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Ask HN: What are the best-designed things you've ever used?

• wrycoder 5y ago
  A Gillette Pivot disposable razor.
• mbrodersen 5y ago
  Kinesis Advantage2 keyboard. Without it I would not be able to work as a software developer.
  • Uehreka 5y ago
    Yeah, the Evoluent Vertical Mouse gave me two working hands and a lucrative career. Pretty good value. Five Stars. Would buy again, in fact I have, so I have one for every place I use my laptop.
    • mbrodersen 5y ago
      I have so far purchased 4 Kinesis Advantage2 keyboards. I always keep a brand new one ready in case my work or home one breaks.
• SteveNuts 5y ago
  My Technivorm Moccamaster coffee maker
  • jamroom 5y ago
    Have had one for 10 years and would never buy a different drip coffee maker. Makes the perfect cup of coffee. Definitely a "buy it for life" purchase.
  • roamingryan 5y ago
    I second this. I picked up one second hand a while back. The placard indicates it was built in 1997. It needed a good cleaning and had clearly seen a lot of use, but is perfectly functional. The shower arm was showing slight signs of rust around the hole but getting replacement parts is trivial as the design hasn't changed in decades.
• stblack 5y ago
  Victorinox Spartan Swiss knife. https://www.swissarmy.com/ca/en/Products/Swiss-Army-Knives/Medium-Pocket-Knives/Spartan/p/1.3603 https://www.swissarmy.com/ca/en/Products/Swiss-Army-Knives/M...
  • gautamcgoel 5y ago
    I have the Pioneer and it is excellent. Amazing quality and good selection of tools. I do wish they included a Phillips head screwdriver.
    • LargoLasskhyfv 5y ago
      They do, just in other models. Look for 'Cyber Tool'.
• deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
• programmarchy 5y ago
  Loom is fantastic for quickly creating and sharing desktop screencasts. I use it frequently to demo features to clients, or make recordings to supplement a question or comment for colleagues.
• CommieBobDole 5y ago
  IBM Model M keyboard. Great to type on, just works. Built June 2, 1987. I've been typing on it for 20 years myself, never had any problems except issues with the third-party USB converter not playing nice with some KVM hardware. And I guess the time I spilled coffee in it.
  • quercusa 5y ago
    Mine's from June 10th 1987 - they may have been on the same pallet. If you've only spilled coffee in it once you must live a charmed life!
• apengwin 5y ago
  Craigslist. The UI is extremely streamlined. Everything is either a Cmd-F or a search away. it's a brutalist masterpiece
  • Trasmatta 5y ago
    I went to sell some stuff this month, and was very sad to learn that most people have moved to Facebook Marketplace. Apparently it's much more difficult to sell stuff on Craigslist now.
    • Mountain_Skies 5y ago
      Unfortunately Craigslist got loaded down with scammers and they never figured out a good way to get rid of them. Facebook has an edge since you can not only look at the seller's profile but you can also see how long they've been a member of Facebook. I'm sure zombie accounts or scraped accounts happen but it doesn't seem to be common, especially if you stick to buying from people in your community. Not sure how well it works for sellers.
      • Trasmatta 5y ago
        That's understandable, but it does suck for those of us that want to sell stuff but don't use Facebook. I managed to sell my PS4 Pro despite having an empty Facebook profile, but I'd imagine a less in demand item might be a lot harder to move, if people tend to want to see that you're a real person. My account probably looked like a scammers.
• 3flp 5y ago
  The BMW G650GS was the best bike I've had. Almost zero maintenance. Reliable. Amazing fuel economy. Decent on road when sat down. No probs doing 600km days. Decent off-when road standing up. It could handle deep sand when fitted with good tires. Not very sexy looking, but the perfect jack of all trades. And, yes, master of none - which is why BMW could not market it much further, I think. Pity.
  • pg5 5y ago
    Based on their cars, I was surprised to see BMW in this thread.
    • 3flp 5y ago
      Yeah, I think the 650GS was too good, in a way. So they cancelled it, and focused on marketing those over-engineered half-ton things that people get regularly stuck on, anywhere off-road.
• s0rr0wskill 5y ago
  Airpods. I've owned 2 pairs for 4 years total now and they just work. Very convenient to use and the design is great and they fit well into my ears. Most inconvenience I've ever had was that they sometimes randomly don't connect once in a while but a simple disconnect/reconnect fixes that each time.
• stjohnswarts 5y ago
  My Parker safety razor. Simple, cheap, effective, no batteries needed. My lodge cast iron skillet and dutch oven.
• dmoy 5y ago
  This is a cop-out answer, but: EvapoRust It's not a "thing" that was "designed", insofar as it really is just a specific chemical solvent. But god damn it's some black magic stuff.
• lostlogin 5y ago
  The Langstroth beehive. The parts are cheap, interchangeable, work with the bees and are pretty obvious in the wet, the dark and to a beginner.
• jacquesm 5y ago
  Most handtools. Estwing hammer, some pliers that probably go back to the 50's, chisels, planes, saws etc. You can use them all day long, every day and they 'just work', hardly require maintenance and will most likely outlast me.
• rawland 5y ago
  This toaster https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OfxlSG6q5Y https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OfxlSG6q5Y It's older than my partner and me together and still works like a charm.
• timonoko 5y ago
  I like the wick-based kerosene stove the Chinese have recently invented. Pressure-based kerosene stoves can be really difficult with some old fuel you got from rusty barrel in Eskimo village. And they are dangerous too. Wick-based works like a lamp, but with 8 wick. Very clever burning chamber makes it burn with blue flame. Probably works equally well with any kind of oil, example diesel.
• wellthisisgreat 5y ago
  Swiftpoint Z mouse. Such a joy to use. Alas they aren't producing anymore. Obsidian.md - such a joy to use it for keyboard-based notetaking. Zulip - group chat that is not Slack and not Teams and the threads actually work for comms. Supernote A5X - a tangible upgrade over the pen-and-paper notetaking.
• lukaszkups 5y ago
  Surface Book 2 - gosh, it has been 3 years since I own this thing and I'm still amazed about the hinge design. Surface Duo - while it has tons of flaws on the software level, it looks like a sci-fi device because of how slim it is!
• azeirah 5y ago
  Forks are great! I've literally never had a problem with any of my forks
• GrinningFool 5y ago
  My dryer door. It opens both horizontally (easy to take things out) and vertically (eaay to put things in). And it does so in a totally natural way, based on where you naturally grab it when you're coming into to load or unload it.
  • mcherm 5y ago
    What model has this feature? I haven't seen such a thing.
    • GrinningFool 5y ago
      LG DLE7300WE. The rest of the features of the dryer are fine - it has wifi that I don't use, but it dries the clothes the way it's supposed to. But it was totally worth it for this door...
• hkt 5y ago
  I lived in a brutalist concrete block and the interior, fixtures and general way of life (big communal garden, waste disposal rather than weekly bin collections, community spaces in the building etc) were far superior to anything I've ever experienced. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Park_Hill,_Sheffield https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Park_Hill,_Sheffield
• effdee 5y ago
  Lego is pretty high on my list: it's all about composition with reuseable components that have just the right size. Also, the basic interface is stable since 1958.
• fdiskl 5y ago
  thule chariot bike trailer
• egypturnash 5y ago
  When I was a kid, the tub in the bathroom had two knobs to control the faucet and shower: one marked with a red H, one marked with a blue C. Easy to understand, consistent with the faucets in the kitchen and bathroom sinks, easy to control. There was the little thing to pull up and redirect the flow from the faucet to the showerhead. Every tub/shower fixture in the apartments I've lived in and all the hotels I've visited since has been different. They have all replaced this simple arrangement with some godawful thing that tries to combine the two variables of "amount of hot water" and "amount of cold water" into one knob/lever/dial/whatever. Usually with absolutely no markings. It takes an annoying amount of time to figure these out the first time and sometimes they remain annoying forever - the one in my current apartment is mounted at a weird angle, so "off" is slightly to the right of pointing the handle straight down; maximum hot water is somewhere below pointing straight right, and pointing straight right is cold. Pointing straight down is an annoying, chilly trickle. Every time I take a shower I miss the simplicity of two knobs, clearly marked. ---- The humble handlebar-mounted bicycle gear shift. So much more pleasant than reaching down to a little lever mounted on the frame like I did before these became standard on even the cheapest bikes. Just move my hand over on the handlebar a little, grab, and twist: there's a little resistance, then a distinct click as it moves to the next spot, which changes the tension in the cable and makes the derailleur do its job of moving the chain from one gear to another. It is not perfect, but its failure modes are much more prone to "a little out of alignment and now you skip over a gear or two in the middle" than "it's super easy to shift the chain off the gears entirely". People have come up with other ways to alter the gear ratio between the crank and the wheel but they are all much more complex and power-hungry than the grip-shifter and derailleur combination. ---- If you want a specific brand and model of thing, my Tom Binh "Pilot" bag is really nice. Durable, reasonably cute, carries my computer and everything I need for a day going out to cafes to work, with enough room for a change of clothes or two if I stuff it tightly. Has some nice touches like a pocket in the center with a drain hole for a water bottle or a compact umbrella, and a pocket in the back that unzips on the bottom so you can empty it and slide it over the extended handle of your big rolling bag when traveling. I've had it for like half a decade and it's been my main bag for a lot of that time. https://www.tombihn.com/collections/travel-bags/products/pilot?variant=15776004833343 https://www.tombihn.com/collections/travel-bags/products/pil...
• pps 5y ago
  Macbook Air M1 gold. I love every detail of this machine.
  • 1-6 5y ago
    I'm voting for this as well. I think Apple released a very well-built machine at a reasonable price for a 1st generation. The M1 sips battery as it leaves the Intel processor it replaces in the dust. I'm really happy with the Air I bought and considering another 16 GB RAM Air instead of the new M1 Pro or Max.
• new_guy 5y ago
  A Fanta bottle ( https://i.imgur.com/TVZBewX.jpg https://i.imgur.com/TVZBewX.jpg ) The shape makes it really easy to hold compared to other soda bottles.
• krisrm 5y ago
  "Things" is pretty broad. Thinking of software, probably early "beta" Gmail. There was so much about the email experience that was improved by a stable web client, with what felt at the time like unlimited storage. Thinking of hardware, I've never been much for Apple products, but the iPhone (particularly early models) is undoubtedly a design marvel.
  • jbullock35 5y ago
    > Thinking of hardware, I've never been much for Apple products, but the iPhone (particularly early models) is undoubtedly a design marvel. I am surprised that no one else has mentioned the iPhone. It seems to me like an obvious choice. I'm speaking of the hardware, not of iOS. There's a lot to admire about iOS, but it also has its share of design flaws.
    • deleted 5y ago
      [deleted]
  • bullen 5y ago
    I think you can still use the old by following this URL: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/h/ https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/h/
  • smoldesu 5y ago
    Things has a really good open-source clone called Planner[0] that I quite like. Now, if only they'd package it some way other than flatpak... [0] https://github.com/alainm23/planner https://github.com/alainm23/planner
  • znpy 5y ago
    early gmail was just magic. modern gmail is trash. i switched my personal gmail account to html-only mode (no javascript) and it's definitely better.
  • tkgally 5y ago
    The iPad, too. I spend hours with it every day—mostly reading and watching videos—and I rarely have to think about it as a device. It just lets me get absorbed in whatever I’m looking at. I don’t use it much myself, as I’m not an artist, but the iPad app ProCreate seems to be a masterpiece of good design, too.
• EMM_386 5y ago
  Samsung T5 SSD.
• f0e4c2f7 5y ago
  Crock Pot. Cheap and makes cooking feel easy. https://www.amazon.com/Crock-Pot-SCV700SS-Stainless-7-Quart-Manual/dp/B003OAJGJO https://www.amazon.com/Crock-Pot-SCV700SS-Stainless-7-Quart-... OP-1. Expensive and makes music feel easy. https://www.amazon.com/Teenage-Engineering-002-AS-001-OP-1-Synthesizer/dp/B00CXSJUZS/ https://www.amazon.com/Teenage-Engineering-002-AS-001-OP-1-S... LG Tone Flex HBS-XL7. The best earbuds with the worst name. I really like this form factor. I often forget that I'm wearing them and this particular model is the most comfortable of the ones I've used over the years. https://www.amazon.com/LG-HBS-XL7-Bluetooth-Wireless-Neckband/dp/B07WQ9LP6H/ https://www.amazon.com/LG-HBS-XL7-Bluetooth-Wireless-Neckban... Kindle Paperwhite. I have the older model. I've heard the nooks are good too. The simpler the better. Nothing to break or distract. Don't use the backlight and the battery lasts ages. I know a lot of people are partial to physical books but I've read hundreds more books than I might have otherwise read since I started using my kindle. It's probably my favorite thing I own. https://www.amazon.com/All-new-kindle-paperwhite/dp/B08N38WQSH/ https://www.amazon.com/All-new-kindle-paperwhite/dp/B08N38WQ...
  • roeles 5y ago
    +1 on Crock Pot. It's so easy to create something tasty with it. If I had to reduce my kitchen to as little items as possible, this would be my first pick.
• slipwalker 5y ago
  a bic (cristal) pen
• muziq 5y ago
  A 2011 era 27” iMac, that never booted to OSX, instead was installed from new with Windows.. Sheer, and unexpectedly, pure blissful experience..
  • donatj 5y ago
    Mine is still going usefully for me, albeit with High Sierra. For most tasks, it's performance is on-par with my 2019 MacBook Pro - which I suspect comes down to thermals more than anything. A lot of what I use it for is just headlessly running FFmpeg over ssh.
• MildlySerious 5y ago
  In terms of physical things, my Audio Technica ATH-M50x headphones. I have been quite literally wearing them all day, every day for the past three years and got no complaints.
  • Thristle 5y ago
    The value for money on those is insane
  • phdelightful 5y ago
    I got the predecessor of these (ATH-M50) in high school and I still use them 15 years later. Have a bit of peeling where the headband touches my head, but working perfectly otherwise.
  • tekstar 5y ago
    Try Sonarworks headphones edition if you want to hear an awesome software update to improve the audio quality.
  • ycombinete 5y ago
    I’ve used my m50s so much over the last 10 years that I’ve replaced the cups, and worn out the headband. I fixed the headband with a tennis racquet grip
• cc101 5y ago
  US Forest Service picnic table. 3 kinds of simple flat cement castings. Held together by their own weight. Easily carried and assembled by two men. Cheap. Almost indestructible.
  • jhardy54 5y ago
    Do you have a photo / link? My searches haven’t turned up anything.
    • kirubakaran 5y ago
      http://npshistory.com/publications/park_structures_facilities/secg.htm http://npshistory.com/publications/park_structures_facilitie...
      • jacknews 5y ago
        Which one is the simple casting that can be carried by 2, and supports itself?
        • cc101 5y ago
          Here is a good photo: https://www.californiasbestcamping.com/modoc/fowlers.html https://www.californiasbestcamping.com/modoc/fowlers.html A 4 inch pole from a home center through the holes is used to between the two end pieces while the benches and top and dropped on. A few more men would make it easier.
      • howenterprisey 5y ago
        Who wrote this? It's great.
        • cc101 5y ago
          howenterprisey: thank you for your post. I am surprised at all the positive karma I have received. I thank all of you.
• wly_cdgr 5y ago
  You said things, so I am excluding software (like the original version of the Square web app) JVC Flats GBA SP (the pocket clamshell one) Retro microwave with the original-ipod style single knob controls More generically, forks Grand Prize Winner: wood Staunton chess set - beautiful, durable, affordable, practical. The piece design is exquisitely balanced between representation and abstraction
  • whitepoplar 5y ago
    Software is a thing too!
  • TulliusCicero 5y ago
    GBA SP would be great except for the lack of headphone jack. What a bizarre omission.
    • wly_cdgr 5y ago
      ....Really?! I must have repressed that because it was so traumatizing
    • fomine3 5y ago
      It's not "truncated" but not exist from the beginning of GameBoy.
• madengr 5y ago
  HP 8566B spectrum analyzer and 8510C network analyzer. HP RPN calculators. Really any late 80’s and early 90’s HP test equipment. Built like tanks and designed by engineers for engineers.
  • CamperBob2 5y ago
    +1, I was tempted to cite the 8566B myself. I know a couple of the guys who worked on that. The in-house code name was "Doomsday." It pretty much was, for the competition.
    • madengr 5y ago
      We probably had 10+ 8566A/B at work, and the CRT power supply is the only failure (slow degradation) I have seen. I have one at home and I’ll likely get the LCD retrofit kit.
• elliekelly 5y ago
  I’m not really the type to fuss over wine glasses but I was gifted a set of Veuve Cliquot champagne flutes (similar to the glasses that come in this set[1]) and they really are beautiful. The shape of the glass makes the bubbles fizz to the top in this tiny perfect spiral in the center of the glass. You can tell they were designed by someone who cares about champagne and pays attention to its presentation. [1]https://www.champagneking.co.uk/product/3904/veuve-clicquot-ponsardin-glass-set https://www.champagneking.co.uk/product/3904/veuve-clicquot-...
• znpy 5y ago
  some random things without thinking too much: - my regular Bialetti moka - my texas instruments ti-86 (still rocking strong since 1997) - thinkpads: T42, X220, w530, T440... they're just great. - my wenger/swissgear carbon backpack EDIT: actually my regular bialetti moka is replacing an induction moka (still from bialetti) because the induction moka is hard to open (due to the round base).
  • sam_lowry_ 5y ago
    T440 had abysmally bad screens
    • znpy 5y ago
      The overall design is nice though.
• jfrd 5y ago
  The Kershaw Leek pocket knife. Flips open one-handed and makes a satisfying “snick”. I’ve used mine daily for 5 years. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009VC9YK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_0SYMZ4F2VPAVZB3PRANY https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009VC9YK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_...
  • quercusa 5y ago
    I've the similar Kershaw 'Tactical' Blur for 12 years; they are great knives.
  • samsolomon 5y ago
    Have had the exact same Kershaw knife for about the same period of time. It’s my go-to for opening boxes and things around the house. It’s a great product.
  • nullwarp 5y ago
    Kershaw Skyline for me, been my favorite go to knife forever. Even lost it for a couple of years in the yard until the chickens dug it up one day and I just cleaned it up and it was as good as new.
• jimmies 5y ago
  Zorijushi rice cooker. It can cook rice perfectly and can hold cooked rice for days. Facebook portal. Yeah Facebook privacy and all that but that's a good product that allows me to call people without having to mess with the phone. The audio and video is super clear. I use it despite it's from Facebook. Work sharp knife sharpener. It's superior to sharpening the my knives with the stone. Apple airtags. I often forget where I put my keychain so this is really well executed. Apple airpods. They just work and they are nice enough. Hakko soldering station. I don't know if the recent Chinese usbc ones are better but the hakko one I have work well enough for everything I want to do.
  • pedalpete 5y ago
    I'm curious about your thoughts on airtags. Had you tried Tile before? Are the airtags really better, and not just a knock-off product?
    • otterley 5y ago
      I have owned both. AirTags are superior to Tile tags in several major ways: (1) the batteries are replaceable (although I understand newer Tile tags also have them); (2) when you get close enough, the Find My app can give you directions to the tag; and (3) there are far more iPhones/iPads out there than Tile users, so if you leave your tag somewhere, its location is much more likely to be found with pinpoint accuracy.
  • mikeklaas 5y ago
    I'm surprised to see the Portal listed. We have one for letting the grandparents talk to the kids, and it is the most unreliable piece of technology I've owned. Constant connection issues and laggy UI.
• I_complete_me 5y ago
  bic biro, light switch, mouse, calculator, bulb, fingers, bicycle, curtains, sheets, armchairs, roads, cars, glasses, floorboards, radio, computers, forks, toilet paper, books, steel;
• drakonka 5y ago
  A Huskee Cup. Low maintenance, made from coffee husk, great seal with the lid, and I love that it can hold hot coffee but not burn your hands due to the fins running along the body. Many local coffee shops also give me a discount on takeaway coffee if I bring my own takeaway cup, and some offer a Huskee Cup swap program where you can leave your dirty cup with them if you've been carrying it around after drinking your last coffee and get a clean one for your next order (personally I prefer to just keep my own though). https://huskee.co/huskeecup/ https://huskee.co/huskeecup/
• freetinker 5y ago
  Actual physical books.
  • LeoPanthera 5y ago
    I liked to read while lying down and e-readers are an objectively better experience. I can never hold a book in a comfortable way - and ereaders are backlit.
  • marginalia_nu 5y ago
    The format has been around for 2000 years, so it's pretty well refined.
    • seanmcdirmid 5y ago
      1500 years for the current bound format. The preceding codices and before that scrolls were much less user friendly.
