As a young boy, Mr Francis Tan would start his morning by picking up the day's newspaper from outside his door, even before having his favourite half-boiled eggs for breakfast.
"Every month, the newspaper delivery man would come and give my grandmother the receipt chit to collect his payment," he recalled with a smile. "That was my first experience with The Straits Times."
Since then, the 48-year-old executive director of chemicals investment firm Hafnium Hafaway has not gone a single day without reading ST, which celebrates its 175th anniversary this year.
Even when he was posted overseas for work, Mr Tan would flip through copies of the paper that were flown in on Singapore Airlines.
On Sept 4, he became the 17,500th person to subscribe to The Straits Times News Tablet package. Introduced last December, this subscription deal allows readers to enjoy the enhanced e-paper edition of ST wherever they are.
Mr Tan described getting the ST News Tablet as a "natural progression", as it gives him the convenience of accessing news on the go, together with the familiar curation of a print layout.
"The tablet is so much a part of the way I live, the way I work and the way I connect with people," he said.
"Every day, we are bombarded with information. You need to make choices, decisions: 'Do I read this, do I not read this?' So the simplicity of having something that is bundled together in a right level of detail and focus that I like is actually rather calming for me."
For Mr Tan, ST's second page, which summarises the key headlines of the day, is a must-read. He said: "That's something I don't go without before I start my day."
He also cited The Sunday Times' Insight section and columns by ST's editor-at-large Han Fook Kwang as his favourites. "I like Fook Kwang's articles. I think they always touch on the relevant developments in our society and get us to think about how they're impacting us."
Mr Tan believes that ST provides a "nice blend" of global reports, local news and analyses.
He said: "If you look at what's happening now with the advent of fake news, misinformation, biases... ST provides a semblance of familiarity and level of objectivity that I can rely on.
"If you want a good update on local news, information that affects Singaporeans, I think there's no better source than ST."
Mr Tan now hopes to pass on his penchant for reading the news to the next generation. He and his wife, Ms Crystal Chin, 42, use the paper as a teaching tool for their children Aston, nine, Hansen, seven, and Feodora, five.
"I sometimes print out clippings for them to read and they would mark out words that they don't understand, which I think is a nice way to bond," he said. "Then you could either ask them to check the dictionary or they come to you, and you become their dictionary."
As the 17,500th News Tablet subscriber, Mr Tan received a hamper comprising a Samsung Galaxy Watch Active2 fitness watch, Galaxy Buds+ earpieces, a Galaxy Note 10+ phone and a limited-edition ST tablet cover.
The next 1,200 ST News Tablet subscribers will also get the limited-edition ST tablet cover for free.
• For more information on The Straits Times News Tablet subscription plan, go to stsub.sg/tab
