my next post (I’m writing this post on my iPhone actually!). I like to use an app called Byword to type out my posts, it has an app on the Mac and iPhone and syncs well in the iCloud. Perfect!

No need for an iPad or tablet

Now I’ve used the iPhone 6 plus for a few months I have no desire to go and buy a tablet at all. I just don’t see the point of owning a phone and a tablet, the iPhone 6 plus sort of fits nicely between the two devices. I’ve started to read my Amazon Kindle books on my iPhone 6 Plus and looking at possibly selling my Kindle in the future, but it’s hard to compete with the battery life and E-ink technology so I’m on the bench still. The great thing about it, you can (sort of) fit it in your pocket so you constantly have this big productive screen with you to crack on with work.

iPhone 6 Plus, very impressed

I have to say what started out as a frustrating purchase turned into a fantastic decision, I’m extremely happy I’ve gone with the iPhone 6 Plus. It took some time to get used to it, such as fitting it into my pocket, but now I hardly noticed the difference and having that extra screen size is life changing!

It’s funny as every time I use a normal size iPhone I feel like a giant using a toy phone Drunk, funny what a few months can do!

Thank you for reading my post all about how I’ve got on with the iPhone 6 Plus, Are you looking at purchasing this phone? Have you got an iPhone 6 Plus already? Feel free to give tips, ask questions and share your opinion in the comment section below: