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> Basically, you pay $3 a month and can print up to 50 pages. HP remotely monitors your ink levels and sends you replacement cartridges automatically when the c

by dngray 7y ago

> Basically, you pay $3 a month and can print up to 50 pages. HP remotely monitors your ink levels and sends you replacement cartridges automatically when the cartridges need to be replaced. Ugh dollar shave club for printers or something? I refuse to engage in thing-as-a-service. The only reason companies do this is because they know if they bleed a little bit out of you each month you're more likely to say "it's only a couple of dollars". It all adds up costing huge amounts in your monthly expenses. They then also know there's a huge portion of customers paying for this who aren't using their '50 sheets', so wow, they've just built a model where customers pay for a thing they don't use and they don't have to provision for. > Please stop supporting that. That business model really needs to die. I would up vote you more than once if I could.

deleted 7y ago
[deleted]
stjohnswarts 7y ago
My friends love dollar shave club, and I'm like "buy a safety razor for $20-30 bucks and a bulk pack of razor blades and you will set FOR YEARS.
- ryacko 7y ago
  My grandfather would sharpen his razor blades on his jeans, one would only need one razor blade if maintenance included sharpening the razor.
  - tomatocracy 7y ago
    I use straight razors. With the right care they will indeed last a lifetime but I’d caution that it’s more than ‘sharpen it on your jeans’. For a start most are made of mild steel rather than stainless so you need to store them completely dry otherwise they’ll rust (so keeping them in the bathroom is hard given it tends to be a moist environment).
    - jstanley 7y ago
      Nitpick: mild steel is awful for blades as is it is too soft and cannot be hardened. Most likely they are some sort of high-carbon steel.
      - tomatocracy 7y ago
        Sorry, yes you’re right! Carbon steel. I should add that you can buy stainless steel straight razors but they’re much harder to sharpen properly so I think not very popular.
- justinclift 7y ago
  Or buy an electric shaver. Mine probably cost about AU$80, and has lasted at least 6 years. No sign of it going wrong, and I've never needed to replace/sharpen the blades, though apparently replacement blades are a thing.
  - henkslaaf 7y ago
    Depending on how heavy your beard is, an electric shaver does not come close to the cleanliness a "wet" razor will get you. Maybe your mileage/needs vary.
    - dngray 7y ago
      > an electric shaver does not come close to the cleanliness a "wet" razor will get you As someone who used to use an electric shaver since his teenage years I wholeheartedly agree. I do not grow a beard, hate them in fact and am always clean shaven. I never ever once got a shave anywhere near as close as I did with a razor. After a while you can do it in the shower blind without a mirror just from feel.
    - tonyedgecombe 7y ago
      On the other hand you never cut yourself with an electric razor. I used a wet razor for years but recently switched to electric because of this.
      - Izkata 7y ago
        Depends on the model. My first electric razor lasted somewhere around 10-12 years with no issues, before it broke and I needed a replacement. The replacement was a newer version of the same model, and caused bleeding around my adam's apple every day guaranteed; I downgraded and haven't had any issues since.
        dngray 7y ago
        > The replacement was a newer version of the same model, and caused bleeding around my adam's apple every day guaranteed Those rotary ones are notoriously bad, they will cause pulling. I found the foil based ones like the braun series 3 to be a lot better in that regard, closer shave too, still nothing like a razor though.
- dngray 7y ago
  > My friends love dollar shave club, and I'm like "buy a safety razor for $20-30 bucks and a bulk pack of razor blades and you will set FOR YEARS. I got given one of these https://getrockwell.com/products/rockwell-6s-gift-set https://getrockwell.com/products/rockwell-6s-gift-set after I mentioned I wanted a stainless steel one and it was given to me as a gift. Apparently it started from a kickstarter a few years ago https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/rockwellrazors/rockwell-razors-shaving-reinvented https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/rockwellrazors/rockwell... The person who gave it to me knew I am environmentally conscious. I remember reading that those cartridge razors are really bad for the environment as they are a mix of steel and plastic. Now I can just use regular razor blades https://www.amazon.com/Feather-Razor-Blades-Hi-stainless-Double/dp/B004RWTQTS https://www.amazon.com/Feather-Razor-Blades-Hi-stainless-Dou... $22 for 100. Feels good to not be locked into some proprietary mounting too, kind of the same feeling as using free software. hah. I prefer it to my old Gillete one. More blades is not better, that is all marketing, and they just get clogged, ugh. I don't see how being in a "club" that I have to pay any kind of "annual" fees would help me. The idea is I have reduced my costs significantly and have everything I would want. Occasionally I buy a new tub of shaving cream when I run out. I am adult enough to go "that looks like a nice scent I will try that", and then decide if I want to buy more next time or buy something else. I absolutely detest "monthly" or "weekly" payments of anything. The only exception I make is for utilities, or service contracts. If it's neither of those things why should I pay more than once? or pay for someone to trickle samples out in the post to me?
- tomjen3 7y ago
  Buy a cut-throat and be set for life. Seriously though, I have a safety razor, but I can't get a satisfactory shave out of something where the head doesn't pivot, so I use the local coops budget razors. They are pretty much the same as dollar shave clubs, but I don't have it here, and I rather not buy shit on subscription. There are two things in the home that can be reused when I am dead: my model M and the safety razor.
  - dngray 7y ago
    > Buy a cut-throat and be set for life. You can get straight edge razors, a place I went to the other day was selling them. https://www.beardandblade.com.au/collections/straight-razors https://www.beardandblade.com.au/collections/straight-razors They look really expensive, but I guess you'd only ever buy one once and then just sharpen with a strop https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Razor_strop https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Razor_strop I think they would only be good for 'certain' places on your body though, ie your face.
jaclaz 7y ago
>I refuse to engage in thing-as-a-service. As a side note, whether one uses it or not, it should be called what it is: thing-as-a-monthly-subscrition (often automatically renewing itself). Maybe it is just me, but to me something "as a service" is still something I pay "per use" and not something I pay a monthly or yearly fee in exchange for a given limited amount of something that I may or may not use.