      • marginalia_nu 5y ago
        They were making something that would be recognizable as a book (or booklet) at least as early as late republic, which ties in to my point that the format has been refined a long time.
        • seanmcdirmid 5y ago
          I think you mean the codex? It was like a book, except the pages were bound on alernating sides. Not the best design, they improved on it in the middle ages. The codex achieved parity with the scroll in 300 AD, so that the modern book format coming just 200 years later means it wasn't around for that long.
          • marginalia_nu 5y ago
            Codex is the latin word for book in general.
• jet_32951 5y ago
  HP41C, s/n 2018A00505. Had it since the early 1980s, still works. PPC ROM still works.
• moneywoes 5y ago
  Old can opener
• guidovranken 5y ago
  BitTorrent is amazing. It just works. Anyone anywhere can create a torrent of their files, dump the magnet link somewhere, and everyone else can reliably retrieve it. It is self-reinforcing; the more people using a torrent, the better the robustness, redundancy and download speeds. You can often get better speeds from downloading something via torrent than from a web server. It's an open protocol that is relatively easy to implement, it has a diversity of lightweight clients for all OSes and is fairly resistant to censorship. To me it's pretty much perfect tech that solves a real problem. I hope Bram Cohen got rich off of it somehow.
  • johnx123-up 5y ago
    I'd add uTorrent... it was created in few kb and AFAIK that started the no-bloatware awareness for sometime.
    • stavros 5y ago
      I don't know if it started the no-bloatware awareness, that was a remnant of the 90s, where programs were non-bloated by default (with Winamp being the most non-bloated program to ever have been created).
      • glenstein 5y ago
        Even just in the universe of piracy programs, Kazaa and it's offshoots got bloated, so Kazaa lite became the no-bloat version of that
  • Buttons840 5y ago
    Wish browsers had built in support for it. Imagine if by default most downloads were through BitTorrent, and your browser would then seed the file for 1.5x the download size and time.
    • toomuchtodo 5y ago
      WebTorrent gets you pretty close. https://webtorrent.io/ https://webtorrent.io/
• ruslan 5y ago
  Atari 130XE - manufactured in 1986, works till this day (with some SIO mod), brings joy to me and to my kids.
• cpach 5y ago
  Thermapen
  • Wistar 5y ago
    I just got the new Thermapen One and used it yesterday for Thanksgiving dinner. Although it is a relatively small evolutionary step from the ThermoWorks Classic, it is still a great design.
• fuzzfactor 5y ago
  Everything from Valco Instruments, where the founder and CEO (Stan Stearns [0]) launched using his own engineering designs and continued to maintain a prototyping bench indefinitely, long after he had numerous gifted engineers employed. [0] https://www.vici.com/heritageaward2020/ https://www.vici.com/heritageaward2020/
  • CamperBob2 5y ago
    Not familiar with the hardware that Vici sells, but it sounds like you'd be describing HP test equipment if you were describing tools used by EEs and techs.
• stitched2gethr 5y ago
  Vans shoes.
• tjalfi 5y ago
  The Nack Pro utility knife[0][1] is a great tool; it's easy to operate one-handed and is virtually indestructible. The handle contains 30 blades in a rotating magazine; you change blades by rotating the base of the handle. I bought one in the early 2000s and it will probably last me the rest of my life. [0] https://toolmonger.com/2008/12/08/utility-knife-revolver/ https://toolmonger.com/2008/12/08/utility-knife-revolver/ [1] https://www.ebay.com/itm/324381893450 https://www.ebay.com/itm/324381893450
  • wrycoder 5y ago
    A step up from the cheap plastic units with the snap-off blades, but if you want to cut linoleum or do some similar heavy task, try this: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B005HVYSSW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B005HVYSSW/ref=ppx_yo_dt...
• hackertux 5y ago
  - Palmer Monicon passive monitor controller https://www.palmer-germany.com/en/products/studio-monitors-and-monitor-controllers/5193/monicon https://www.palmer-germany.com/en/products/studio-monitors-a... - Olight Javelot Turbo https://olightworld.com/olight-javelot-turbo https://olightworld.com/olight-javelot-turbo - Dirt cheap backpack with a Puma logo, extremely light and virtually indestructible. - Honourable mentions: Seasonic PSU, Fuji X100F and a Casio SL-807A solar powered pocket calculator. http://www.calcuseum.com/SCRAPBOOK/BONUS/63572/1.htm http://www.calcuseum.com/SCRAPBOOK/BONUS/63572/1.htm
  • ycombinete 5y ago
    How do you use the Monicon?
• contingencies 5y ago
  Bicycles https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycles https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycles Chinese knives https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitchen_knife#Chinese_chef.27s_knife https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitchen_knife#Chinese_chef.27s... Chopsticks https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chopsticks https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chopsticks CPUs https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_processing_unit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_processing_unit Fiber lasers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiber_laser https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiber_laser IP https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Protocol https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Protocol Mail https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mail https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mail Trimarans https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trimaran https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trimaran Unix https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unix https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unix PS. This is a very interesting question. Although I suspect the OP was looking for products and UI/UX, I think higher-level categories are more objective and timeless bastions of design excellence. PPS. Note these which stand out to me fall roughly in to two categories: those which harness physics, and those which avoid or abstract it.
  • WorldPeas 5y ago
    Ip?! Perhaps v6 but not v4 by a longshot.
    • contingencies 5y ago
      Those who do not understand IP are condemned to reinvent it, poorly.
• harrydehal 5y ago
  Sony MDR7506 Professional headphones -- haven't changed since the 80s (on which a lot of classics have been recorded/mixed with). Honda S2000, particularly the F20C 2002-2003 model years. High-revving 9000 RPM redline, completely driver-focused cockpit (tachometer from the Senna-era Honda Mclaren F1 cars), minimal computers besides ABS, hidden radio, et al. Bolt-action gearbox. The driving experience is sublime.
  • throwaway6734 5y ago
    >Sony MDR7506 Professional headphones -- haven't changed since the 80s (on which a lot of classics have been recorded/mixed with). Agree. a great pair of headphones
  • kpozin 5y ago
    MDR-7506 — The fact that the cable isn't detachable makes no sense to me.
    • indrora 5y ago
      They're a $100 pair of headphones. By the time you break the cable you can ask yourself: "Do I get a higher end pair of monitors like an Audio Technica set? Do I just slap down another benny for a second pair?" That's literally the cost-to-good ratio you're looking at: They're so good that a super common mod I've seen is to replace the cable with a [$4 mini-xlr connector](https://www.redco.com/Redco-TB3M.html https://www.redco.com/Redco-TB3M.html) once you kill the cable, which will be about 10 years from when you buy it. They're so good for the cost that you can easily justify slapping down $100 for a new pair delivered next day from Amazon. They're cheap enough that these things are what I've seen medium-end museums put in for a good, durable headphone to play media with. Looking to mix a few tracks on the cheap? Absolutely tolerable to mix against. Need headphones for the sound guys at that event? Got you. Need cans for the DJ whose ATH-m50s got dunked on? Keep a few pairs of these and nobody will complain in a pinch. Need something that has the range for field recordings from birds to heartbeats? MDR-7506 will do you just fine. They're also everywhere. I once saw a bucket full of them on a movie set. I've seen stacks of them in college sound rooms. Sound folk on a TV station set? Right there. Radio engineer? Yup. Talk show host? Probably. They're not the best headphones in the world. There are people who will fight to the death over which Grados with which DAC and amp and what not will give you the best sound. But even they will concede that "I need decent headphones for under a c-note that will last me" can easily be filled by the MDR-7506.
• anfractuosity 5y ago
  I rather like the Westmark: 'Hermetus' Bottle Cap Opener, which can seal a beer bottle nicely, to save for later
• MrAwesome 5y ago
  Been thinking about this a lot lately because I've been reading that Don Norman book, so I have several examples on the brain: - 2000 Toyota MR2 Spyder. For me, it's the perfect example of explicitly choosing qualities to sacrifice (straight line speed, utility, interstate ride comfort, safety) to maximize the qualities you desire (very affordable, zippy, perfectly balanced, convertible, charming, fun beyond belief in the corners). Doing so allowed them to make a mid engine convertible sports car, using just use the engine from a Corolla, meaning repairs are cheap and rare (once you or the original owner solve the oil-burning issue the engines are known for). There's something so refreshing about design that doesn't try at all to appeal to anyone but the target market, and does everything possible to appeal to them in every way that matters. - SSH. The moment I first used passwordless ssh to run commands on a game server across the room from me was the moment I truly fell in love with computing. - Rust. I won't beat a dead horse, but the borrow checker was a real lightbulb moment for me in programming, and finally established an understanding of memory management and strong typing that has served me well even in other languages since. - Thinkpad x220. The keyboard and the Linux compatibility alone were enough to convince me - the simple determined dependability has grown my love more and more over time. - Nasal strips. Such a simple but clever little design to solve a host of pretty insidious air intake issues. - Bass Ukulele. Being able to take a fully functional bass guitar on a plane as a carry-on is a transformative change. Helps too that they're fun as all heck to plunk on. - Magic: The Gathering, especially the original Ravnica block. The beauty, intricacy, and depth of the design has brought me to tears more than once. - Team Fortress 2. Same, minus the tears and plus a lot of hootin' and hollerin'. - Kinesis Advantage2 keyboard. The physical design an instant halt to my wrist pain from typing all day. It being so configurable is a delightful plus. - DrinkMate/SodaStream. Cheap, plentiful, easy carbonation in the home has helped keep this fella sober for years. - Fellow gooseneck electric kettle. No frills, no gimmicks, just set the temperature, set the timer when you're ready, and pour. - Loaded Bhangra longboard. Another example of sacrificing what you don't need (convenience, maneuverability) for what you want (immaculate balance and foot feel for dancing). - Sony PSP. The degree to which it was ahead of its time still staggers me. I had an entire library of every NES and SNES games, plus a music player, plus an internet browser, all in my pocket in 2006. I still believe that if Sony had embraced instead of fought 3rd party applications, they would have taken over the world. Honorable mentions: Marimekko backpack, Rotring mechanical pencils, the Shinkansen, the Taiwanese and Japanese traditional train systems, air-inflated blood flow restriction bands, vanilla rotation barbells, and the Kensington Expert Mouse with the ball and the 4 buttons. Also many, many many many examples of evolved design in nature (birds, rats, succulents) and natural languages. I'm thinking in particular of the tone system of the Taiwanese dialect of Hokkien (there are obviously many others, that's just the one I know), which seems unintuitive to the extreme to an outsider but allows for an incredible density of information and for allowing you to know at any moment in a spoken sentence when a clause ends, without the need for a pause.
• lowkey 5y ago
  Tonal <www.tonal.com> is amazing. It is the fitness system of my dreams. A resistance training setup with digital weights that hangs on the wall. It is filled with high quality content that showcases how to take full advantage of the tech. An ai combined with a well designed adjustment system and suddenly weight training is so fun and fluid I can do it every day.
  • samspenc 5y ago
    I've been looking into a home gym and am torn between Tonal, Mirror and other offerings. Just curious if you've compared Tonal against Mirror, Peloton, etc?
    • WorldPeas 5y ago
      I don't want to come off as aggressive or smug saying this, but I was considering buying one of these and my friend gave me a used book called solitary fitness and I got a nice muscular build without needing a gym. When the gyms closed because of the pandemic nothing changed for me, because you can't take whats in your noggin. Plus it's muuuch cheaper. Just tryin to save ya the trouble
      • bittercynic 5y ago
        I've spent about the past 30 minutes reading the beginning of the book based on your recommendation, and really enjoying it. Thank you for the suggestion!
  • maxerickson 5y ago
    Tonal are inveterate spammers.
  • david38 5y ago
    If you have the space, get a squat rack or half rack instead. I can’t stand the idea of paying a subscription for equipment.
• nikivi 5y ago
  https://linear.app https://linear.app is great. I list all sites I love here: https://wiki.nikitavoloboev.xyz/design/design-inspiration#websites https://wiki.nikitavoloboev.xyz/design/design-inspiration#we...
  • johnx123-up 5y ago
    Since you've mentioned Linear, I'd add Restya Core. It has many interesting features. (Disclosure: I was on their private beta)
  • rmujica 5y ago
    Great collection! Thanks for sharing
  • reayn 5y ago
    Is this made by the same people who made https://www.raycast.com/ https://www.raycast.com/? The website design seems uncannily similar.
    • nikivi 5y ago
      Different teams I believe. I think Raycast team uses Linear for issues and I am sure they inspire each other. Raycast has Linear as one of the core extensions it lists: https://www.raycast.com/extensions/linear/ https://www.raycast.com/extensions/linear/
  • voz_ 5y ago
    I've said this before, but happy to write it over and over. One of the co-founders was my old EM at Uber. He's as sharp as they get, and very kind and humble to boot. If you are looking to support companies started by people that are definitively Not Jerks, check this one out.
• jpgvm 5y ago
  I'm an avid collector of Japanese chef knives. They are not only beautiful but design of each of the distinct blade shapes have been honed over hundreds of years for usability. Using a knife for the job it was designed for is a very pleasurable experience.
• jftuga 5y ago
  My Roku 3 is great. I bought it years ago and am still using it on my 1080p TVs. It just works, even behind a Pi-Hole ad blocking DNS server. It may crash once or twice a year (but then auto-reboot itself) and very rarely do I ever have to manually reboot it.
• quercusa 5y ago
  Estwing Nail Puller: https://www.estwing.com/products/estwing-nail-puller https://www.estwing.com/products/estwing-nail-puller Perfectly designed for the task and good-looking too.
  • cgranier 5y ago
    Thankfully not what I expected when I read "nail puller."
• erikschoster 5y ago
  Legos; also the ender 3d printer. I had a nostalgic time putting the ender together. Felt like a lego set. That's not saying it was trivial (it challenged me) but that I trusted it every step of the way not because of previous experience, but because of the obvious well-designed aspects of the experience as I was putting it together. For example: I put on a part sloppily, and trying to attach anther part was the first real resistance I felt in the entire process -- physical that is, I had to study every page of the manual for a minute or two before even being able to figure out what the next step would need to be, but it was always clear after studying.
  • gorbachev 5y ago
    I'm sorry, but 3D printers, while quite an innovation allowing cheap and fast prototyping, are not well designed things. I own three, and talk to friends who collectively probably own close to 100. They, including models with great reputation (e.g. Prusa printers), break all the time. Also the mere fact that there are thousands of mods for all of them on sites like Thingieverse to make them better is another indication they aren't really all that well designed. Things like manual leveling, heat creep, bottom layer adhesion issues are common problems across all models. They're finicky things with PLENTY room for improvement.
    • dekhn 5y ago
      With the exception of having to occasionally replace the print head my mk3s are excellent. No leveling problems, solve all layer height with live z. Flex filament works great
    • steve_adams_86 5y ago
      I agree. Inedible exciting and rewarding machines, worth the time investment, but it’s still very early. I’m sure I’ll be blown away by what’s possible in ten years or so. Today I’m still babying each print and the machine itself. Jams are the worst.
    • alpaca128 5y ago
      I think the last consumer paper(inkjet/laser) printer I've seen with the same reliability as my Prusa Mini broke down 20 years ago. I haven't had a single print come off the bed by itself and never had to level anything. In ~150 prints there was one failure. Of course I'm just a hobbyist, but still. It could be worse.
• _inq 5y ago
  - Canon 5D classic. Fits my hand perfectly and the way colors are popping is something that i chase in photography to this day - Older Intuos drawing tablets. Super sturdy, great experience to work with, and battery-less pen tech which for many years was offered only by Wacom products - iPod Classic. Great interface idea with the touch circle, nice metal back. - HHKB Keyboard. Something i use to this day and don't really plan to change, even as I'm strongly into custom keyboards as a hobby. The layout is just too perfect for programming, especially if you're used to Vim.
  • fretn 5y ago
    Yes the 5D classic, that camera had something my other camera never had.
    • _inq 5y ago
      to this day when I upload any photo from it people are asking me what exactly did i do in post and are suprised when i honestly answers there's no post besides cropping the frame. To this day this is my fav camera.
• donatj 5y ago
  My Cuisinart PerfectTemp water kettle. I bought it 11 years ago, a couple years after moving out. It was more expensive than many of its competitors, but the build quality seemed worth the investment. Early in my career, it was a big investment. I have used it nearly every single day in that time, and honestly never stopped to think about it until now. It's been a fixture of my life. Other than the occasional descaling, it's been perfect without maintenance. Beyond that, as someone who drinks a lot of coffee - I'd also like to mention my classic Bunn coffee maker. It has a reservoir of water it keeps hot, the new water you add displaces the old water like a water heater, so you're able to make an entire pot of coffee in under 3 minutes.
  • reggieband 5y ago
    I have one of these and I use it about once or twice a week. I have one major design gripe with mine: the Keep Warm functionality is enabled by default. It does at least remember if you turn it off but for some reason it resets to default if my power cuts out. I happen to live in a slightly rural location where a 1-2 minute power cut happens now and again. If I use the kettle after the power outage it keeps reboiling the water until I realize I have to once again disable the Keep Warm switch. Other than that, it is a really good kettle.
    • infocollector 5y ago
      Isn't it true that in design the hot water touches non-metallic parts, which is not good for you?
      • donatj 5y ago
        There is a removable filter on the spout which is just a wire mesh attached to a plastic frame, and a little bit of plastic that attaches that to the metal. Cuisinart states it to be BPA free. I don't find any of it reason for concern though. It's not submerged during boiling when at the max fill line, and even then I'm sure it's a heat safe plastic. The filter itself is easily removable, the mount is probably removable with a little effort. I'd much rather have the filter, given my hard water and the little chunks of limestone the filter likes to catch.
• Havoc 5y ago
  Zojirushi rice cookers. Even though the shell is plastic it has a durable feel to it like you don't find it kitchen appliances anymore. It'll still work in 20+ years type feel
  • fredleblanc 5y ago
    I’ll second this. Got one for Christmas last year and have used it twice a week all year. It makes the process feel foolproof, and is the easiest appliance to clean in my kitchen. Never made a bad batch of rice, and have accidentally left rice on keep warm for hours and hours and everything was perfectly fine. And, yeah, it’s solid. I highly recommend.
  • atribecalledqst 5y ago
    I still use the Zojirushi rice cooker I grew up with after my parents bequeathed it to me. We probably got it around 2000 give or take a few years. So definitely bumping on 20 years.
  • GhettoComputers 5y ago
    Personally hate them, they’re slow, can be replaced with an instant pot, and old crappy rice cookers still with decades later. Cute logo, good for keeping rice warm without drying it out. What appliances are you using that don’t feel durable?
  • langcalvin 5y ago
    I'll second pretty much any old rice cooker with only one button design. There's a reason every Asian home considers it integral. More than just rice, you can do so much more than one would think in there. I cook a Spaghetti Squash by just placing it inside on warm. No oil or anything. Then I go to work, come back 10 hours later and it's perfect. Can open it with a butterknife. I'll take it over a slow cooker any day because it can set to a boil. The warm setting is perfect for most things and I've used it to make stocks, confits, yogurt, stews, curries and eggs without worrying about burning down my kitchen when I'm away as it will set itself to warm when there's no more water to evaporate.
• wh313 5y ago
  My Aeropress coffee maker. It feels more convenient than a french press, and much cheaper than an espresso machine. https://aeropress.com/ https://aeropress.com/ Also a bidet. Americans really need to start using it more.
  • kcplate 5y ago
    Honestly, I’d prefer my coffee maker to not do double duty as a butt washers, but maybe I am funny about these sort of things
    • langcalvin 5y ago
      I think in space it comes in handy. But best not make coffee again after that.
    • edmcnulty101 5y ago
      I'm sure they have separate ones for bidet usage and coffee usage.
      • masklinn 5y ago
        Why? The boiling water disinfects the device when you make your coffee, no sweat. Think of it as home-made kopi luwak.
        • deleted 5y ago
          [deleted]
        • edmcnulty101 5y ago
          Doesn't it have to process through the civet intestine though to get the effect? This would just be a little poop infusion which could definitely add a little robustness and richness to the mix. Sort of an earthy tone.
          • masklinn 5y ago
• SteveNuts 5y ago
  Stormy Kromer cap
• quiffledwerg 5y ago
  Bialetti is at risk of going out of business so buy them while you can.
• quiffledwerg 5y ago
  The best thing I ever used was iPod shuffle mini. It was the perfect design, nothing could be added nor taken away to make it better. But apple being Apple they redesigned it to be crap then discontinued it. On the topic of designing great things and Apple …. Can I say that I hate Apples “minimalism above all else” approach to design. For example I want computers with lots of ports - what’s the point in buying a minimal Apple computer only to instantly plug it into another box that provides the basic ports I need for keyboard mouse external disks and camera? Somehow though the designers at Apple think this is the optimum design. I do acknowledge recent Macs bring ports back but still not enough. I also hate it that Apple got rid of the standard headphone jack - for gods sake why? Answer: Apple designers.
