Apple[2] gets you without even trying.
You buy one Apple product and, when you get another one, it works with such blissful ease that you wonder why the whole world wasn't built like this.
I exaggerate, of course, but only slightly.
Apple has always dedicated its soul to making its products human-friendly. This, though, has become harder as the technology sphere has become more complex.
What, though, if you just want to get away from Apple? What if you think, as some do, that it's a company built on sanctimonious fakery and snobbery?
Is it possible to go somewhere else and experience the same seductively-synced ease?
This is the existential question I've forced myself to explore. So my first stop was to visit Apple's oldest rival, Microsoft.
What would one of its stores suggest to get me away from Apple's walled nation?
A very cheery Microsoft saleswoman instantly greeted me. She wanted to help. I wanted to know why she was so cheery. It turned out that's just the way she is.
So I asked: "Is it possible to get the same seamless experience with Microsoft as I get with Apple?"
"It's easy," she replied.
It is? Why had no one ever told me this before? There would have been a world of opportunity for me to explore. Yet here I was in a store that displayed laptops, tablets, but no phones. And, as far as I could see, no smart speakers or watches.
"All you need is a Microsoft account," she continued.
"That's it?"
"Yes."
"So if, say, I have a Dell laptop, a Samsung phone, and other assorted devices, simply having a Microsoft