by dngray 7y ago

deleted 7y ago

[deleted]

stjohnswarts 7y ago

My friends love dollar shave club, and I'm like "buy a safety razor for $20-30 bucks and a bulk pack of razor blades and you will set FOR YEARS.

ryacko 7y ago
My grandfather would sharpen his razor blades on his jeans, one would only need one razor blade if maintenance included sharpening the razor.
- tomatocracy 7y ago
  I use straight razors. With the right care they will indeed last a lifetime but I’d caution that it’s more than ‘sharpen it on your jeans’. For a start most are made of mild steel rather than stainless so you need to store them completely dry otherwise they’ll rust (so keeping them in the bathroom is hard given it tends to be a moist environment).
  - jstanley 7y ago
    Nitpick: mild steel is awful for blades as is it is too soft and cannot be hardened. Most likely they are some sort of high-carbon steel.
    - tomatocracy 7y ago
      Sorry, yes you’re right! Carbon steel. I should add that you can buy stainless steel straight razors but they’re much harder to sharpen properly so I think not very popular.
justinclift 7y ago
Or buy an electric shaver. Mine probably cost about AU$80, and has lasted at least 6 years. No sign of it going wrong, and I've never needed to replace/sharpen the blades, though apparently replacement blades are a thing.
- henkslaaf 7y ago
  Depending on how heavy your beard is, an electric shaver does not come close to the cleanliness a "wet" razor will get you. Maybe your mileage/needs vary.
  - dngray 7y ago
    > an electric shaver does not come close to the cleanliness a "wet" razor will get you As someone who used to use an electric shaver since his teenage years I wholeheartedly agree. I do not grow a beard, hate them in fact and am always clean shaven. I never ever once got a shave anywhere near as close as I did with a razor. After a while you can do it in the shower blind without a mirror just from feel.
  - tonyedgecombe 7y ago
    On the other hand you never cut yourself with an electric razor. I used a wet razor for years but recently switched to electric because of this.
    - Izkata 7y ago
      Depends on the model. My first electric razor lasted somewhere around 10-12 years with no issues, before it broke and I needed a replacement. The replacement was a newer version of the same model, and caused bleeding around my adam's apple every day guaranteed; I downgraded and haven't had any issues since.
      - dngray 7y ago
        > The replacement was a newer version of the same model, and caused bleeding around my adam's apple every day guaranteed Those rotary ones are notoriously bad, they will cause pulling. I found the foil based ones like the braun series 3 to be a lot better in that regard, closer shave too, still nothing like a razor though.
dngray 7y ago
> My friends love dollar shave club, and I'm like "buy a safety razor for $20-30 bucks and a bulk pack of razor blades and you will set FOR YEARS. I got given one of these https://getrockwell.com/products/rockwell-6s-gift-set https://getrockwell.com/products/rockwell-6s-gift-set after I mentioned I wanted a stainless steel one and it was given to me as a gift. Apparently it started from a kickstarter a few years ago https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/rockwellrazors/rockwell-razors-shaving-reinvented https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/rockwellrazors/rockwell... The person who gave it to me knew I am environmentally conscious. I remember reading that those cartridge razors are really bad for the environment as they are a mix of steel and plastic. Now I can just use regular razor blades https://www.amazon.com/Feather-Razor-Blades-Hi-stainless-Double/dp/B004RWTQTS https://www.amazon.com/Feather-Razor-Blades-Hi-stainless-Dou... $22 for 100. Feels good to not be locked into some proprietary mounting too, kind of the same feeling as using free software. hah. I prefer it to my old Gillete one. More blades is not better, that is all marketing, and they just get clogged, ugh. I don't see how being in a "club" that I have to pay any kind of "annual" fees would help me. The idea is I have reduced my costs significantly and have everything I would want. Occasionally I buy a new tub of shaving cream when I run out. I am adult enough to go "that looks like a nice scent I will try that", and then decide if I want to buy more next time or buy something else. I absolutely detest "monthly" or "weekly" payments of anything. The only exception I make is for utilities, or service contracts. If it's neither of those things why should I pay more than once? or pay for someone to trickle samples out in the post to me?
tomjen3 7y ago
Buy a cut-throat and be set for life. Seriously though, I have a safety razor, but I can't get a satisfactory shave out of something where the head doesn't pivot, so I use the local coops budget razors. They are pretty much the same as dollar shave clubs, but I don't have it here, and I rather not buy shit on subscription. There are two things in the home that can be reused when I am dead: my model M and the safety razor.
- dngray 7y ago
  > Buy a cut-throat and be set for life. You can get straight edge razors, a place I went to the other day was selling them. https://www.beardandblade.com.au/collections/straight-razors https://www.beardandblade.com.au/collections/straight-razors They look really expensive, but I guess you'd only ever buy one once and then just sharpen with a strop https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Razor_strop https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Razor_strop I think they would only be good for 'certain' places on your body though, ie your face.

jaclaz 7y ago

>I refuse to engage in thing-as-a-service. As a side note, whether one uses it or not, it should be called what it is: thing-as-a-monthly-subscrition (often automatically renewing itself). Maybe it is just me, but to me something "as a service" is still something I pay "per use" and not something I pay a monthly or yearly fee in exchange for a given limited amount of something that I may or may not use.