  • LeoPanthera 5y ago
    Which one?
    • quiffledwerg 5y ago
      The early shuffle mini.
      • TheRealSteel 5y ago
        There's no such thing, the Shuffle and Mini were separate models. The Shuffle was the size of a USB drive, used solid state storage, and had no screen, the Mini was the one with the first touch Click Wheel and metallic colour choices, and used a 4GB spinning hard drive.
        • jazzyjackson 5y ago
          the 2nd generation Shuffle moved to a more miniature clip-on design and required a dock to charge and sync, I gather that’s what OP is referring to
    • ingvul 5y ago
      Probably the 4th generation (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPod_Shuffle#4th_generation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPod_Shuffle#4th_generation)
• gaze 5y ago
  Moore Jig Grinding machines.
• edmcnulty101 5y ago
  These are the brands Ive had good success with, almost everything Ive bought has met or exceeded my expectations: Apple, Levis, Patagonia/LL Bean/North Face, Garmin smartwatch, Goruck, Toyota, Bosch or Milwaukee tools, Fender, Sonicare, Thule, Yakima, Ankur cables, weather tech floormats. Well designed websites: Google, Old reddit, and HN, can't believe they've stayed true all these years. Brands, I or a friend, has had extremely poor success with, enough to call out: Dell (their quality control dropped off, I think, they used to be great), Amazon Basics, Mini Cooper, Fitbit, Beats by Dre, Goal Zero Yeti, new Reddit.
  • WorldPeas 5y ago
    Just to be the contrarian I am, I'll say that dell is still actually pretty good. You just have to buy the business models like the precision to get the best experience now
    • edmcnulty101 5y ago
      Maybe that's the issue. I bought consumer XPS's. One had a fan go out after 1 year. One had a keyboard failure out of the box. My co-worker had hardware issues on theirs. It was too many issues in too short of a span. All consumer grade though. Maybe business is the way to go.
      • papertokyo 5y ago
        I had an XPS laptop from 2008 which constantly overheated. I ended up having to remove the bottom of the case and put it on a stand to make it usable. One day a bolt of lightning struck the house across the street and it died instantly. Used the insurance money to buy a macbook pro and never looked back.
        • edmcnulty101 5y ago
          >> Used the insurance money to buy a macbook pro and never looked back. And that MacBook will probably outlast 3 Dells. When my new Dell failed out of the box, I switched to my 6 year old MacBook pro I had waiting in the wings and was able to keep on working. It worked great until the new work MacBook arrived. When I have to turn my work MacBook in, buying myself another MacBook. And still have the trusty 6+ year old one in the wings.
• i_am_proteus 5y ago
  W123 Mercedes-Benz sedan with an OM617A motor - the classic "300D Turbodiesel" from the early 1980s.
  • etempleton 5y ago
    My first car was a 1985 300D Turbo Diesel. It spoiled me for all future cars. It drove wonderfully and had a ton of charm. Not great in the cold, the controls were weird as only German cars can be, and acceleration was paltry by modern standards, but it was a tank that could seemingly drive forever. You still see some on the road.
• smitty1e 5y ago
  I have a Tumi backpack that is so nicely laid out that it practically loads itself. Sunglass pouch, carkey pockets in the shoulder straps. Just very nicely done. When I'm finished beating it to shreds, I'll require another.
• cgh 5y ago
  La Sportiva Miura VS climbing shoes.
• kevinwang 5y ago
  Robinhood was my first experience with stocks, and attempting to use a traditional broker's interface has really made me appreciate how good Robinhood's UI is. I guess it's one of those "you don't notice when it's working well" kind of things.
• nazgulnarsil 5y ago
  Pilot Parallel pens Gerber Suspension Geekey Sanrenmu clone of a kershaw Cryo with no spring loaded flipping (I consider it dangerous) Nalgene water bottle, I wrapped mine in cloth tape and it serves as a foam roller Concept 2 erg Mealsquares ...weird pick: Core Transformation by Connierae Andreas. After experimenting with a dozen different therapy modalities it blew them all out of the water.
• mikewarot 5y ago
  Turbo Pascal 7, then Borland Delphi 5 were the most productive programming environments ever. Very few bugs, wicked fast, and full proper documentation. Nothing since comes even close.
  • Havoc 5y ago
    Yeah plus in 5 you could still follow the source of the included libraries. I’m 6 the concealed them somehow
  • Terry_Roll 5y ago
    Is that a little dig at Topspeed's/Softvelocity's Clarion? ;-)
  • black_13 5y ago
    God they were good.
  • yesenadam 5y ago
    Not sure how similar they are, maybe extremely, but I really loved Borland C++ Builder 4. Making GUI apps was so painless. I tried XCode but it was so complicated to do anything I gave up after a couple of weeks of reading docs.
    • mikewarot 5y ago
      I looked at the C++ version, but after you built a form, and started hooking up events, there was orders of magnitude more boilerplate code staring you in the face, and it wasn't something that you could edit without breaking things. In pascal, you could edit the form, or the source, and nothing broke. There were also far fewer lines of code required to do something.
      • yesenadam 5y ago
        Well, I've nothing to compare it with, but I never needed to look at most of the boilerplate, (wasn't it in the header, which I never looked at? I think I looked at the pages of boilerplate once ever), could just make any necessary changes in the Object Inspector. Never had problems breaking stuff, maybe because I made changes that way. In fact I realized some time later that I'd been writing C! Like the person who realized they'd been talking prose all their life. Now (sometimes) I just write in C, never C++. p.s. I started (after BASIC) with Turbo Pascal, in the 80s. That was so awesome for its day.
• Diesel555 5y ago
  My most useful watch for daily life and my job (pilot) has been a Citizen Navihawk JY8035. I have many styles between the Apple Watch and a Garmin Fenix to a 5$ Casio. The functionality is amazing both day and night. Features I wanted: Automatic time updates to the second Analog face Digital second readout Solar Visible at night Secondary time without any button presses (I use UTC) I list it because it is the best designed watch I’ve used. I’d use it over a breitling any day for functionality. However I would gladly give up one of those circular dials for a date readout. It takes one rotation to switch between the secondary time and the date currently. https://www.amazon.com/Citizen-Eco-Drive-Navihawk-Timekeeping-JY8035-04E/dp/B00DBUVKP0/ref=mp_s_a_1_5?crid=28F3ONPFGIEYB&keywords=jy8037&qid=1637976881&sprefix=jy8037%2Caps%2C176&sr=8-5 https://www.amazon.com/Citizen-Eco-Drive-Navihawk-Timekeepin... (Deal of the day..)
  • SomeHacker44 5y ago
    I have had the blue angels version for many years. Now that I am old and need reading glasses, the watch has lost its appeal. I still keep it charged and ready to go, though.
  • walterbell 5y ago
    Is there an option for leather or metal watchband, either from Citizen or aftermarket?
    • colechristensen 5y ago
      Almost every watch has a standard replaceable wristband.
      • walterbell 5y ago
        Looks like this one is a non-standard 23mm instead of 22mm width.
    • Diesel555 5y ago
      I use an alternative band for it. https://www.borealiswatch.com/store/#!/Borealis-Vulcanized-Rubber-Strap-24mm-Black-Best-Offer-in-Market-for-Diver-Watches/p/69242029 https://www.borealiswatch.com/store/#!/Borealis-Vulcanized-R...
• TheRealSteel 5y ago
  The Galaxy Z Fold 3 I'm typing this on is really well implemented. It's not perfect but it's a marvel of engineering and an excellent implementation of an ambitious idea. The app Sync for Reddit Pro has basically precisely the UI I want from a reddit app. There's almost nothing I would change. I absolutely love the feel of just about every part of the Xbox One controller, and you can even get back buttons on the Elite model. My 2005 Prius feels great to sit in and operate. Foot operated park brake, keyless entry and pushbutton start, comfortable seating and controls, plenty of space, sensible layout. All models of Macbook Pro except the TouchBar era have been a pleasure to use.
• _jstreet 5y ago
  I find it interesting that most of the comments are about physical products. The 'best design' is often something that's so frictionless and easy to use that it's invisible in day-to-day use. Everyday infrastructure like steps are something that's noticeable when they're off (e.g. spaced too far apart, or too steep); most are designed well. It's easy to find things that are designed poorly. But much less tangible to find a 'best designed' item.
  • ISL 5y ago
    Agreed. It's real tempting to answer, "indoor plumbing". It's really nice to flip a lever and get clean, safe water. It's real good not to need to stroll to the outhouse, too.
    • poglet 5y ago
      Mostly unrelated but I would like to be able to set the temperate and water pressure for my shower so I can just enter and press a single button. This would also be great for those showers where you can never get the water temperature or pressure right so you have to keep adjusting it. I would also like to run a bath by doing the same thing, and having the water stop when it's at the right level. Maybe there could be a heating element that keeps the water at the right temperature so you don't have to occasionally top it up with hot water. I'm sure this already exists but I've never seen it anywhere.
      • maccard 5y ago
        Thermostatic mixer showers are very common (in the UK at least) and are very affordable (sub $100) and as reliable as your hot water supply. My understanding is that water pressure is much harder to control for; there's so many variables that you just can't do anything about, and without installing a giant tank and a pump if your pressure is low it's always going to be low.
      • jerkstate 5y ago
        Thermal regulating shower/bath faucets are relatively common: https://www.deltafaucet.com/design-innovation/innovations/shower/tempassure-valve--monitor-valve https://www.deltafaucet.com/design-innovation/innovations/sh... I have one in my master shower and it's fantastic. Of course, the water starts out cold (because the water in the hot water pipes are cold) but once it's up to temperature, it's very consistent, even if you have a toilet flush in your house which would reduce the pressure of cold.
• theduemmer 5y ago
  McMaster-Carr has the best shopping website I've ever seen. The UI is beautifully intuitive; even if I don't know exactly what I need, odds are I can easily find something that will work and they can have it at my doorstep in under 24 hours, no matter how obscure. Even if I don't plan on buying anything, it can be helpful to click through the site just to see what is available. Because most categories of parts have surprisingly well written descriptions and breakdowns, the sire can actually be a good engineering resource. I've bought from them many times before and have yet to be disappointed with what I got. It is definitely expensive compared to other suppliers or Amazon, etc. But you pay for the convenience. I hear they aren't very good outside the US though, which is a shame.
  • jbay808 5y ago
    I'd love it if they added a price filter option! If I want a clear plastic tube I don't always know whether I'll get a cheaper price with acrylic, UV-resistant acrylic, static dissipative acrylic, ultra-strength polycarbonate, high-temperature polycarbonate, etc... It can take a lot of clicking to find the cheapest option!
    • theduemmer 5y ago
      Unfortunately I don't see them creating a price filter as they are mainly geared at businesses vs. hobbyists or consumers, where "get it here fast" is more important than saving a few dollars. That being said, I find adding all of the prospective parts to the cart works well for me when I want to compare prices
      • elil17 5y ago
        As a business user, I’d like the price filter too. For instance, I might be okay with any material for a valve in a prototyping application as long as it’s the right size, I just need to find the cheapest one (with one day shipping of course!)
      • kortilla 5y ago
        I’ve yet to work in a business that doesn’t care about the price of something. This is particularly true when we are evaluating parts that might be used in production at scale.
• kunle 5y ago
  Pic's creamy peanut butter: https://picspb.com/products/creamy-pb https://picspb.com/products/creamy-pb I don't even care for peanut butter and this just hits. Super smooth, not too sweet - i eat it by the spoonful. I literally did not think there was any difference between different peanut butter brands until I had Pic's.
  • muzani 5y ago
    I've been searching for a PB that didn't literally add trans fat. After a few years of searching, Pic's was the only good one.
    • thih9 5y ago
      There are peanut butter brands where the product is just blended peanuts. Though they can be more expensive and the texture is different.
      • einarvollset 5y ago
        AFAIK approximately all “no-stir” peanut butters only have peanuts in them. People don’t buy them because the oil floats to the top and causes a mess and if you don’t stir, then the bottom 1/5th is like glue.
        • otterley 5y ago
          My truck is to stir up separated peanut butter in the jar with a handheld electric mixer using the whisk attachment, then put the jar in the refrigerator to slow down future separation.
      • aimor 5y ago
        I love Kroger's natural peanut butter (ingredients: peanuts,salt) for $1-$2/lb. It's amazing to me that the hydrogenated crap is more expensive, and the name brand natural stuff is more expensive still!
  • thetwentyone 5y ago
• LeoPanthera 5y ago
  The original iPod, the very first one with the wheel that actually turned. I don't think I've ever known a product I loved more. I got so much pleasure from it that it made me want to learn more about product design. I thought the later static touch-wheel wasn't as good, and firewire was such a great way to load it with music, fast charging and super fast data transfer. I've never been as happy with anything "cloud based" - something is always broken somewhere.
  • eddieroger 5y ago
    I had the first-gen, spinny-wheel iPod. While I love (still have it) as much as you, I don’t think it was as good as the touch wheels that followed shortly after. By the end of mine’s daily use life, the wheel had loosened up enough that the music would get louder as I walked because my gait would rotate the wheel. Past that, it was perfect and I cherish still owning it, I just wish the wheel had held it’s firmness.
• tejohnso 5y ago
  Maybe I'm too easy to please, but every day since I unboxed my Kobo Forma I've been impressed with it. The backlight is adjustable down to barely noticeable for night reading with the lights off, and in bright light the e-ink looks great. The weight in the "spine" is perfect, and the rest of the unit feels near weightless. The battery lasts weeks. And the device has performed flawlessly for over a year now, which is honestly more than I expected for a somewhat niche electronics product. I use it for queued blog posts via Pocket, or some light fiction before bed or during lunch break.
  • TehShrike 5y ago
    Oh hey, good call – I got a Kobo Libre H2O recently, and I'm loving it too. It's just... great for reading! I have some quibbles on the firmware front, but on the whole it's a great Thing That Does Its Job Well
• WorldPeas 5y ago
  God i love my pebble so much, oldest piece of tech I've kept, but the most reliable. Good if you can get your hands on one but I have a feeling they're going the way of the radiant cobtrol toaster in that their prices are set to go up
  • h4waii 5y ago
    I'm still rocking a Pebble 2SE every day, with 2 more in storage for when this one dies. Keep an eye on Bangle.js 2 and PineTime for possible replacements.
• black_13 5y ago
  Mechanical pencils and engineering paper
• andersco 5y ago
  The Technics SL-1200 turntable. The fact that the design has not changed except for minor tweaks since the product was released speaks for itself. I used it both as a DJ many years ago and now kept one of the turntables just for listening. The quality of the turntable is palpable not only in its physical weight but in the utter simplicity of the design. The dotted edges of the rotating plate are both aesthetically pleasing while also informative communicating rotation speed. Every detail every little part of the unit is functional design of the highest quality while also visually appealing. In my view one of the greatest achievements in modern electronics and industrial design.
  • timemachine 5y ago
    Agree. The device is made of long lasting parts. Easy to repair if needed and parts for even the oldest models are still available.
  • ghostly_s 5y ago
    > The dotted edges of the rotating plate are both aesthetically pleasing while also informative communicating rotation speed. Isn't this pattern actually used as a rotary encoder for speed control?
    • tomcooks 5y ago
      Yes I've heard it's actually used to sync two plates
  • Terry_Roll 5y ago
    Waiting list for the SL-1200 or SL-1210's in the 90's were well over a year and you couldnt even get B stock (ie returns resold) from Panasonic Technics either. I will add another one to the list, their SU-A range of amps with the R-core transformer. When they first came out, I was invited to a blind listening session with Technics somewhere in London and they had some of the SU-A amps up against considerably more expensive amps and you were shocked at the quality, you could point to where the different instruments were being played left and right, you could tell whether they were at the front, middle or back of the sound stage, it was an awesome experience and the low price meant they showed up some serious big names in the hifi world. Magazines were harsh to them imo. Its just a shame they couldn't replicate the quality in their surround sound amp's but I suspect that is more to do with the encoding used then and now. But the return in audiophile quality is not proportional to expenditure above a certain price, its more exponential.
• beervirus 5y ago
  SawStop table saw. It‘a a great saw in general, but what absolutely blew me away was the assembly. Extremely well thought out, from the order in which boxes of parts are opened, to the instructions, to the assembly procedure itself. I could not come up with a single improvement.
  • david38 5y ago
    It’s my understanding the SawStop has a Powermatic body.
    • beervirus 5y ago
      Never heard that. I guess it’s possible, but I don’t really see it.
• ivanech 5y ago
  Mamiya 7 camera. It is ergonomically great, especially considering its size and large film area (6x7). Good shutter button with a lock. Its 65mm lens is amazing to use - the edges line up almost perfectly with the massive rangefinder window, so it's like taking a picture of what one eye sees. This is great because I believe the best images are the ones that look like seeing, that make it seem as if beauty is commonplace.
• raz32dust 5y ago
  Google flights is fantastic. Don't know if it is "the best-designed thing I've ever used", but it is on top of my mind as I just used it yesterday. Google doesn't get enough credit for the things that they did do well - including Search and Maps. Another is Macbooks - the pre-2015 ones at least. I haven't used the latest M1 ones, which I hear great things about. The Aluminum body, the flawless screen, magsafe, great sound - there is so many things I love about Macbook hardware. Such a beautiful marriage of form and function.
  • wildrhythms 5y ago
    I have multiple close family members who are still using the old Magsafe Macbook Airs. I ask them every year if they want to upgrade to a newer model, and they decline, they just love the laptop. I replaced the battery in each one to the OWC upgraded battery kit.
  • Misdicorl 5y ago
    I must disagree with you on maps. Google maps is a fantastic geographic aware search. It is a horrific map. On any given screen there is an 80% chance that the major road I'm interested in is not labeled. Finding the name of a relevant cross street is a nightmare. I feel like it used to be better. Way better. I think the map aspect has been dropped entirely as a real feature now that they supply directions (search) primarily instead.
    • djmips 5y ago
      I agree with this 100%. And there needs to be something in the design to allow you to zoom the text size. It's comical to witness myself trying to read too small text and reflexively zooming only to have the same sized font.
      • systemvoltage 5y ago
        I didn’t know how badly I would like to see this until now. I love static-ness in UIs.
      • 5y ago
• dukeofdoom 5y ago
  These are the best products I've used in the last decade: 1. 2013 Macbook - Still us it. Though bought the new m1 today. 2. Pelican Kayak - Special edition for costco (has detachable bags). Probably not the best kayak. But at $300, probably the funnest thing I've purchase per $ spent. I've explored so many places with it; beautiful, sublime places filled with birds and wildlife. Super fun. 70% of the world is water. 3. K2 Rollerblades - Hate running, but rollerblading feels like a superpower 4. Delonghi Expresso machine + Oat milk. 5. Sony FDRx3000. Like a Gopro, but better. Though now badly needs an update. 6. DJI drones. Best deal ever: All you can jet pass from BluJet. Flew around the world for $600 for a month. (plus some minor fees).
• tamade 5y ago
  HP 12C. The best RPN calculator ever created. Mine is over 20 years old and still going strong. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP-12C https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP-12C
  • djmips 5y ago
    I got a 16C from my father as graduation gift and almost 40 years later I still use it.
• japhyr 5y ago
  If you split your own firewood by hand, a Fiskars splitting axe is insanely better than any standard splitting maul you'd find in a typical hardware store: https://www.fiskars.com/en-us/gardening-and-yard-care/products/axes-mauls-and-machetes/x27-super-splitting-axe-36-378841-1004 https://www.fiskars.com/en-us/gardening-and-yard-care/produc... For mechanical pencils, the Rotring 600 is the best thing I've ever written with: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AZWYUA4/ https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AZWYUA4/
  • patentatt 5y ago
    I'm about to blow your mind: https://www.kindlingcracker.com/ https://www.kindlingcracker.com/
    • ElCapitanMarkla 5y ago
      A young kiwi girl Ayla Hutchinson designed that when she was only 13 years old - https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/1222-ayla-hutchinson https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/1222-ayla-hutchins... pretty cool seeing something like that get to market
  • FunnyLookinHat 5y ago
    I'm in the market for a new splitting axe - thanks for the recommendation!
  • shimonabi 5y ago
    I have this Fiskars model, but I haven't used it in more than 5 years. I had to chop up 2 huge cherry trees and this thing was useless. For splitting wood, I now always use this: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ochsenkopf-OX-3509-Log-Splitter-Rotband/dp/B000UYTZJI https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ochsenkopf-OX-3509-Log-Splitter-Rot... Now THAT is really good design.
