It had been about 5 years since I bought it. When my hope for Nokia and Symbian ran out I switched to Android, and after a lot of research I got it: a Sony Xperia SP. It followed me for all these years and became my tool for typing and reading the sweetest words and for capturing the most memorable moments.

A few years later, when Sony started acting up, I accepted the risk of bricking it and sent it to “surgery.” Its bootloader was unlocked and it came back to life with a custom ROM, CyanogenMod, what amounted to Android 5. Thanks to AdrienDC, a French developer who supported it, the phone kept going up to Android 8.1, which is its latest version.

Only recently its lack of RAM started to bother it badly, making it cough and suddenly crash whatever app was running. AdrienDC helped again with a RAM-optimization script that gave it another chance at life. But life isn’t always kind: its 3.5mm jack failed and the technician said there was no hope because the IC part couldn’t be found. Dust had also gotten under what I thought was the protective glass (later I realized it was the touch panel), which was an OCD nightmare for me. When I opened it to clean that area, the knife slipped and cut the touch cable. Attempts to repair it failed, and since I used it as my internet modem I couldn’t keep leaving it with the repair shop. I decided to shut it down for good.

I’m writing this so you know I might have tossed you around or, a few times when I got angry, slammed you against the wall , but I always loved you. I’ll always be grateful for your service. Goodbye, buddy.