    • robocat 5y ago
      > Now THAT is really good design Perhaps explain why it is better? A personal opinion is not as useful as an insightful explanation. > was useless You haven’t said what was wrong with it. Also I think your wording is awfully close to breaking site guidelines: "That is idiotic; 1 + 1 is 2, not 3" can be shortened to "1 + 1 is 2, not 3." https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html Disclaimer: not a mod, I’m just a hippy that wants us all to get on well together!
• Terry_Roll 5y ago
  Trangia cooking stove. It will be something to pass on to your kids if you like camping. I have a version of the doussal they dont sell anymore which is one of these https://shop.trangia.se/en/trangia-stove/trangia-stove-25-large/duossal-d/storm-cooker-25-21-uld.html https://shop.trangia.se/en/trangia-stove/trangia-stove-25-la... a kettle https://shop.trangia.se/en/kettles/200325.html https://shop.trangia.se/en/kettles/200325.html a green cutting board/strainer https://shop.trangia.se/en/accessories/multi-disc-md25.html https://shop.trangia.se/en/accessories/multi-disc-md25.html and I got a 1Litre fuel bottle as an extra https://shop.trangia.se/en/accessories/fuel-bottle-1-0l.html https://shop.trangia.se/en/accessories/fuel-bottle-1-0l.html The kettle and green cutting board fit inside the main setup (pots) so it takes up no extra space and you can stuff a couple of knives, forks and spoons inside the setup as well. You can comfortably cook for two with this so its weight between two backpackers with other equipment like tent is not that heavy! All you need to clean it is hot water and a metal scourer like one of these https://www.diy.com/departments/stainless-steel-scourer-pack-of-4/3663602564775_BQ.prd https://www.diy.com/departments/stainless-steel-scourer-pack... which fits nicely inside the kettle. I got the Stainless Ally combo because you need to clean it and stainless cleans easily with a simple metal scourer, you can even get black soot off it easily so you cant ruin it like you can with non-stick coated camping stoves. You can run it on pure alcohol, methylated spirits, petrol (gasoline) and other flammable liquids, although Meths is recommended and with a push even small twigs, branches and kindling if you run out of flammable liquids. You can also get a pressurised gas burner for it as well which I dont have so cant comment on. I've cooked for 2 near Ben Macdui wild camping on the Cairngorm plateau in a few feet of snow one Easter when the UK was getting hit with plenty of snow, a Met Office amber alert gale force storm not far from The Devils kitchen, Snowdonia another time I like to test things to destruction and this is one tool which gets my recommendation! Plenty of decent evening meals, none of this freeze dried just add water nonsense and a decent cooked breakfast in the mornings, namely sausages, bacon, hash browns, baked beans, black pudding and eggs with HP Brown Sauce. Most of the weight in my rucksack when I go wild camping is good food! The two pots are slightly different sizes so they fit inside each other russian doll like one way but the other way they stack on top of each other so with the green cutting board for a pot lid, you can keep cooked food warm/hot whilst cooking the rest of a meal up. Yes you may be swapping two stacked pots with the frying pan periodically if you want to do a fryup for breakfast or steak, mash and veg for an evening meal, but if you like cooking thats part of the challenge of having decent food in the most remote inhospitable parts of the world. Its very bash proof as well, I've seen state of the pressurised gas burners break out of the box on expeditions whilst being pumped where as the Trangia has no moving parts to break, its the best designed product for me because of its simplicity and ruggedness. You could chuck your rucksac down the side of a mountain and it would still work! A little tip, if you like a Full English breakfast dont take a bottle of cooking oil, take some hard solid blocks of pure saturated fat aka beef dripping. It doesnt melt except in the hottest of environments so its still solid during a British summer and you wont risk a flimsy bottle of cooking oil splitting inside your rucksack and you dont have to have the weight of a ruggedised bottle to store cooking oil inside your rucksack. Every good chef knows, is where the flavour comes from whilst giving you the calories to do some very nice expeditions. When camping in the snow when its below freezing, take a couple of fuel bottles as you will burn through more fuel especially if the only water around you is melting snow. All in all it gets my top marks, best designed, could not recommend it enough prize, design award, etc etc every time.
• Bradlinc 5y ago
  A few things that jump out to me: Toyota LandCruiser 100, Casper Glow Light, MacBook Air and Design With In Reach Theater Sofa.
• rvba 5y ago
  Those faucets that allow you to control three things (amount of water, amount of hot water, amount of cold water) using a single joint (random picture from imgur https://m.imgur.com/G3Yydd9 https://m.imgur.com/G3Yydd9 ). People use taps/faucets with 2 knobs in 2021??? Wtf. European style windows ( https://www.reddit.com/r/videos/comments/4kjsnp/european_windows_are_awesome/ https://www.reddit.com/r/videos/comments/4kjsnp/european_win... ) Excel (before latest reskin which made it less productive because there is less space for user) Pivot tables I could probably list few mobile phones. Each were good for their time (nokia 3310, nokia e52, samsung galaxy s2). Nintendo entertainment system (put the game and play...).
• Archelaos 5y ago
  The first thing that came into my mind is the 4-colour pallpoint pen from Wedo: https://wedo.de/4_colour_ballpoint_pen_chrome https://wedo.de/4_colour_ballpoint_pen_chrome It is very practical if you want to use different colours for note-taking away from your desk. I had my first one aprox. 40 years ago when I was a school boy. Its design hasn't changed since.
  • perilunar 5y ago
    I've never seen the Wedo pen, but the Bic 4-Color is a classic. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=bic+4+color+ballpoint+pen https://duckduckgo.com/?q=bic+4+color+ballpoint+pen
• PaulDavisThe1st 5y ago
  Arcteryx Bora 95 backpack. Big, heavy, but super-durable and what you need if you're doing long backpacking trips and are not of the contemporary super-lightweight inclination. Mine is 25 years old and everything is still perfect. Out of production, their current backpacks are no substitute (and they know it). Dewalt power tools. Not absolutely perfect, but normally everything about them just seems right, and the durability over 28+ years so far has been perfect (with one exception: a jammed chainsaw motor). My Bourgeat 24cm vertical-sided saute pan. When I moved from Seattle to Phila. in 1996, I drove 400 miles out of my way to pick this up from a tiny kitchen store on the Oregon coast. It is the best kitchen tool I have ever owned. 25 years later, it remains my go-to pan for more than half of my cooking. Encased copper base, stainless body, I can burn the shit out of something in here, and after a night's soaking it cleans up like new with almost no effort. Sadly, although Bourgeat are still in business, they dropped this particular model a few years after I bought it. Sandisk Clip+ music player. This is far from perfect, but it's also so far ahead of almost everything else when it comes to portable music while exercising. No touch sensing, just physical buttons, usable with gloves of various sizes. Storage size limited only by SD card availability (I'm at 120GB right now, could go larger). Battery lasts longer than I tend to remember. Rockbox firmware makes it work better. Plays every format that matter, plus a few that don't. Tiny, weighs almost nothing. Not what I want to listen to at home, but if I'm out running, cycling, skiing, snowshoeing ... I've just never found a better device. Out of production. Ableton Push 2 control surface for DAW workflows. The tactile quality is outstanding, the screen quality is gorgeous, the knobs have just the right level of resistance to turning, it's just a thing of beauty. But what makes it so much better is that Ableton fully documented every aspect of this beast, which allowed me to make it work with my own software. The documentation is almost as lovely as the Push 2 itself.
  • yobbo 5y ago
    > Sandisk Clip+ Agreed. As they age and the screen goes out, they can still be used thanks to voice ui in rockbox.
• jordanpg 5y ago
  Brother HL-2070N black and white laser printer. 14 years and still going strong.
  • mongol 5y ago
    I have the same. Mine is only 11 years. Yet to change toner.
    • zestros 5y ago
      Same here, the one criticism I have is that I had to put tape on the toner cartridge to defeat the toner empty sensor. After doing that I've been able to continue to use the "empty" cartridge for an additional 5 or 6 years (I only print maybe 50 pages a year though).
• jackcosgrove 5y ago
  I'm going to go a bit more low-tech than most, and say a simple wooden reamer. Nothing juices an orange better, and it's literally something you could whittle. I don't think the design has changed in centuries, and I don't think it can be improved.
• invalidator 5y ago
  GearWrench ratcheting wrenches. They're compact and fit in places that sockets never will. The ratcheting mechanism is very fine, with low backlash, which matters a lot in those tight places. They feel great, and they're a delight to use. Wirewrap tools. They're mechanically simple, easy to learn, and let you create neat, dense hobby prototypes faster and easier than soldering. Wago Lever Nuts. These let you join a wide range of wires, from 24 to 12 AWG, stranded or solid. They're quick: strip, insert and flip. They're verifiable: you can check that it's done right just by looking at it. They're reliable: the spring pressure ensures they never come loose, even with vibration and heat over many years. I'm never going back to twist-on wire nuts. Ruby. The seamless blend of OO, functional, and imperative programming is beautiful. It can be dense without being obscure. irb and pry make it easy to explore code and data. The syntax is mostly conventional and easy to learn. The standard libraries are well designed, and have consistent interfaces. The documentation is concise and easy to scan. I won't say its "The Best", but of the dynamic, interpreted languages I know, Ruby is the most fun to use, and it starts with the clean, well-considered design right at its core.
  • mberning 5y ago
    Great list. Having specialized hand tools and using them to great effect is an intoxicating experience.
  • djmips 5y ago
    Speaking of hand tools, how about Channel Lock pliers developed by Howard Manning. https://patents.google.com/patent/US2592927A/en https://patents.google.com/patent/US2592927A/en
    • mitemte 5y ago
      Pliers wrench are also excellent and a far better alternative to adjustable wrenches. The parallel jaws and pressure added from squeezing prevents rounding of nuts. https://patents.google.com/patent/EP0421107A2/en https://patents.google.com/patent/EP0421107A2/en
  • ethbr0 5y ago
• sas224dbm 5y ago
  My Sony ICF SW-1 shortwave radio. Perfect backpacking travel companion in Asia in the 90s. It just worked.
  • timonoko 5y ago
    Cassette player was just too finicky to fix and maintain. I would prefer the same device, but with SD-card recorder. But then alas, there is nothing to listen on SW-bands anymore. BTW. I have now modified my Sony, the cassette player is totally removed, but in the cassette bay there is a loose wire with 3 mm plug, which has suitable dampening so that it acts like cellphone headset microphone input. I can now record programs with my cellphone.
• grech 5y ago
  This may be a normie response - but Apple Airpods Pro are one of the best products I've used. After years of using several bluetooth headsets that get finicky (with connections that is), having a set that just connects and works every single time is refreshing. They really changed my behavior - I went from not liking phone conversations at all (getting agitated after a few minutes)to comfortably having long phone calls. I would replace mine immediately if they were lost / broken.
  • rp1 5y ago
    I agree with this. I remember buying mine in a busy part of SF. I opened them on the street and my iPhone instantly recognized them and paired. I didn’t even need to open the Bluetooth settings menu. Then, as soon as I put them on, the street I was on, which was so busy and chaotic just prior, became dead silent. I hadn’t experienced magic like that in a long while.
  • ghostly_s 5y ago
    And I would rank them near the bottom because they don't fit in my ears without causing significant pain within a few minutes.
    • joshgachnang 5y ago
      Even with the 3 different tip sizes? The old EarPods/AirPods worked alright in my ears but never great. The Pros have been fantastic for me personally.
      • olex 5y ago
        Not the OP, but I have the same issue. Tried the 3 original tip sizes as well as 3rd party foam tips - no use, they either hurt after a short while or don't seal properly, causing ANC to barely work at all and the headphones to fall out when jogging or doing exercise. Guess my ears are not shaped for the Pros, or any in-ear earbuds for that matter - it has always been the same story with any brand I tried over the years. However, the 1st/2nd gen "base" AirPods are a perfect fit for me, so I just ordered a new pair to replace my 3 years old 1st gen with almost completely failed batteries. Would've used something like Podswap, but unfortunately no such service is available in my country that I could find.
• mattgreenrocks 5y ago
  Sennheiser HD600 headphones: gorgeous sound that is very detail oriented without being clinical. Fractal Audio FM3: guitar amp+FX modeling done incredibly well. Guitar is now a fully addictive hobby for me. Fish shell: I use it 8 hours a day and have very few complaints. Performant, ergonomic, and thoughtfully maintained.
• toomanyrichies 5y ago
  One example of quality design which I gleaned from reading Don Norman's "The Design Of Everyday Things" is the metal plate I've frequently seen on doors which are meant to be pushed. The only affordance of such a plate is its push-ability, and the fact that someone actively installed a metal plate (instead of just relying on the door's natural flatness), as well as its location at the point of maximum leverage (all the way to the right of the door, in the door's vertical center), is a clear signifier for such push-ability. Not only that, but it does its job without offering any other confusing affordances (such as a vertical handle which is also technically pushable, but which many would interpret as being meant to be pulled). Whenever I need a relatable, succinct example of affordances and signifiers for my engineering comrades, I turn to this one. Anyone interested in design is doing themselves a dis-service by not reading Don Norman's classic.
  • extrapickles 5y ago
    The plate also makes it easier to clean as without it peoples handprints will be in a wider area. For wood doors its even better as wood can be time consuming to clean well.
    • rakwoelq 5y ago
      I always avoid touching that metal door plate, I've gotten 'stainless steel cleaner and polish' on my hands too many times for me to consider using it again.
      • rambambram 5y ago
        Now that you mention it, I do the same unknowingly. I always go for the wood above the plate, just because unconsciously I think it's cleaner than the metal plate.
        • kqr 5y ago
          The metal is easier to clean, but the wood (depending on treatment) might be naturally a bit more antiseptic because it dries up quicker. Unless, maybe, the plate is copper?
• stillblue 5y ago
  The Apple Ecosystem. I've invested a lot of hard earned money into it. I have an ipad, iphone, a macbook air, an apple watch, airpods pro and a mac mini. Bought these over the years. Just the way these things work so cohesively to me is pure magic. The attention to detail on extremely minor things is pretty impressive. I haven't had to think about "doing" anything with tech ever since I bought apple products. You just remember to charge them and everything just works. I come from a pure windows / android background and I was mindblown by how convenient things were. I'd highly recommend Apple devices to friends and family.
  • muzani 5y ago
    There are some things I like, but never fell in love with them. iPhones died too fast. MBP had weird display glitches because of the lighting adjustment. The touch bar was less useful than a touchscreen. Keyboard is so bad that it's often the deal-breaker when trying to buy a macbook. It might be useful if I could just plug an external keyboard into it, but I need an adapter for that now and the adapter gets hot with all the things I put on it. I mean the competition does a lot of things badly, but Apple products are badly designed too.
    • stillblue 5y ago
      I managed to dodge every single bad apple product. I never bought MBP's only Airs. No touchbars. No shitty keyboard. The products I've owned / own had zero problems maybe cos they're a subset of Apple products that do not have problems. What do you mean iphones die too fast? My experience has been quite the opposite.
  • thn-gap 5y ago
    At the same time, the interoperability of these devices outside the ecosystem is stupidly useless. Just this year I figured out that I can't send an image without internet from my Android phone to the iPad. I could receive images over Bluetooth between two phones more than 10 years ago, but not today with the iPad. I also can't seem to transfer images or videos from my Windows PC to the iPad with just a cable.
  • 5y ago
• marianov 5y ago
  Leatherman tools 5 meters of Spectra rope I've owned for 20 years and use for everything Thinkpad X220 Shimano bicycle drivetrains
• brightball 5y ago
  Leatherman Skeletool Potato peeler
• deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
• fourstar 5y ago
  Chemex.
• timemachine 5y ago
  Kitchenaid direct-drive stand mixer. I have one from the 1950s that has been used multiple times a week since it was bought new by my grandmother. The dough hook, whisk, and other attachments secure in place with machined fittings so there is no play or wiggle. This has made them last. I took the top off of it 10 years ago to make sure it was still properly lubricated. That’s all the maintenance it has ever had. (Well I broke one of the Pyrex mixing bowls…but eBay)
  • ldiracdelta 5y ago
    The kitchen aid in our kitchen scares the heck out of me around children. That machine could rip an arm off a child very easily.
  • corinroyal 5y ago
    I just got one, and am impressed that the attachment port has not ever changed, so any attachment will work on every Kitchenaid mixer. Can I ask what you use yours for? I'm still trying to figure out what its best at.
    • mitchbob 5y ago
      Haven't used it, but I've heard great things about the sausage stuffer https://www.kitchenaid.com/countertop-appliances/stand-mixers/attachments/p.sausage-stuffer-kit.ksmssa.html https://www.kitchenaid.com/countertop-appliances/stand-mixer...
• couchand 5y ago
  The Blichmann BeerGun (v1 -- I'm sure v2 is fine but it's not the same). It does exactly what it is supposed to. It's better than the "pro" tools, despite being marketed to homebrewers. It always reliably fills bottles, to a consistent fill, with quick and easy pre- and post-purge with CO2. Moreover, the engineering is beautiful. Every part has a purpose. Everything that could be a stock part is. Each custom part is machined as simply as can be. Just a joy to use.
• version_five 5y ago
  Shopify pay (I think that's the name) that texts a code to complete the checkout at web stores I think is a great friction reducer. Modern tents that just have a couple of elastic cord connected structural members the tent hangs off that go up in seconds. Anyone who put up a tent 25 years ago must see how much innovation there has been. Almost everything about cars - if you think of the conditions and amount of use they have to survive (and despite massive annoying failures). I had a Mazda 3 with rain sensing wipers that I loved, I've driven lots of more expensive cars without them and I don't understand why they're not ubiquitous
  • adjkant 5y ago
    +1 to Shopify. I wanted to hate it, but it's just that good.
• whalesalad 5y ago
  AirPods.
• satisfice 5y ago
  Tivo
• mhb 5y ago
  Concept 2 rowing machine.
  • PaulDavisThe1st 5y ago
    Definitely an amazing piece of design. The electronics/digital part can be a little unreliable on heavily used machines, but the mechanical part is sublime and so robust.
• analog31 5y ago
  My double bass, "designed" in the 17th century, gradually evolved over the years, made in Romania in 2010. Sturmey-Archer AW 3-speed bicycle gear hub. I'm running 2 of them, both 50+ years old, still going strong. Originally designed in 1948. Pretty much anything made by Mitutoyo, glorious quality and aesthetics. "Ideal Stripmaster" wire stripper.
• MichaelMoser123 5y ago
  pokemon-go, i mean it is a game, it doesn't really exist, but it does exist, because of the augmented reality thing. (playing it with my kids, don't really know if it is good for them, as it blurs the line between the real and the imaginary...)
• Causality1 5y ago
  The Leatherman MUT. I've carried it clipped to my pocket every day for ten years now and it's still going strong. Carrying six two-ended driver bits, replaceable blades, and a hammer end has covered such an enormous percentage of my use cases it's unreal. Having a steel poking stick on you at all times is surprisingly useful.
  • sound1 5y ago
    I do have leatherman skeltool and I love it
• jp57 5y ago
  The Fender Telecaster guitar. Simple, versatile, reliable. The design is essentially unchanged since it’s debut in the 1950s and still popular today.
• stephenfin 5y ago
  I'm amazed no one has suggested Chromecast. It just works. Click a button on your phone or laptop and the video or song you were listening to or want to listen to suddenly appears on the TV. Even grandparents seem to get it. Maybe Apple TV is a similar experience but Chromecast is as good as it gets
  • mikeywazowski 5y ago
    I agree - I have a 1st gen Chromecast and it still works really well after quite a few years. It doesn't always play nice with my wife's iphone but considering how little it cost, I'm not complaining.
  • adjkant 5y ago
    I used to love it, but have had very annoying connection issues of late. Also shuts off and restarts during some use. I had to switch it over to 2.4Ghz recently which I think did it in, which I had to do for connection of home devices with "dumb smart" plugs.
  • yumraj 5y ago
    I know a lot of people seem to love Chromecast, but for some reason using a phone to control TV never made sense to me. I prefer the physical remote. And for sending screen to the TV, the quality was never good. Our Chromecast and the one included with TV haven’t been used for years.
    • mrweasel 5y ago
      The Chromecast was never amazing, and having to use a phone or Chrome to control your TV is really weird. Having a Chromecast was better than nothing though. However if you’ve used an AppleTV you realise that the Chromecast is actually a pretty terrible solution, compared to just having a device with apps.
      • johnwalkr 5y ago
        I have an apple TV at home, but for the price chromecast works well. It's really great for 2 cases: 1. Connected to a tv in a workplace, anyone on the local network can easily use Chrome to share a screen instead of passing around an HDMI cable. 2. Lately hotel rooms sometimes have a chromecast or apple TV, and it's a welcome feature of the room to open netflix on my phone and cast to the TV. In fact I think I should ditch the HDMI cable I keep in my suitcase and replace it with a chromecast. They are pretty small, too. In both of those cases, I would prefer to only use casting/mirroring and not actually login to the device and/or install apps.
• dkobia 5y ago
  Dyson vacuum products are pretty damn impressive. I have an 9 year old Dyson DC33 and every time I take it apart to clean it, I can’t believe how thoughtful the engineers were. Repairability is 9/10 and built like a tank.
  • steve_adams_86 5y ago
    Yes, I’ve fixed my animal vacuum in major ways 3 times and it was very easy to do. The vacuum has been running well for a very long time in vacuum years.
  • 2OEH8eoCRo0 5y ago
    My father hid the Dyson vacuum in the trunk of his car when my mother divorced him.
  • PaulDavisThe1st 5y ago
    I would respectfully disagree. We have that Dyson, about the same age. The basic (plastic) engineering is very clever, but I think also made to fail in the long haul, in ways that can't be fixed. That's what has happened to ours over the years: it still sort-of-kind-of functions, but suction is terrible, various clips and mating profiles no longer really engage fully... Last month, I decided to go all in on a Miele. Time will tell if the incredible expense turns out to be worth it in the long run. It is WAY easier to use in most situations that our Dyson.
• micro_cam 5y ago
  Knipex Plier Wrenches ... so much better than an adjustable wrench and useful for all sorts of small tasks beyond bolts. Park AWS-1 three way hex wrench. Makes working on bikes so much faster. Dynafit Ski Touring Bindings... the patent has expired and there are loads of copy's based on the original idea now but they changed the sport of ski touring in a way that can't be overstated. (tlt5/6 boots and now the scarpa alien rs are up there too as well as modern powder skis) Petzl Nomic Ice Tools. Again much imitated but they way they work with the human body to make climbing ice (or rock) easier was revolutionary and is something you can feel just by picking them up. Leica M6 - or m series in general. what if we made a camera from a squished piece of pipe.
  • ISL 5y ago
    <looks up micro_cam> HillMap -- I use it all the time; it just works. :). (Also, pintech-bindings are the best. They changed the course of my life. The TLT5/6 design is sublime as long as you're not scrambling in talus.)
    • micro_cam 5y ago
      Hah thanks! Unfortunately hillmap is in a semi defunct state. Most of the apis that made it work are gone or really expensive and i haven't had time to make my own replacements.
      • dendrite9 5y ago
        Oh man! Thank you so much, It is hard to convey how much I have used hillmap. I just had to check in and make sure the site was still up. Anytime I want to roughly get a sense of distance it is my first and only thought, from planning offtrail backpacking and ski trips, to trying to figure out how far I ran on a given day, or trying to talk my girlfriend into swimming various point to point routes. I'd say of the pin bindings the race style are the ones I think of when I admire the design.
        • micro_cam 5y ago
• flog 5y ago
  Porsche’s.
  • CamperBob2 5y ago
    Like BMW, you kind of have to qualify that statement by era, though.
• jounker 5y ago
  The Oxo potato peeler. It’s comfortable, durable, and it works beautifully.
• chocks 5y ago
  Perfectly cooked eggs every single time, bought this in 2014 still going strong: KRUPS F23070 Egg Cooker with Water Level Indicator, 7-Eggs Capacity, White https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00005KIRS/ https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00005KIRS/
• amarshall 5y ago
  The Kinesis Advantage keyboard [1]. The height of the keys in each column are different because, well, the length of each of our fingers is different. It’s so naturally comfortable that it goes unnoticed and one’s fingers just fall into the right position. Placing one’s fingers offset left or right is so obviously uncomfortable that it’s basically impossible to have off-by-one typos. There is a lot of subtly well-designed ergonomics to this keyboard (though also some not great bits—looking at you, function row). [1]: https://kinesis-ergo.com/shop/advantage2/ https://kinesis-ergo.com/shop/advantage2/
  • marcodiego 5y ago
    This keyboard remembers me the guy who built his own SGI laptop: https://web.archive.org/web/20050212100138/http://www.jumboprawn.net/jesse/projs/laptop.html https://web.archive.org/web/20050212100138/http://www.jumbop...
  • acidburnNSA 5y ago
    > Contoured keyboard designed to provide maximum comfort and productivity for Windows and Mac users. As a Linux user this leaves me really second guessing.
    • Accacin 5y ago
      I have this keyboard and use Linux and it works perfectly. Best of all, all keyswapping and other layout changes are done via the keyboard itself so absolutely no software required to be installed :)
    • pfortuny 5y ago
      I use it with linux+emacs and definitely the best keyboard ever. Already 15 years old.
      • mismatchpair 5y ago
        Could you share how you remapped your modifier keys for optimal emacs use on the Kinesis Advantage2? Thank you in advance.
• throwaway6734 5y ago
  Various versions of the kindle. It's got excellent battery life, is easy to travel with, feels great in my hands, and is just what I want from an e-reader. Especially the new version w/ the metal body and yellow-back light.
• samsolomon 5y ago
  I’m not sure about the best designed things ever, but here are some purchases in the last year, that I’ve really appreciated: Corona 10-inch Pruning Saw I had been using an old pair of loppers to trim most of the low hanging branches in my yard. This pruning saw is so much easier. It can cut through a 4-inch branch like nothing. Also it folds up so there’s no need for a sheath. EGO 650 CFM Blower Electric lawn tools are amazing. No dealing with fuel and oil. Plus they are so much quieter. This blower has been a life saver this fall. Planning to purchase an ego mower soon. Leatherman Skeletool CX The skeletool has replaced my pocket knife on camping trips. It’s not like most leatherman tools with 100 functions. The skeletool has about 7, but pocket knife, pliers and bottle opener cover most of my needs. Outdoor Voices Sunday Short Bar none my favorite pair of athletic shorts. Extremely flexible, comfortable and they look pretty good. I can wear them working out, lounging around the house or out to run errands. I probably own 6 pairs.
• jounker 5y ago
  The Aerostich Roadcrafter single piece motorcycle suit. It’s not the best protection, it’s not the most weather resistant, it’s not the warmest in cool weather, it’s no the best ventilated in warm weather, but it is the best all round motorcycle suit I’ve worn. Best of all you can step into or out of one faster than most people can take off a jacket. Every time I put it on I feel a rush of joy and satisfaction.
• johnwheeler 5y ago
  Benson amps Vinny Combo. Built-in attenuator, excellent spring reverb, and easy to dial in edge of breakup. Great clean and dirty tones
• Grimm665 5y ago
  K2 Cinch bindings. If you snowboard with skiers, who are constantly complaining about the time it takes to do up your bindings after getting off the lift, these things are awesome. https://k2snow.com/en-us/p/k2-cinch-tc-snowboard-binding https://k2snow.com/en-us/p/k2-cinch-tc-snowboard-binding
• bookofjoe 5y ago
  iPod touch: for $200 you get an extra screen that looks great on a device that's almost ethereally thin. RayBan Stories glasses: for $299 you get functional wearable normal-appearing glasses that take pictures and make 30-second movies. Wonderfully easy to set up and use. Ultra Heavy-duty Scotch tape dispenser: https://www.amazon.com/Scotch-Invisible-Photo-Safe-Engineered-Repairing/dp/B0006HVKOC/ref=sr_1_8?keywords=scotch+tape+dispenser&qid=1637984699&qsid=141-4802030-8440043&sr=8-8&sres=B000Y52D5G%2CB0147GB7CC%2CB07Y613GMP%2CB0006HVKOC%2CB0006HVL8C%2CB07BW44HKM%2CB0002LCRMG%2CB082LX4D8H%2CB077Z992SW%2CB082LW23F3%2CB07CB6F1BB%2CB002U3VABI%2CB07YNHMM7R%2CB002VPDKT0%2CB002ZZ5DLO%2CB00P12N4Z0%2CB01FC8HYQC%2CB000093L55%2CB01LYWPFEK%2CB004LQMXL8 https://www.amazon.com/Scotch-Invisible-Photo-Safe-Engineere... Giant Foot doorstop — works with doors with up to 2" clearance: https://www.amazon.com/Giant-Foot-Heavy-Clearance-Yellow/dp/B00007JQPH/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?keywords=giant+foot+door+stop&qid=1637984897&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzSzlJQzdIWkFGT0pKJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNDE2ODE1N0MyTjhBNFUyT0pKJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTAwNjM0MzExUkdEWjE1MTRDTksxJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ== https://www.amazon.com/Giant-Foot-Heavy-Clearance-Yellow/dp/...
• ethbr0 5y ago
  Oxo's old style ice cream spade (apparently discontinued?) https://www.surlatable.com/oxo-ice-cream-spade/PRO-208926.html https://www.surlatable.com/oxo-ice-cream-spade/PRO-208926.ht... Solves all the problems with an ice cream scoop. Critically, this version had a rounded front. They seem to have moved to a straight front, which I can't imagine being as effective? 40s/50s Gillette Super Speed https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/wiki/Gillette_40s_Style_Super_Speed https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/wiki/Gillette_40s_Style... Shaving was a cheaply and effectively solved problem by the 1950s. Everything since then has been bullshit.
  • tootie 5y ago
    Almost everything oxo makes is great. Their tongs are perfect.
  • PaulDavisThe1st 5y ago
    In my late 20's, I tried to spend a couple of years with those old-school Gillettes. Was not a fan. It did teach me a lot about why contemporary razors work better and are safer, and it felt worth learning that before going back to my Gillette Sensor. Also, nod to the Venus (primarily marketed to women). That razor makes even the Sensor look savage, and gives such great shaves on rounded surfaces.
    • ethbr0 5y ago
      Someone once quipped that modern men's razors are just worse versions of women's razors. I'm inclined to believe it. I imagine a ton of success or failure is beard consistency too.
    • ldiracdelta 5y ago
      I love my Merkur safety razor. The gap between blade and the blade holder is great.
  • yumraj 5y ago
    I agree on the razors. I was using my dad’s old Gillette DE razors but have come to love Merkur slant. It’s expensive but is fantastic. It’s very hard to cut yourself with it and gives a fantastic shave.
• elil17 5y ago
  I love Pleco as a Chinese dictionary. Most Chinese dictionaries have a different search bar for English words and latinized Chinese words (pinyin). Pleco let’s you toggle your search from English to pinyin and back again with a button. It also lets you navigate from words to their characters and from characters to words that use them. Most importantly, it color coded characters so you can see how they’re pronounced more easily which is incredibly useful for beginners.
• DoneWithAllThat 5y ago
  Leerburg police leash (for dogs), although the one they sell now is (of course) a crappier version of the one I’ve owned for 10 years now. It’s a leash with a snap at both ends, and three o rings at different points along the length to attach the top snap. It can be held like a regular leash, or slung over your shoulder if you’re for example at an outdoor eating place. I keep it on the shortest length while on walks on sidewalks and at the longest on parks and such. It’s so amazing I’m shocked it’s not a standard leash design you can buy in pet stores.
• brailsafe 5y ago
  I really like my Microsoft Sculpt keyboard, and my Gameboy SP. I can't imagine ysing a different keyboard at this point. I do wish they'd properly iterate on it somehow, but it's great.
• GhettoComputers 5y ago
  Almost android device once they became more powerful and had root, around after 2016 is when only root matters. Full Linux CLI, all the game systems of the 90s playable, all the hardware devices of the 90s emulated but much better (the Pokédex app was very good, TI emulator, etc), OTG docking for wired devices or you can use BT for hardware. They can do 90% of what your current phone can do but everything is a bit slower and worst, so using it as a dedicated device for various purposes like a Linux man page app at your computer, a device to game on, attach a controller, spares your non easily replaceable battery, if you have an iPhone and didn’t jailbreak, having a handheld Linux computer in your pocket is convenient to easily use CLI tools and SSH/MOSH.
  • fart32 5y ago
    I hate how rooting became pretty much non-viable on Android. Losing OTA updates is a dealbreaker for me and all I really want is having an option to record my calls, which is legal in my country and often comes handy. It sounds like something a smartphone should definitelly be capable of by default.
    • GhettoComputers 5y ago
      It can be done through hardware or routing software, Samsung is great with updates. https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.github.axet.callrecorder/ https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.github.axet.callrecorder... It’s not default because of other countries. It’s still very viable, I never got a better experience than recently. Look up some roms on XDA for your phone!
• JohnJamesRambo 5y ago
  The Bic Cristal pen. Works flawlessly and uses the ink all the way until it is gone. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bic_Cristal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bic_Cristal
  • djsbs 5y ago
    The Bic pen is genius. Im a writing utensil snob, but I have but the greatest respect for the bic. When you need a indelible pen that will just work and not run. As long as I dont have to write w/ it for too long ;)
    • gypsyharlot 5y ago
      I couldn't agree more. By far my favorite pen... I have a bunch of them in every room.
• throwawayboise 5y ago
  12" Mac PowerBook G4
• langcalvin 5y ago
  I'll go a game route: Mario Kart. It's just so perfect. All of them from the SNES to the Switch. I've played countless hours and never get bored. The level designs are all so interesting and unique I find myself discovering something new every time. It's social and I've seen it dominate dinner parties.
  • tootie 5y ago
    The perfect game for me is Tetris on the original Gameboy. The ergonomics of the controls and form factor were so perfect. They fit into the neurons of a human brain like, uh, a Tetris piece.
  • johnwalkr 5y ago
    Good one! Also gives better items to slower players which is a very fun way to level the playing field. Just don't try the ride at Universal Studios Japan. It's a complete disappointment. It's just a slow-moving ride, plus Hololens.
  • GhettoComputers 5y ago
    I disagree. You can game it by being last in place to get the best items, being first you’ll get nothing but bananas or a green shell.
  • smt88 5y ago
    This is a fascinating response, partly because of how passionately I disagree. I loved Mario Kart for SNES and N64. After that, Nintendo seemed to have no idea what people even liked about the games. They added more characters, more cars, and more level interference, meaning that you were competing less and less on skill. Worse, your choices for character and car could have enormous and difficult to predict effects on your performance. After the N64 game, I found that series to be astonishingly boring. My one friend who enjoys it can't find anyone to play it with him.
    • mitemte 5y ago
      MK64 was the first MK game I played. Having played titles proceeding it, I feel that MK Wii and MK8 are more balanced. MK64 has horrible rubber banding. It’s to the point where your level of skill can mean nothing if you make one costly error. MK64 character driving attributes also vary, but the character select screen doesn’t inform players of this http://tasvideos.org/GameResources/N64/MarioKart64.html#DriverAttributes http://tasvideos.org/GameResources/N64/MarioKart64.html#Driv...
• Aeolun 5y ago
  I’m a great fan of my reMarkable 2. I’m also a great fan of my (Japanese) unit bathroom control panels. I can set the shower and bath temperature to a specific number, automatically fill my bath to a specified level with the press of a button, have it keep the bath at temperature, let me know when it’s full when I’m in the living room. It’s glorious. Every time I’m staying anywhere overseas I cannot believe I’m back to fiddling with a hot and cold tap again.
  • dhosek 5y ago
    Are these Japanese control panels available in the us?
    • gautamcgoel 5y ago
      Yeah I want to know this too.
• pmcollins 5y ago
  roost v2 laptop stand braun classic analog alarm clock apple IIGS keyboard
• 2OEH8eoCRo0 5y ago
  M4 carbine
• brundolf 5y ago
  I genuinely loved the second-generation Zune. The aluminum case felt lovely in the hand, it had swipe-based momentum scrolling before that was common (without even a touchscreen!). It had a matte paint on the front that felt almost like velvet, the buttons clicked nicely, the UI was both gorgeous and practical, the desktop software was the same (after the first couple revisions). I was really sad when mine got stolen from my dorm room a couple years after I got it, even though I had a smartphone by that point. Bonus entry: the GameCube controller. With that huge, luscious analog stick and that huge, luscious A button. And the overall shape fit the hand really nicely too. For any game that didn't make prominent use of the secondary analog stick, I think it was and still is the best game controller out there.
  • barbs 5y ago
    Re: Gamecube controller: Agreed! It really did (does?) feel like the most ergonomic controller out there, though I do wish they had a z button on the left side. Also, can't forget the notches in the analog stick area to accurately indicate direction.
  • kypro 5y ago
    I was a huge fan of Windows Phone which based it’s Metro UI on Zune. I miss my Window’s phone dearly. I always felt the UI was far more intuitive and simple compared to iOS/Android.
  • fatboy93 5y ago
    My first smart phone was a Windows phone. I loved the OS's responsiveness and the feel of the Lumias. Years later, nothing still comes close.
  • koyote 5y ago
    I loved my Zune as well (it also got stolen, weirdly), not only because of all the reasons above but even the headphones were of excellent quality and lasted as long as the device did (in comparison, both iPod headphones I've owned broke after around 2 months). The only major flaw it had was a lack of fonts to display unicode characters! I know it was mostly (only?) sold in the US but wanting to display artist names in Chinese or cyrillic characters must surely be a basic feature.
• arriu 5y ago
  Spoon, who would have thought? It just works
  • spcebar 5y ago
    Literally a spoon or the product Spoon?
• pentagrama 5y ago
  Mixer Tap. In the '90s when my parents installed one of those in the bathroom, it was radical, blew my mind.
  • johnwalkr 5y ago
    Non-mixer taps had an important design purpose too. To prevent mixing in potentially dangerous water from a hot water tank into your drinking cup.
• rstat1 5y ago
  I have to say one of my new favorite tools as of this year is Tailscale. To steal Apple's annoying marketing phrase: It just works. I've never had to fiddle with it's settings or spend a bunch time figuring out configuration crap. I just install, and login and that's it. There's no need to care about manually configuring Wireguard devices or to care about key management, which I would think would get annoying quick as you add in more and more devices.
• princevegeta89 5y ago
  Netflix. Amazing and consistent user interface on every platform
  • thih9 5y ago
    I cancelled netflix more than a year ago, maybe something changed since then. But at the time I’d list it as an example of user hostile UI. It had lots of unpredictability (few fixed UI elements). Also: autoplay and a search that never says if an item is not there but tries to offer alternatives. I disliked it so much that whenever I wanted to watch something on netflix, I’d first check whether they actually have it and I used a different tool for that.
    • Oddskar 5y ago
      I imagine the design challenge that Netflix faces is that they cannot keep movies forever due to publisher prices being too high, and customers are always looking for something new to watch. Thus they have to try to make the most out of recommendations, and try to maintain a bit of an illusion that their current catalogue is bigger than it actually is.
• hn_throwaway_99 5y ago
  It kind of pains me to say this, but I'll say Sonos from about 5-6 years ago. When I first got a couple speakers, I touted it as the best consumer electronics experience I'd ever had to except maybe some Apple products. Unfortunately, it has been consistently downhill the past couple of years. What used to "just work" now constantly has issues and glitches, and speakers I got just a few years ago that work great are now essentially EOLed in their software. I've definitely purchased my last Sonos product.
  • shepherdjerred 5y ago
    Sonos + Spotify have been so spotty. Playing music from Spotify consistently starts tracks halfway through a song. Sometimes no music plays at all even though it displays as playing in Spotify. Sometimes Spotify just cannot connect. I have something like $3500 in Sonos speakers; it’s really disappointing how unreliable they are.
    • adjkant 5y ago
      I know this is very different target markets and product desires, but I have 3 Google Home mini speakers I have spent under $150 on + my privacy from our overlords. Works very well with Spotify and solid sound for someone who isn't an audiofile, and while not amazing design, very solid. My condolences to the OP on their failures of late :/
    • stillblue 5y ago
      Anecdotal but anything + spotify is very glitchy. The Car audio system, bluetooth speakers / headphones etc., where other apps seem to work just fine.
  • dash2 5y ago
    I find Anker speakers pretty nifty.
• kryogen1c 5y ago
  i dont know if this is exactly in or exactly out of the HN wheelhouse, but: my keychain. it's a small hoop of plastic-coated braided strand cable with two threaded ends that screw together. the plastic coating hasn't ripped, torn, loosened, or discolored. none of the metal has rusted. the thread pitch is big enough to screw and unscrew quickly but small enough to not loosen on its own and has good clamping force. the threaded end for passing through keys is small enough for all my fobs and keys. its tough and strong but pleasant to handle. no part of it is worse for wear even though i fidget with it and have changed keys multiple times. it also currently has like 11 keys and a large fob on it. ive had it for ~5 years and I'm fairly certain it's the most reliable thing i own. it's easy to use and easy to understand and it always does its job. and to top it all off, it was like 70 cents. it's a god damn marvel. looks like this, although mine is smaller: https://i.ebayimg.com/images/i/281726615218-0-1/s-l1000.jpg https://i.ebayimg.com/images/i/281726615218-0-1/s-l1000.jpg
  • Graziano_M 5y ago
    I have that, but I also have a similar, better one. The better one you disconnect by twisting it into a figure eight. I bought it 8 years ago and it's absolutely perfect https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EM6S5A https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000EM6S5A
• sanderjd 5y ago
  The Aeropress. I've made coffee in all sorts of different ways over the years, but for me this is the one that strikes the perfect balance between flavor and convenience. After a long period of making french press coffee, it was an absolute revelation the first time I popped out the little nugget of spent grounds from the Aeropress.
• idlewords 5y ago
  Any Japanese bathtub. It's deep, you can fill it to the very top, and it's designed to overflow rather than deprive you of the top 1/3 with an annoying safety drain.
  • glandium 5y ago
    More generally, the Japanese bathroom, which allows that bath design (or, most probably, was designed around that).
    • papertokyo 5y ago
      What are the other aspects of their bathroom design that are notable? (Never been but it's top of my wishlist)
      • DemocracyFTW 5y ago
        The good ones are quite tiny and make out of a single piece of fiber, at least that's what they look like. All corners are round and there's a floor drain meaning you can make a splash and not worry about it. Their small size makes them ideal for hotel rooms and apartments alike where space is a premium. Since they are prefab you can also put them into the garden as standalone modules which some people prefer.
    • spoils19 5y ago
      Perhaps tangential, but it still astounds me how Americans scoff whenever I mention that we have floor drains in Australian bathrooms. "What, is your bathroom a locker room or something? snicker". Setting aside how it helps with potential flooding* and makes the floor tiles infinitely easier to clean, it also allows things like this. *I've also had comments like "why would your bathroom ever flood???" as if nothing water related could ever go wrong.
      • papertokyo 5y ago
        I was also surprised that most American showers only have a temperature control and not pressure, and the toilets waste several litres of water every flush.
• oblib 5y ago
  For me it would be mostly tools I've used that come to mind. In the random order I thought of them here are a few that stand out: Miller 35s Mig Welder, Victor Cutting Torch, Mac Mini, Vise Grips, Suzuki Samurai 4x4, 1985 Toyota Pickup 4x4, LED Flashlight, Handheld compass, Handheld Garmin GPS with Maps, BBedit, Beverly Shear, Super Cat Alcohol Stove, Raspberry Pi, Lancaster Metal Shrinker/Stretcher.
• OccamsRazr 5y ago
  20+ year old farm equipment. They are easy to use, simple to maintain, often repairable by the farmer on-site (with perhaps a trip to the store to buy a small part). I often found myself marvelling at the complex things that could be achieved by an arrangement of gears, such as the contraption on a square baler that wraps the bale with two pieces of twine and ties two perfectly tensioned knots that will hold the hay together in that shape for years.
  • dendrite9 5y ago
    Is this still true, or is it 20 years from when you started thinking about how good things used to be? I ask because somewhere in there I assume there is a period where ICs were introduced but all the kinks might not have been worked out. It maybe that I have the time scales wrong myself though.
    • pvillano 5y ago
      perhaps it takes 20 years to determine if something will last forever
    • OccamsRazr 5y ago
      I cannot speak to whether this is still true for modern farm equipment for two reasons. First, my family ran a small livestock operation and older machinery was more affordable to buy/run/repair and fulfilled our needs. Second, the farm has since been sold and now I'm a mere city boy. Does IC mean integrated chips? I have certainly read that modern farm equipment is less repairable, and I would not be surprised if they played a role. But I don't claim any knowledge about that. I may also have the time scales wrong. But damn, those machines were a marvel sometimes. Here is a particularly fun one, the square bale picker/stacker. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUWrNZaLttQ&ab_channel=ThomasGregory https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUWrNZaLttQ&ab_channel=Thoma...
• scotty79 5y ago
  Macromedia Fireworks. UI was better than any other graphics program I tried, ever.
  • steve_adams_86 5y ago
    You’re not kidding. I loved that application. I started my career with it!
  • vatotemking 5y ago
    That and Macromedia Flash! I love how easy it is to make shapes and curves in Fireworks and Flash. Its an object-oriented UX. You click an object on screen, you'll get its visual and textual properties. You click the screen, you get your canvas properties. You can group, ungroup or do unions on objects. Layers are only secondary to objects, unlike Photoshop with its layer-oriented UX. Illustrator? I dont even know what the UI/UX is supposed to be, its just a mish-mash of tools.
• colordrops 5y ago
  I bought a Breville Barista Express when everyone started working from home. It's one of the best product investments I've ever made. It's beautifully designed, reliable, and makes amazing coffee. Has a steamer and grinder included. And I probably paid it off in all the coffee I didn't buy from coffee shops. Second would be the Tesla Model 3.
  • papertokyo 5y ago
    Breville also does some great toasters and juicers. Fun fact: the company started out making radios in 1932. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breville https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breville
• djsbs 5y ago
  - HP products before Corina took over. Especially the HP-28s and HP-48GX Hp basically put a lisp machine into your hands. The 28 is better than the 48 except for I/O, battery door, and screen and CPU speed. (What can I say. I love the clamshell) - mechanically, anything by Honda - Lada Niva. A relative has one in S. American. While out w/ him a cop pulled us over just to tell my uncle that he had better: “take good care of my little Russian!”
  • SomeHacker44 5y ago
    I came here to say the same about HP calculators from the 35 to the 48. I have almost every one. The 42 is a great daily driver, and the 41 a workhorse. The 28 was my first and the 48 or 49 may be the best IMO.
  • idatum 5y ago
    HP calculators are such gems. The HP-48 survived my school backpack and always "just worked". Really great products. Will have to also acknowledge the BSDs along with ZFS for storage.
• peterfield 5y ago
  Cable-ties
• squarefoot 5y ago
  I loved the SanDisk Sansa Clip Zip players I owned during past years. They needed to be reflashed with the RockBox firmware (but tbh pretty much every portable player firmware is inferior to RockBox) however hardware wise they were fantastic: light, well shaped, buttons in the right places, very readable display despite the small size, audio was excellent, FM reception too, battery lasted hours and hours. I brought them on the beach and kept them running for hours while sunbathing or walking like 1 meter above sea level, and they worked for years. I had to ditch them eventually when the headphone jack began to fail, but that happened when the battery had already became old and other buttons unreliable, so repair which was often destructive was out of question. Unfortunately SanDisk cut corners in later models (less RAM, smaller CPU etc.) and RockBox became harder or impossible to install, so I got a much cheaper Agptek player, which can't run RockBox as well but costs a fraction, and that's it.
  • SparkyMcUnicorn 5y ago
    I forgot about this. Sansa with RockBox was the best.
    • Paul_S 5y ago
      Same here, I bought 4 more when they discontinued it, gave away a couple and the rest died by now. Why can't a company make something like this again?
      • yobbo 5y ago
        Apparently, the SOC used in sansas was EOLed, and the newer ones use a cheaper and much less capable chip common in chinese music players. Attempting a rockbox port was deemed wasted effort. There doesn't seem to exist an off-the-shelf SOC comparable to the original. The more expensive audiophile-orientated players use more power-hungry mips SOCs running linux, and the product is then designed to justify the expense and bulky battery.
  • raffraffraff 5y ago
    I bought a bunch of Sansa Clip+ when they were being discontinued because they were dirt cheap and with Rockbox and a huge sdcard, they "rocked". My last one died about a year ago :( I didn't go for the Agptek because they can't run RockBox, and I got bitten very badly by the awful ui on a Shanling player. So I bought a teensy Jelly Pro and hacked it into my favourite ever mp3 player.
• deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
• palijer 5y ago
  https://www.mcmaster.com/ https://www.mcmaster.com/ Fast, snappy, responsive. No banners or cookie prompts, doesn't ask my to sign up for a newsletter or an account to continue and see more selection, it doesn't load in megabytes of JavaScript to show me products. Plus, responsive as all heck, and there isn't any bullshit prompts like "click here to see our selected offerings" or "check out our value products here" Like, from. The short url, I'm already looking at the products.
  • kuntau 5y ago
    Meh. Not so much. First time I opened it show half screen banner to download mobile app. And the website wasn't designed for mobile at all.
    • jazzyjackson 5y ago
      or maybe mobiles were not designed to order screws
  • jaxn 5y ago
    Plus CAD drawings available for every part. I love Mcmaster-Carr
    • jazzyjackson 5y ago
      yes, despite peoples complaints that it’s not mobile-first and pretty, it feels extremely futuristic to find a part number, download an stl, and 3D print to check for fit. never had a problem with ordering from them.
  • MisterBiggs 5y ago
    Its also an awesome repository of 3d models. Must use website for anyone with a 3d printer.
  • johnnyApplePRNG 5y ago
    That is a rewarding site to search. Reminds me of rockauto.
• minikomi 5y ago
  Recess first base yoyo Perfect organic shape affordable responsive/non-responsive modern yoyo. Cheap enough to use anywhere, light, great response..
• gnicholas 5y ago
  Pebble Time Steel. I’ve played with other similar watches, like the Fossil hybrid smartwatches, but those can’t touch the software and other design aspects that Pebble nailed back in the day. I wish it could last forever!
• steele 5y ago
  Chopsticks
• deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
• efitz 5y ago
  My 2000 model year BMW M roadster. Not counting the radio, the car had a tiny number of buttons and switches- window up/down, headlight knob, and 5 buttons. There was nothing extraneous or redundant. There were no door lock buttons- the lock indicator was the button to lock the door, and the door open handle was the unlock button. Also, every darn control in the car was exactly where it was supposed to be. It’s hard to describe it, but even from the very first time sitting in the car, I never had to search or guess how to operate anything. I would think about needing to do something, put my hand where I thought the control would be, and there it was. I’ve never had a machine delight me like that car in its simplicity and elegance of design.
  • drdunce 5y ago
    cars used to be so well designed. you never had to look down at a screen to see what was going on, it was just there, at your finger tips. You could tell what gear you were in, if the handbrake, lights, indicators were on/off or virtually anything without taking your eyes off the road for even a second. The interface had evolved with everything being exactly where it ought to be. When you changed it it made a reassuring clunk so that you knew. Now it seems like everyone is reconfiguring the keymappings on a 90s flight simulator while they're driving.
    • IshKebab 5y ago
      The really annoying thing is that now they have touchscreen computers but you still need some proprietary hardware tool to fix software problems in the car. Why do no cars expose debug info / service tools in their UIs? My Skoda has an issue with headlight levelling and I'm pretty sure it just needs some kind of software reset or recalibration but they just don't let you. Infuriating!
    • papertokyo 5y ago
      This is why I desperately hope that manufacturers don't follow Tesla's example of putting everything in a digital UI. It makes sense when you have a limited amount of space in which to support infinite uses (e.g. a smartphone) but not in something like a car where having dedicated, tactile controls is both a safety benefit and a more enjoyable user experience.
• Datagenerator 5y ago
  ZFS. Complete research companies unknowingly depend on the utmost reliability and flexibility ZFS has to offer. Started right with the first version included in FreeBSD in production use and never failed once while being the central storage connected to multiple HPC clusters with millions upon millions of rather small but also some vary large files. While offering five nines of uptime we even had to ability to send efficient binary forever incremental differential snapshots to remote DR locations. Meanwhile we saw many large crashed sites at companies which had downtimes of weeks using lustre. ZFS even got hated by management because it's not giving them fancy relationships with the normies using HP/Dell. So the last ten years are probably the best ZFS got here because some instructed architect is looking for commercial replacement but nothing better seems available.
  • dheera 5y ago
    The documentation is shit though, I spent a full hour digging through forum answers trying to increase my swap space. All this bpool zpool crap. And then my system /boot got full of some snapshot (wtf I never asked for this), apt-get failed to live up to its promise of magic, got more hell about a 20% preservation rule (again wtf). Was cutting and pasting some zpool zsysctl zc -a -f -foo -bar and then some sudo zfs destroy bpool npool zpool/blah/autosys@ubuntu_h2h3rc4h stuff. I cut and pasted a bunch of stuff off the forums I didn't understand until apt-get worked again. I didn't understand a word of it, and there was zero documentation in the obvious places. I'm done with ZFS. Back to ext4. It just works.
    • dijit 5y ago
      Solaris used to come with a user manual, it was easily the best thing about the buying experience because it was so detailed and obviously written for engineers. If you can find one of those manuals on the internet you will be set for life on understanding ZFS and dtrace. There’s also a C, C++ and ASM manual that is bundled too, but you can skip those. If you can’t find any, I’ll send you mine. I know it sounds like I’m asking you to RTFM- but the experience of reading these manuals is really a joy.
      • 5y ago
• bschwindHN 5y ago
  The 1zpresso J-Max coffee grinder - beautifully engineered, very clicky and satisfying to use, and creates great coffee grounds. Airpods Pro - Again, the physical design and "sound" interactions when placing the buds in the case, closing it, opening, etc. all give a sense of satisfaction. The noise cancelling is great, and it's not fussy like other bluetooth earbuds. Pilot Frixion pens - I played with erasable pens when I was kid and they always kinda sucked. The Frixion pens behave how I would imagine an ideal erasable pen would. Great for designing things on paper, especially the multi-color pens. 3M Command Strips - They hold shit on the wall and they're super easy to apply.
  • asalahli 5y ago
    I've been a happy user of Frixion pens for the past 10 years and Moleskine notebooks for about 4. It's a shame the two don't really go well together however, at least in my experience
• joe-collins 5y ago
  Such a little thing, but: the Rules Reference card in introductory-level Magic: The Gathering products. Magic's full rules are 250 pages of legal-lite text, and yet, this little folded insert, with just five cardface's worth of text, amply covers everything a complete beginner needs to play. It's a brilliant example of cutting an explanation to the bare minimum and piggybacking on background knowledge.
• yumraj 5y ago
  Second generation Toyota Prius.
• beforge 5y ago
  usb until version 3.
  • Synaesthesia 5y ago
    But itd so frustrating that the port is not reversible nor has a clear direction indicator.
• elihu 5y ago
  Pilot 402 stapler. Peavey T-60 electric guitar (especially the knobs -- Peavey is the only guitar company that really nailed good knob design). The Haskell language (not because it's perfect, but because it demonstrated what was possible). Rust as well, for the same reason. The modern steel-frame piano. The 1981 Mazda GLC. Suzuki Omnichord. The Moog 960 sequencer (which I've used in the form of its Behringer re-implementation for eurorack modular).
• spyrefused 5y ago
  In its day I really liked Ableton Push (and 2 of course). The best hardware - software integration and experience I had ever tried. It allowed, at least in the "sketch" part, to start producing music by taking your eyes off the computer using software.
• deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
• ironman1478 5y ago
  This mechanical pencil https://uniballco.com/products/kuru-toga-elite-mechanical-pencils https://uniballco.com/products/kuru-toga-elite-mechanical-pe... It just feels so good to write with and it just doesn't break. I've used so many mechanical pencils and some feel better, but they have quality issues. This pencil just works.
• etse 5y ago
  Toyota Sienna minivan. Having driven only sedans and coupes, and grew up riding in 90s-era SUVs, I was shocked to discover what modern "minivan life" is like... as a parent. For me, my reference for modern is the past two weeks of a mundane 2010 Sienna LE. Every couple days, I notice something new and thoughtful. The side doors are powered and can be controlled from the remote, since kids won't often open doors for themselves or you. The last row of seats can fold down flush with the floor, since we alternate between having more cargo space and passenger capacity (like trips with grandparents or for instance, equipment for sports or music). The car windows come tinted. One less worry/discussion about harsh glare or sunlight on our young kids. There's a second lighter outlet right beside the first, which is handy for our electricity-dependent lifestyle. There is a compartment on the driver's side, near your head, that reveals sunglasses. There are cupholders upon cupholders on every interior panel, which seemed absurd to me, until I saw them used by my own family. And when you've filled them all, pop open the coin tray and a slow reveal unfolds... yet another cupholder, like digging into the hesitation before the punchline of a joke. Newer minivans cover more use cases, like automatically popping the rear door by waving your leg, or changing the middle row positions to accommodate side-by-side car seats, and I'm curious to see which features have staying power and which don't. We often applaud elegant solutions to a well-defined problem as a good design, or at least I feel like software engineers tend to, but I have a growing admiration for designs that solve a problem complex enough to resist being defined once-and-for-all. Those problems tend to be "human" problems that are as deep as human psychology and change as our society changes.
• robertwt7 5y ago
  Rust. Because it’s amazing
• enobrev 5y ago
  My original cast iron pans. I bought this no-name set of three from a small family-run neighborhood hardware store in Brooklyn for $20 somewhere around 2002. The guy behind the counter was surprised by the price and that they even had cast iron pans. I've used them regularly since. They're the oldest cookware in my kitchen by a large margin. I've taken them camping, and I cook with then in my kitchen daily. I've cooked any food imaginable in them, from crepes, to patched eggs, to pizza, to all sorts of meats and stews and sauces - on the stove and in the oven. And they still work as well and look like the day I first pre-seasoned them.
  • innocentoldguy 5y ago
    I love that you mentioned pans. I have a set of Finex cast iron cookware and I can't imagine cooking on anything else. They're almost perfect.
  • corinroyal 5y ago
    Came here to say this. Any sand cast iron pan, including enameled versions. There is no better pan for searing meats. Seasoning raw cast iron with walnut oil is simple, and makes food release so easy except for eggs. They last lifetimes, are abundant in second-hand stores and garage sales, are easily restored, and even the raw material is abundant not just on Earth thanks to supernovae. They suck if you live in a group household with people who use soap and abrasives on them that removes the seasoning, abandon them in the sink to rust, or refuse to towel dry them. Enameled cast iron is terrible for food release, so don't get an enameled skillet, but the dutch ovens from Le Creuset are amazing. They don't rust, and the way they hold and distribute heat, and the lids hold moisture make them amazing for baking bread and oven roasting. The Le Creuset cookware designed by Raymond Lowery are objects of lust. Do google them for a mind blow.
• 2020random 5y ago
  I used to have a large dobsonian telescope made by Orion. It had a good quality mirror. It came with features like automatic tracking. In general, a dobsonion telescope has a simple design that made it cheap and easier to use compared to other telescope setups. The dobsonion mount also allowed for a large aperture that would have been unwieldy otherwise. For me, it is an example of how complex things can be made simpler and easier to use.
  • wnkrshm 5y ago
    I would add binoculars in general are pretty amazing - putting the distance between optical elements of a refracting telescope into a small ergonomic package.
• speedbird 5y ago
  https://www.nichecoffee.co.uk/ https://www.nichecoffee.co.uk/ Very thoughtful design and execution.
• blt 5y ago
  Mastrad silicone spatula. It's such a massive improvement over an old two-piece rubber spatula.
• joelhaasnoot 5y ago
  Palm OS Simple yet efficient, solving everyday problems and having some of the best apps. You are missed almost daily.
• cranium 5y ago
  It will only talk to Swiss people but we have an app called Fairtiq that makes taking a ticket for public transport super easy. You basically swipe in when you enter the bus/train/boat and swipe out when you arrived at your destination. It can be many changes or hours later and the right tickets are bought for you behind the scene. On the topic of transportation, the official app for the Swiss transports (SBB CFF FFS) is also a joy to use: input your start and destination and you have your minute-by-minute travel plan with changes. It's fast, precis and tells you about alternative and delays if needed. It sounds like a marketing post but I just realized how grateful I am to have to travel around. (I have no car)
  • mrg2k8 5y ago
    I don't know whether it has been a while since you last used the SBB Mobile app, but it also offers the same functionality: start the trip by dragging a slider, stop it at the destination and the price is automatically calculated and charged from your card or invoiced at the end of the month. It works with the half-fare card, as well. Works all over Switzerland on trains, busses, cable cars etc. I haven't tried it with boats yet. :) Like you say, a joy to use!
• sam_lowry_ 5y ago
  Amazfit Bip wrist watches. Light, durable, always-on transflective display. Can be used with GadgetBridge so it does not leak your data. I bought one for each family member.
• betwixthewires 5y ago
  Honestly, android M was the peak of mobile experience and it has only degraded since. The one plus 3t is the best phone I've ever used. Close second is the nexus 5. It's a difficult question because you don't really think about things that work seamlessly in your life, you think of the ones that have UX sticking points.
• bryanrasmussen 5y ago
  I just got a new pram, the Baby Jogger city elite (sort of a cross between a stroller and a pram but I call it a pram), as a general rule I find prams badly designed and this does have some things that I think could be improved, but two things are really superior on it: the locking mechanism, and the folding mechanism. The Locking mechanism is the less impressive but still useful, most locks on a pram are done by the foot and you have to push down on a bar or some other lock near the wheels and then when you want to start you need to kick up on them. Fair enough, although obviously now you are putting your locking mechanism near the area most likely to get dirt and rocks in to wear it down, and other potential ways it can be damaged. Furthermore since you are using your foot to lock and unlock it can be something of a hassle because let's admit it, most people are not very good at manipulating things with their feet. The city elite locker is by the handle, you can pull it up to lock, pull down to unlock. That's nice. You can easily see if it is locked, because it's at hand level not down at foot level, you use it with the part of your body most people use for manipulating objects - the hand - and finally it is unlikely to be damaged because you ran over some big rock. The folding mechanism is the impressive part, in the middle of the seat is a thick strap with some instructions on - I think it says 'Pull up to fold' but I'd have to go down to check the exact wording. When you pull up by this strap magnets on the sidebars of the pram are released somehow and the pram folds in half automatically. Yesterday I had to take a taxi with it, when the taxi driver saw this action his eyes bugged out and he laughed and said "now that's smart" (in Danish though) he commented on how he had a lady the day before who could not figure out how to close her pram and mine was so easy. Indeed some of our previous prams have been so irritating to fold that my wife generally left it up to me to do. It is equally easy to unfold. Everything has a downside, and this ease of folding means that sometimes you can be doing something with the pram and accidentally start the folding process, but because it is easy to unfold you can stop it as you feel it starting and put it back right. Believe me, this sounds more irritating and problematic than it actually is but I figured I should note it anyway.
• junon 5y ago
  https://reddit.com/r/buyitforlife https://reddit.com/r/buyitforlife for those of you who, like me, always want a good suggestion when I buy something I intend to keep. Figured it was relevant here.
  • 1ibsq 5y ago
    https://old.reddit.com/r/BuyItForLife/ https://old.reddit.com/r/BuyItForLife/ ;)
• sound1 5y ago
  Fujifilm Mirrorless Cameras (mine is 2nd gen XE2). First ever interchangeable camera I carry with me to all my family trips. Excellent build quality, physical controls, high quality lens options and not to mention insanely great jpegs straight out of the camera. I have taken so many wonderful pictures and captured so many precious moments of my family and kid, it is easily the best purchase I made by a long shot.
• fangirlos 5y ago
  MacOSx the software and Mac laptops
• joeyjojo 5y ago
  Synthstrom Deluge. https://synthstrom.com/product/deluge/ https://synthstrom.com/product/deluge/ I had an OP-1 for a number of years but I could never progress beyond 2-4 bar loops. When I bought my Deluge I made a full track in my first two hours with it, and I was pretty proud of it. I own a number of groove boxes now, but have only ever managed to completed tracks on my Deluge.
• Tomte 5y ago
  A Hario teapot. It never drips from the spout, no matter how clumsily I pour the tea. No teadrop running along the outer glass wall, never.
• nabi_nafio 5y ago
  For me, it's undoubtedly my Macbook Air. Everything about it is near close to perfect. Apple really knows how to beautifully mesh hardware, and software.
• chalcolithic 5y ago
  Amiga :)
• raffraffraff 5y ago
  Garmin Fenix 5s Sapphire: notifications from my phone with custom replies, 6 day battery life, buttons. No touch screen (operate it "blind" and in the wet), waterproof, scratchproof. You do need to pay extra for the sapphire screen. Swiss Army knife (they're sooo well made) Under armour underwear: no seams, last ages, extremely comfortable. Darn tough socks: extremely comfortable, last forever, never smell. Altra Lone Peak trainers: foot shaped, light, comfortable, quick-dry. Right now every pair of shoes I own are Altra (but I'm trying out Topo Athletic phantom 2 next) Gore-Tex. And Neoprene. Docker. People like to hate a winner, and they've gone the paid route, and they did just take already-available kernel features and wrap them up... But man, they did it well and they revolutionised software development and deployment. Debian, XFCE, Tailscale, Syncthing, rsync, ssh, ffmpeg
  • pxeger1 5y ago
    What's your experience with Tailscale? Have you compared it to alternatives (ZeroTier, Nebula, OpenVPN...)?
    • raffraffraff 5y ago
      What I like about tailscale is that it's a no-brainer to set up and use. I have no technical difficulty seeting up a VPN, but I really don't want the hassle of "doing work" at home. But the main reason is that my wife doesn't want me to over-complicate things. I've found myself looking only at simple solutions that work for both of us.
  • joconde 5y ago
    > Docker. People like to hate a winner, and they've gone the paid route, and they did just take already-available kernel features and wrap them up... But man, they did it well and they revolutionised software development and deployment. They made design decisions that prevent simple things like "installing a .deb package from the host filesystem without keeping the package in an image layer", then fixed some of these with that weird buildkit thing that you need to enable in the settings. It's very useful for sure, but I wouldn't call its CLI interface well-design.
• tomjen3 5y ago
  The remote feature of VS Code. It is so good that I completely forgot I was on a remote machine and was pissed it had crashed - until I realized that my internet was down. It is even so good that if you start something that listens to a TCP port, VS Code will just forward it for you. VS Code itself is still not nearly at the level of things like IntelliJ.
• Eric_WVGG 5y ago
  I’m not a knife fetishist or anything, but a weird number of my favorite household items are edged things. I grabbed a Global 12” chef’s knife after reading about it in Kitchen Confidential twenty-ish years ago, reminded of its superiority whenever I’m in a friend’s kitchen. I am sad to admit that IKEA makes a very decent clone, though. An old nemesis gave me a Benchmade serrated knife with this miraculous spring-button release, absolute joy to handle. I used to tie fishing flies in Montana as a kid; fly-tying scissors are fantastically sharp and useful for all kinds of micro projects. I often use them for extracting slivers that tweezers can’t reach. For macro work, nothing beats a pair of sewing shears; get a decent set and you’ll never touch a standard office or school scissor ever again. Oxo scissors for the kitchen, though — the blades comes apart so you can clean the space between the hinge, lotta gross stuff will build up there in the kitchen.
  • Eric_WVGG 5y ago
    I got to handle a Leica Q2 fixed lens camera today. I don’t know much but about photography, but the build quality of that thing… it puts my new 16” M1 MacBook Pro to shame. Also the Microsoft Elite game controller is just bewilderingly nice to handle.
  • Eric_WVGG 5y ago
    The best bicycle lights ever made are the Sparse anti-theft lights. Unfortunately their business didn’t pan out, but you can find some remainders here and there on eBay. The current best lights are the Knog cobblers. They have three drawbacks: dismal battery, usb-a, and easy to remove (thus easy to steal). I’m hoping that an inevitable “rev 2” will solve the first two problems.
  • Eric_WVGG 5y ago
    A now-defunct company called BuiltNYC used to make the best minimal laptop backpack. Fortunately, Chinese knockoffs exist. Wonderful for jogging or cycling. https://www.amazon.com/Notebook-Backpacks-Lightweight-Business-Rucksack/dp/B07F1KDT3B https://www.amazon.com/Notebook-Backpacks-Lightweight-Busine...
• thom 5y ago
  I loved my TiVo, almost everything about the end to end experience was flawless. Just recalling the ‘be-bip’ sound of interacting with the UI still brings me joy. The interface was as simple as you could ever hope for (and structurally similar to the navigation in iOS). Up, down, left, right, pause, rewind, fast forward, thumbs up and down. Everything was built on simple consistent primitives and everything felt immediate, in a way no TV has to me in more than a decade. Even the control felt nicer in your hand than the usual slab of plastic. Coming home to new episodes of Star Trek it had kindly decided to record always gave me a warm feeling that this smart little box was on my side. Too many devices feel like a fight against something utterly soulless these days.
• aristofun 5y ago
  Airpods pro, ipod, logitech k308 keyboard, typescript language
  • gnopgnip 5y ago
    For the keyboard, why this one specifically? A k400 is perfect for a home theater pc. Sometimes it is nice to have a trackpad at work and switch off using a mouse
    • aristofun 5y ago
      I like its small size, layout, super long battery life, multiple Bluetooth channels and durability.
• ptidhomme 5y ago
  I'm fond of OpenBSD, especially because of its clean design (user-facing at least, can't speak of internals).
• nicbou 5y ago
  MDN and the NHS website are some of the best knowledge base websites I know. Each do a really good job of communicating information. They put a lot of thought into the language they use and it shows.
  • loufe 5y ago
    Conversely, the "F1" help in so many other Microsoft (especially windows) help page - which often ignores preferred browser - is the absolute worst help system I've ever seen. Literally never once has that page aided me in any way.
    • nicbou 5y ago
      I also have an axe to grind about my city's website. It's disorganised and confusing, in the image of its bureaucracy.
    • watersb 5y ago
      You've never used the "Help" menu on macOS, I believe. I simply don't understand why they still bother with it.
• sincarne 5y ago
  My Withings Steel HR. It is just enough smart watch for me. Fitness tracking is good, sleep tracking is okay, app works better than the FitBit app, and has better Apple Health integration. Battery lasts weeks. And I think it looks pretty nice. I think it fits into the category of “calm technology”, which is tough to do for a device that has notifications as part of the core functionality.
• pfortuny 5y ago
  The traffic lights (the vertical ones, obviously). The important sign (red) is at the top. So simple and so important.
• JCWasmx86 5y ago
  GNOME. Everything is really intuitive, it doesn't really feel, like you use a computer, but the computer is an extension of you
• eloisius 5y ago
  The EasyCard (悠遊卡) in Taiwan. It’s an IC card frequently added onto just about every other card, like bank cards, student ID, or you can just buy one at the convenience store. You can store value on it, use it to ride metro, trains, busses, ferries, rent a share bike, buy groceries, anything at convenience stores, pay for food at lots of places, badge into buildings, and I keep learning more things I can do with it. The card, of course, is just a card, but the network and the number of things you can use it for is amazing.
• t8e56vd4ih 5y ago
  The VapCap fromm DynaVap for vaping weed. I use a Ti-Woodie Cocobolo for several years now. it's very robust, very simple, easy to maintain and clean and hands down the best vaporizer for small doses, absolutely efficient. I use about 0.02g for a session. That wouldn't be possible with almost any other vaporizer without. and you get everything out of the weed. also it's reasonably priced.
• swah 5y ago
  Less frustrating: havaianas flip flops, stairs, elevators, car, toothbrush, pencil, mechanical pencil, roller pens, cups and silverware. More frustrating: Linux on the desktop
• indrora 5y ago
  Four things come to mind: * The AK-47. Love or hate guns, the AK was designed with tolerances that encouraged simultaneously good maintenance patterns and using it as a gorram hammer if the need came to it. * Nalgene bottles. Impact resistant, infinitely screen printable, polycarbonate body, cheap and everything you could want. * The venerable aluminum drinks can: The sheer amount of engineering that has gone into making a bit of aluminum for canning but with the design constraints of pressure and temperature, it's a very neat design. * Fluxx, the game. Fluxx has one rule, the only base rule: Draw a card, play a card. There's no resolution order, no many pages of legalese text like Magic. There is Fluxx. And that's one of the things that makes Fluxx well designed. I can teach someone how to play Fluxx in 30 seconds: "Draw a card, play a card. When the conditions for winning have been achieved, the game ends." The one thing I don't like about Fluxx is the later addition of Creepers, but those are easily one of the most write-off-able types of cards ever created.
  • noir_lord 5y ago
    The AK-47 is an interesting example because while the base design was amazing it also has had numerous design changes over the years that kept it (somewhat) competitive with "state of the art" designs - the original design was so good that it allowed that to be the case. In addition to its linear descendants, it was widely copied and some of the copies where arguably better (the Isreali Galil, the Finn RK62, Vector R4). One of the few guns to appear on national flags. All of that said, for a professional army there are many better (where better is context dependent as most things are) service weapons but for "was a farmer, now an insurgent" use the AK has few equals. Also for the pedantic, what most people think of as the AK47 is actually an AKM, the actual AK47 had a relatively (compared to its entirety) short service life, the Soviets started phasing them out in 1959. The family of rifles has change remarkably from wood furniture in 7.62mm to modern polymers and 5.45mm and while they've rejigged the internals and changed things around an AK<anything> is immediately recognisable and you can see the AK47 in all of them. The only other platform that I can think of that is remotely as adaptable is the AR-family. I don't own guns, I think civilian ownership of guns is fine if very heavily regulated and with a purpose - even if that purpose is "I like shooting targets" (UK model of gun control) - I'm just fascinated by the history/engineering.
• baalimago 5y ago
  The osthyvel: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheese_knife#Cheese_slicer https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheese_knife#Cheese_slicer Creates slices of cheese. Very cheap, very efficient at what it's supposed to do, and the more you use it the better it gets (it gets slightly more bent = more cheese per slice). Buy one for 2€, use it every day for 10 years.
  • kitd 5y ago
    Came across this when I was visiting Norway. Agreed, a very easy to use device.
  • gypsyharlot 5y ago
    Finally some appreciation for (just about) the only invention to come out of Norway!
• eps 5y ago
  Thermapen Unfold, stick in, see the temperature. If it's dark, it will highlight the screen, If it's upside down, it will flip the screen. Very fast, because it uses gradient descend and not linear estimation. Pull it out, place it down and it switches off. Move it, it switches on. Single moving part, no buttons. You want it in Farneheights - open it up with a screwdriver, flip a microswitch. Fairly big in size for no other reason but to be convenient to hold and to read. Battery last for ages. And on top of all that it is also very well made. https://www.thermoworks.com/thermapen-mk4/ https://www.thermoworks.com/thermapen-mk4/
  • colinwilyb 5y ago
    Thank you so much for this. I've been through 3 terrible thermometers in the last year and have been looking for a replacement.
    • eps 5y ago
      Happy to recommend it. Take a look at Meater too. Same type of functional minimalist design, really well-executed.
• hendry 5y ago
  dwm window manager https://dwm.suckless.org https://dwm.suckless.org incredibly influential and the source code is amazing
• swader999 5y ago
  Stihl MS 262 pro saw. Used it for days this summer. Thing never quit.
• Zanni 5y ago
  Hydro Flask pint glasses (sadly, now discontinued). The big win is that the insulation prevents condensation, which is a real annoyance in warm weather. The textured coating has a really nice feel to it, and I love the colors. Added bonus: they don't break when you drop them. They're twenty times the price of actual glass dollar store pint glasses, but worth it. Mine make me happy every time I use them. Sadly, they're now discontinued, but a couple of places have some (dwindling) stock. (Hydro Flask also makes a 16oz Tumbler, which I don't like as much.)
• johnwalkr 5y ago
  Google maps on iPhone 1. Even with Edge network speeds and without proper GPS, an online map in your pocket with pinch zoom was simply a gamechanger. Everything was intuitive to use and the virtual keyboard worked better than anyone expected. Behind the scenes, I understand it was due to a predictive algorithm. If you think about it, airplane toilets. Small and efficient. They tend to have a clear design cue to know how to push open the door. The door lock also turns on the light, so it’s almost impossible to accidentally leave the door unlocked. Frequenter suitcases. Only available in Japan, they have completely silent, user-replaceable wheels. The one I have is exactly the largest possible carryon size for most airlines. Anker 45W usb-c GaN charger. It’s not much bigger than a standard iPhone charger. Overall a bit smaller since actually, since the power blades fold inside which is a nice touch. I just travelled for a month. I brought only this charger, one lightning cable and one usb-c cable. It was good enough, with a little bit of foresight to swap things out, to keep my all of my work and personal stuff charged (2 MacBooks, 2 iPhones, Nintendo switch, mouse and usb-c shaver). Made possible by the standardization of usb-c. It’s a bit of a nightmare for all of the various incompatibilities for data transfer and video but for charging it’s great! GPS in cars, in Japan. They are usually slow and have terrible UIs. But, they usually give a picture perfect view of which lane to be in, even showing you the highway signs exactly as they appear in reality. And even 10+ years ago, a highway radio system broadcasts traffic conditions and (I think) highway toll information to the GPS units. 3M command strip hooks. Essential for home renters and have a clear indication of how to remove them. Ski boots with a walk mode. At the lower end they let you walk easier but may be a bit less stiff. At the high end, they let you choose between touring mode and downhill mode, barely have a stiffness penalty and as a bonus let you walk easier. If you have a budget of under $800 don’t even try high end ones on because they are impossible to not buy. These are interesting to research too because it turns out there are only a handful of high end ski boot designers in the world and some of them are on the ski boot forums to answer your questions. My biggest one is AirTags. They seem to be completely unadvertised recently, probably because when they first came out there was discussion about privacy. Like AirPods, you just open them and they sync and start working. They are cheap for what they are, I got 8 of them and put one in every bag I use. I’m a forgetful person and have left many things behind over the years. So far I’ve conveniently been able to find stuff I’ve left in another room, which is nice and once was alerted when I left my suitcase in one of the main stations in Paris. I got the alert that I left it behind well before I got on my train without it. When I demo them to people, they are usually blown away when they realize they work anywhere there is an iPhone nearby. Not only near my iPhone. I also put one in expensive shipped items for work. Has been great to be able to see where stuff is. It works reliable to things show up on the tarmac as soon as a cargo flight lands.
• timwaagh 5y ago
  Outerknown Pacifica jacket. It's not often you see extraordinary looking fashion from the land of the stars and Stripes. Mostly I wear European brands. I remember falling in love with it and buying like the last one. Too bad that other than its amazing design it has little going for it. There were a bunch of loose threads on mine and it felt kind of itchy. But I still have it and when I wear it it often gets noticed. https://www.gearpatrol.com/style/a505232/outerknown-fall-2018-jackets/ https://www.gearpatrol.com/style/a505232/outerknown-fall-201...
• jansan 5y ago
  - Casio A168WG-YES as a watch that became part of my body https://www.casio-europe.com/de/produkte/uhren/vintage/a168wa-1yes/ https://www.casio-europe.com/de/produkte/uhren/vintage/a168w... - Zwilling Professional S Universal Knife 13 cm - For the daily joy of cutting fresh "Brötchen" https://www.zwilling-messer.de/Zwilling-Professional-S-Universalmesser-13-cm https://www.zwilling-messer.de/Zwilling-Professional-S-Unive... - Nintendo Labo series - Child toys made from cardboard for the Nintendo switch with an incredible level of perfection on so many levels https://www.nintendo.de/Nintendo-Labo/Nintendo-Labo-1328637.html https://www.nintendo.de/Nintendo-Labo/Nintendo-Labo-1328637....
• jamesdhutton 5y ago
  Bit of a random one but I give kudos to the winged corkscrew. That's the type that has two levers on each side, which you push down to raise the cork. Wikipedia tells me it was invented by one Domenick Rosati and patented in 1930. Why do I like it? Makes pulling a cork easy, and the design is simple and elegant.
  • alpha_ori 5y ago
    There's a lot wrong with this design. It is perhaps reasonable to use on new wine with pristine corks. But corks are a natural material, so they have a lot of variability, and they do degrade over time. If you open a lot of wine (e.g., if you are a waiter or sommelier) or you drink wine at many ages (e.g. if you are an aficionado or collector) then you need more control in where you place the worm in the cork and how you control the extraction of the cork (for instance giving lateral pressure). This is why you will never see people who routinely open wine as part of their jobs with a wing corkscrew. (Even worse, wing corkscrews are most likely to have an auger type of worm rather than an open helix. This is not inherent in the design of the corkscrew, of course; many wing corkscrews have open worms. Just something to watch out for if you are buying one.)
• ioseph 5y ago
  My Stanley no. 5 handplane. It's so simple in design but absolutely brilliant at doing its job, so solidly built ( I got it second hand I believe it's at least 15 years old). And there's just something about it's refined heft that makes it a pleasurable object to hold.
• JaggerJo 5y ago
  TS-100 Soldering Iron.
• Lhiw 5y ago
  Hakko 950 soldering iron. It's an analog dial version of an extremely awful digital interface. It's small and compact so takes up little desk space, heats up fast, has incredibly stable heat and adjustments don't require looking at what your hand is doing. https://www.hakko.com/english/products/hakko_fx950.html https://www.hakko.com/english/products/hakko_fx950.html There are similar things on the market but nothing that ties it altogether quite so succinctly.
• gigatexal 5y ago
  As a piece of kit, purely hardware, my iPhone. Sometimes I just take the case off an marvel at it.
• intricatedetail 5y ago
  Mitutoyo caliper. Always get perfect measurements. It saved me a lot of money.
• phl 5y ago
  Funny, I just used my Brikka coincidentally 5 min before reading this post. I think you are right. It's such a simple design and creates better espresso than most of the expensive machines that people use at home usually. Roughly made of 6 replaceable parts, backwards compatible with other Bialettis, no plastic capsule waste and easy to use. Last year I picked up a HP Jornada 720 from Ebay out of curiosity. Considering its from the year 2000 it's impressive how much it can do. The build quality is sturdy, the keyboard is amazing and the OS feels more snappy than most of my current setups. I wish they would do a reboot with better screen and wifi. I'm not sure if it's "the best-designed" thing I have ever used, but it impressed me.
• dmurthy 5y ago
  The ring/silent switch on an iPhone. It just works.
  • silvestrov 5y ago
    Not for me: I always forget to enable it again. I would love a "on silence for next 1/2/3 hours" button which then automatically reenables ring again.
  • fomine3 5y ago
    I miss rotation switch on iPad. It's the best way to change orientation on tablet. Enabling/disabling auto rotation in control center is horrible UI. What I should do is open, enable, close, rotate, open, disable, close. Android's rotation icon when rotated is acceptable.
• MrDresden 5y ago
  I have no one thing (these are the things that pop into my mind, all within their own category/niche); * My Hilleberg Akto single person hiking tent scores very highly. It is designed for lightness, durability and simplicity when setting up. It can better be set up/torn down by one person in a storm than most other tents I've owned. * My Leatherman multitool has been with me for years in some fairly bad conditions. It just keeps working and sometimes in ways that I hadn't imagine it could be used. * My Aeropress portable coffee maker is in my mind amazingly designed and portable for making a decent cup of coffee anywhere in the world. * SSH is simply amazing. I think it can be overly too easy to forget what it gives us the ability to do. * SQLite. It is amazingly designed in pretty much any way you can look at it (requirements, speed, size, resource use etc). * My Kindle (and other such devices) is an amazing piece of tech. I carry around my whole library in only a few hundred grams, and its power usage levels are so low that I need only charge it for an hour or so each month. * The Kotlin programming language. Such a breath of fresh air after having been stuck with Java (pre 9) on Android for so long. * Android's new UI design toolkit Jetpack Compose is a seismic shift in native Android development where everything looks and feels like it has had some serious thought put in behind it. These are obviously subjective, and I have no longing to get into discussions on the merrits of the software I mention here. There are plenty of places that has been done before.
  • codingclaws 5y ago
    What setup do you use for new Android apps? I dabbled in building an Android app months ago and sort of gave up because I couldn't decide on the best "framework".
    • MrDresden 5y ago
      I do native (Java/Kotlin) and Flutter development, for 10 and 2 years respectively. Just this year moving into the Jetpack Compose territory, and enjoying it immensly. Regarding the question about what you should choose, well that really depends on the problem space and the end goal you have in mind. If the application is generic, will not really leverage platform specific capabilities and will be made for both Android & iOS I'd say go for Flutter. Here I mean that specific sensors and OS capabilities will not be used, as well as sharing of code for different platforms such as TV, car and wearables. If the application is ever going to be Android only, I'd say go for the native UI toolchain, which would be Jetpack Compose. The ramp up from 0 to 100 is quick given how much good material is out there to get started (for instance go to and use the Android/Kotlin community slack channels). This route would require you to use Kotlin. Skip looking into the old view system. Any relevant information from that space will come in time, and the rest wont be relevant anymore. If you want to create a code base that can be leveraged with web, then go for some of the JS frameworks. If you do have some piece of framework in mind you want to learn, then use that. It all depends. Just keep Voltaire's words in mind: "..best is the enemy of the good" edit; formatting
• scandox 5y ago
  A garlic press. It's the only thing I ever asked my parents for that they owned. They had it since the 70s. The reason I know it's great is because all the others I've ever used are inferior. This one is in two distinct pieces which you place together to work. The metal is kind of grey and dull but it's incredibly strong. It's easy to clean. Indestructible. Powerful.
  • egwor 5y ago
    Easy to clean is so important. My parents’ garlic press is far superior to the one we have
    • muzani 5y ago
      I'd love to know where you guys are getting these, because every garlic press I get falls apart.
      • scandox 5y ago
        As far as I can tell the one I have was made in France in the mid 1970s and is irreplaceable.
      • tehnicaorg 5y ago
        I've tried some, but I've finally given the Ikea garlic press a try and I'm happy with it. Easy to clean, robust. https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/koncis-garlic-press-stainless-steel-00089163/ https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/koncis-garlic-press-stainless-s...
• wirthjason 5y ago
  Why is the bottom smooth and not flat like traditional octagon design? As far as I can tell that’s the only difference from this pot and their other ones.
• thiht 5y ago
  I love my electric toothbrush. It cost me 20 bucks and it’s amazing. I analyzed it from a UX point of view and couldn’t come up with any designs flaw. - it’s waterproof, so easy to clean - it has a single physical button, nothing else - it has a small flat stand on the back, so I can put it somewhere horizontally and it won’t roll, and the brush won’t touch the surface - the heads can be easily changed, so we share the same toothbrush with my SO but have our own brush. The heads have a different color ring so they’re easy to recognize - the charging station is small, holds in place and is generally painless. You just put the toothbrush on it and that’s it - the battery itself easily lasts 2 weeks - when using it the brush buzzes every 30 seconds but that’s it, you can ignore it if you wish. If you accidentally turn the brush off but turn it back on quickly, it remembers where you were and won’t start the buzzes from the beginning - the best thing about electric toothbrush is that they gracefully degrade to a normal toothbrush. I love graceful degradation I talked about users of more expensive electric toothbrushes (100-200$), but I’m confident mine is the best.
  • mprovost 5y ago
    "I like an escalator because an escalator can never break, it can only become stairs. There would never be an escalator temporarily out of order sign, only an escalator temporarily stairs. Sorry for the convenience." - Mitch Hedberg
    • losvedir 5y ago
      Turns out this isn't true. A Boston subway station had a pretty grim escalator failure a month or two ago[0], where the escalator broke and the stairs started to free-fall backwards piling people at the bottom. [0] https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/mbta-investigates-back-bay-escalator-malfunction-that-injured-9/2501749/ https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/mbta-investigates-back-...
    • vatotemking 5y ago
      We use to call it "graceful degradation". Now its all just reactjs.
  • muzani 5y ago
• mrich 5y ago
  Rust and Python, in that order.
• shaolinspirit 5y ago
  I would be more from a dev perspective here *nix OS's and their terminal with various commands. The idea of pipe operator in terminal is just mind blowing, high praise to the guys who came up with this, they literally included FP concepts inside a terminal back in the late 60's.
• jasonvorhe 5y ago
  Google Inbox: The perfect modern frontend for mail. RIP. Sonos Playbar (got the Arc for free, sold the Playbar): Perfect sound, a timeless design, software was dope around 2015-2016. All downhill from there, when Sonos decided to pivot to supporting Alexa/Google Assistant and attempting to become smarter. Google Pixelbook: Super thin, light weight, super clean Linux system with first class support for Progressive Web Apps, Android and Linux apps. Chrome OS features the simplest software update process I've seen in action so far. The design is unique, the keyboard was perfect when right when Apple decided to ship shitty butterfly keyboards. 7 years of software updates. Rancilio Silvia: Budget Espresso maker that's close to indestructible. Everything can be serviced, replaced, upgraded, there's no shortage of replacement parts, the Espresso is great once you know how to use it. Aeropress: Simple to use, fits well into almost all travel luggage, and produces great coffee with little effort.
  • mellavora 5y ago
    My Sylvia is 20 years old and the coffee gets better every year.
• saalweachter 5y ago
  The 2019 Volt dispensed with the five position climate control dial in favor of three toggle buttons, finally allowing me to select "everything" or "defrost and panel".
• loufe 5y ago
  I have been blown away by how reliable and convenient my Growler is (a Stanley Classic Easy-Pour Growler 64oz). I love carbonated water and work in an underground mine, I fill that thing full every day I work and bring it down. I never lose pressure (aside obviously from when it's opened), it stays cold seemingly indefinitely, the safety latch ensures the swinging lid hits nothing, and the thing is so solidly built it hasn't sustained a single nick despite falling on rock, etc. I'm a happy customer.
• jzellis 5y ago
  My Doc Martens. The design of a shoe is pretty well worked out, but the devil is in the details, and my Docs have been carrying my fat ass through deserts and snow and jungles and cobblestones and pavement for twenty years, and I got em used. That's not just down to materials, it's down to design. The Gerber Chameleon (and its Remix followup) pocket knife design. (https://www.gerber-tools.com/Gerber-Remix-22-01969.php https://www.gerber-tools.com/Gerber-Remix-22-01969.php) Absolutely brilliant - the pivot itself is a ring, so when you use the knife you have zero chance of slipping and cutting yourself, and instead of a side to side motion for cutting, you just use your hand naturally, the way you would a handsaw. And the iPad stand and mount I use, whose brand escapes me. It folds compact to fit in a bag and the legs and main clamp separate for easy carrying, but the feet pivot outward or can be used, when pivoted inward together, as a base that can be slid into a holder (that came with it) or anything that can hold it up. I often slip the feet behind the vertical pipes in our kitchen to watch videos while I'm doing dishes, and I've built a lap desk that uses pipe strapping to allow me to slide the stand feet underneath the desktop, so the iPad itself doesn't take up any space at all on the desktop - it's just hovering over it like an IKEA worklight. Fantastically simple and useful design.
• deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
• cainxinth 5y ago
  Corded Wahl professional hair clippers. It’s the AK-47 of hair styling products: indestructible, never jams, and incredibly low maintenance. Clean out the detritus and give it a little oil now and then and it will work practically forever.
  • h2odragon 5y ago
    Oster clippers. If it'll shave a heard of sheep, you will never break it.
• theragra 5y ago
  I really like my LG monitor controls. First, it it joystick that allows to select options really easily.Hundred times better than buttons. Second, sounds of turning on is very pleasant.
• IgorPartola 5y ago
  A peg board for organizing tools. Fiskars splitting axe. Estwing hatchet (the leather handled one). Kershaw knives. Victorinox knives. First generation Honda Rebel: this bike is two bolts and a nut so super easy to work on, reliable, and gets amazing gas mileage. Molle style backpack as a diaper bag.
• ronyfadel 5y ago
  • The Fellow Carter mug [1] • Amazon Kindle PaperWhite • Chrome Industries backpack [2] • A.P.C. denim jeans [3] • Stan Smith sneakers • My Nexstand laptop stand • Surprisingly, these cheap Theragun knock-offs you can get on Amazon for a fifth of the price. [1] https://fellowproducts.com/products/carter-everywhere-mug https://fellowproducts.com/products/carter-everywhere-mug [2] https://www.chromeindustries.com/ https://www.chromeindustries.com/ [3] https://www.apcstore.com/petit-new-standard-iai-codbs-m09047.html https://www.apcstore.com/petit-new-standard-iai-codbs-m09047...
• aidog 5y ago
  I picked up this nice bluetooth keyboard the 3E neo recently. It's a japanese brand. It fold's into pocket size but feels so sturdy and the keys are the perfect size. So satisfying
  • gsruff 5y ago
    Do you know if this can be purchased in the US?
    • aidog 5y ago
      Probably not, but maybe something out of the same factory. It can be bought on Amazon Japan. This is their site: product.3ec.jp/neo/ The IC-BK20se from iClever does look very similar and might be available, but no guarantees. I decided to go with the japanese product because the marketing material seemed more polished. I had a look at the model with the trackpad but the keys were a little smaller. Bit too small.
• spodek 5y ago
  The bicycle wheel. I can't believe 16 hours and nobody mentioned it (that I found anyway). You will find few things that serve their functions so well with such a minimum of material. The General Public License. The foundation of Linux, Wikipedia, and more. Every company and government agency that took it on lost. It uses the rules it wants to subvert to subvert them. The United States Constitution. So far it has withstood onslaughts and survived. We may be seeing the end of it, but people have said that before. It's inspired many others. The United States may be young, as cultures go, but our Constitution is, I believe, the oldest.
• GrumpyNl 5y ago
  Older car interiors, all the knobs on a familiar place.
• micimize 5y ago
  This easy-clean garlic press recommended by America's Test Kitchen: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000CD0HX https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000CD0HX Clean-ability turned the press from a 1/mo to a near-daily usage frequency.
  • MrFantastic 5y ago
    I've broken 2 of those. Don't try to crush more than 2 cloves of garlic at a time.
• itronitron 5y ago
  Epson EcoTank printer. We purchased ours in 2018 and haven't yet needed to refill the ink reservoirs (getting close though) and it comes with an extra refill set as well.
  • rudedogg 5y ago
    I'm happy you're enjoying yours. I replaced a really old Brother laser printer (10 years old?), thinking surely a state-of-the-art, high-end inkjet would outshine it. The ink does seem to last forever, but the print quality is so much worse than laser (for text/vector graphics at least). And I always have to run the "clean print heads" before I can get a clean print, since I only use it every month or so.
• wallflow3r 5y ago
  Goruck backpacks. They remain unbelievably comfortable with heavy loads, last forever and the clamshell design makes them easy to pack and more importantly find your stuff. The only backpacks I will buy anymore. I've been using the gr1 26L for work, grocery shopping and travelling for 5 years. https://www.goruck.com/collections/gr1 https://www.goruck.com/collections/gr1 The gr2 and gr3 are excellent travel bags when you need something bigger. Only backpacks of that size that I have found comfortable to carry with just shoulder straps.
• ronyfadel 5y ago
  It's amazing to see the Aeropress being mentioned so many times (11 so far), compared with the Kindle (8 times), iPhone (22 times), iPod (12 times).
  • derwiki 5y ago
    thanks for summarizing!
  • papertokyo 5y ago
    I was thinking the same thing, but having travelled with my AeroPress for almost 7 years now I have to agree it's an amazing device.
• ichydkrsrnae 5y ago
  This $14.88 pair of wireless Bluetooth headphones from Walmart's ONN brand. You'd swear you spent $1000 on a pair of Grado cans. I don't know why they're so good, but they are. I bought 3 pair for backup in case the first fails. I'm convinced it's a COVID anomaly, like upscaling because you can't source cheaper parts, or something similarly unusual. https://www.walmart.com/ip/onn-Bluetooth-On-Ear-Headphones-Blue/106145703 https://www.walmart.com/ip/onn-Bluetooth-On-Ear-Headphones-B...
• acomjean 5y ago
  My Honda Element. It’s so versatile with the large side loading doors and the flip down removable back seats. You can toss a bike inside easily. It also is surprising short and has a small turning radius. I put 200000 miles on my first one before buying a second. Not a great looker though. https://www.core77.com/posts/61976/The-Honda-Elements-Unsung-Interior-Design-Brilliance https://www.core77.com/posts/61976/The-Honda-Elements-Unsung...
  • 1-6 5y ago
    There are limited-release cars that I frequently wish I could have bought when they were on sale. The Honda Element, S2000, Prelude, del Sol, and Toyota FJ Cruiser are some that come to mind. I hope I'm not overlooking a cult classic today. Can anyone think of a cars like this?
• __alexs 5y ago
  Zojirushi thermos flask.
• enz 5y ago
  A 4-Color ballpoint pen.
• a3n 5y ago
  Metal fork, spoon, knife, ceramic plate, ceramic mug. Thank you, long forgotten prehistoric people.
• agys 5y ago
  The “Rex” potato peeler. A perfect piece of design: ergonomic, solid, low-cost. Small fact: the lateral “blade” to cut out the eyes of the potato is obtained from the removed central part of the main blade; some newer models have it extended from the grip… https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/rex-the-peeler-is-king-of-the-kitchen/5486616 https://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/rex-the-peeler-is-king-of-the-k...
• corinroyal 5y ago
  Redwing boots with a steel shank and toe cap. Totally indestructable, classic styling. Once broken in they conform to your foot shape to provide amazing support, comfort, and protection from puncture or crushing. They are American made, and the town is gorgeous.
  • convolvatron 5y ago
    ech. I used to wear redwings. i could only get a year or two out of them. I've been switching off between two pairs of wescos for 20 years now and while one of them is finally about to go, the second one is still in solid shape.
• 4kelly 5y ago
  Darn Tough socks. You won’t be able to go back. Great feel, super durable, different styles and thickness for any use-case. Oh and a lifetime warranty (I have personality returned one pair 5 years later for a new pair).
• temporallobe 5y ago
  Late to this thread as usual, but I might as well submit mine: My Fender Telecaster. It’s a paradigm of simplicity, reliability, playability, and tone. From the original barrel-style string saddles to the 2-pickup/3-way switching system to the high-output single coil to the bolt-on neck construction to the straight string-pull head stock, there is no better guitar on the planet. What’s even more impressive is that it was designed by a non-guitarist and was one of Leo Fenders earliest designs (and is largely considered to be the first mass-produced electric guitar). I own far too many guitars of various styles and cost, but I nearly always perform and record with my Tele. It’s my proverbial desert island guitar.
  • elsherbini 5y ago
    I'm relatively new to electric guitar and have a Tagima telecaster clone (T55pwh). I love it - it has no business being as good as it is for as cheap as it is. One thing about telecasters that you mentioned that is probably not the best design is the 3 barrel string saddles that make intonation challenging (since you can't adjust the intonation of one string without changing another one too). My favorite telecaster player Tim Lerch has a video explaining the way he sets up his teles, and one of the things he does is change to compensated saddles.[1] [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5l54uQzKjk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5l54uQzKjk
    • temporallobe 5y ago
      Awesome video. I have indeed heard about the intonation issues with the vintage barrel saddles, but personally I can’t really tell on my Tele. It stays in tune better than most of my guitars and the intonation is far better than on my Les Paul Custom with the Tune-O-Matic bridge.
• erezsh 5y ago
  "Ever" is a tough one but .. Python is still the best-designed language I ever used, warts and all. It's often grouped with Javascript because they're both interpreted and "duck-typed", but imho the gap between them is huge. Svelte is amazing for UI logic. It makes hard things feel easy and simple, and really hard things to feel possible. QBasic was a horrible language, but its IDE (if you can call it that) was incredibly helpful for beginners. Maybe I'm nostalgic, but I never experienced such helpful hand-holding in programming ever since. Sorry it's all about programming. Most real world design is either too trivial or too impossible to make an impression.
  • cjtoth 5y ago
    It feels pretty disingenuous to write off all real world design as trivial or impossible to make an impression. For instance, aluminum cans are a great example of quality design https://youtu.be/hUhisi2FBuw https://youtu.be/hUhisi2FBuw
    • erezsh 5y ago
      I'll rephrase it - programming is the only field I know deeply enough to be deeply impressed by the accomplishments I'm seeing. I'm sure I interact with well designed entities all the time, without even knowing it. One of the properties of really good design, imho, is that it's not meant to be easy to notice.
• vermaden 5y ago
  ThinkPad laptops (W520/T420s/X220/...) up to 2011 - with 7-row keyboards. Also Dell Latitude D630 laptop with great idea on the extended battery that extended up front as additional rest pad - also with 7-row keyboard. I did not realized how great they were until they were gone ... now all laptops have these counter productive island type keyboards ...
• Peanuts99 5y ago
  I have a Nokia (now Withings) Steel HR watch. Very minimal design as far as smart watches go but is extremely reliable and the battery still lasts a month even after 5 years of ownership and daily use.
• staindk 5y ago
  I think my keyboard [1 - pic][2 - site] is almost perfect. It is not full-sized but I don't have to compromise on features etc., as with a simple Num Lock toggle I can move between having a numpad and having access to arrow keys and the 'home row'. My singular gripe is the fact that I can't assign macros to any of the numpad keys - "Num 1" and "Num 3" do literally nothing when Num Lock is off which is a bit of a waste. Was hopeful that a firmware update would come along to help with this but AFAIK none has. [1] https://cdn.coolermaster.com/media/assets/1017/masterkeys-pro-m-white-gallery-3-zoom.png https://cdn.coolermaster.com/media/assets/1017/masterkeys-pr... [2] https://www.coolermaster.com/catalog/peripheral/keyboards/masterkeys-pro-m-white https://www.coolermaster.com/catalog/peripheral/keyboards/ma...
• klelatti 5y ago
  Hacker News.
• desio 5y ago
  - WD40 - Duct Tape - zip ties - Pilot's "Better Retractable" ballpoint pen - Rhodia reverse book dot book note pad - Thinkpad x220, x230, and x250 - MacBook pro 2015 - Nokia 5110 and 3310 - Henckels Professional Chef knife - Emacs Orgmode - Microsoft Paint - Microsoft Excel - Lego - ipod shuffle 4
• szemy2 5y ago
  Airplanes
• Dowwie 5y ago
  I think the aeropress coffee press was very well designed. It's made of three sturdy, plastic parts that wash easily and last a very long time. It makes a great cup of coffee. https://aeropress.com/ https://aeropress.com/ I'm also impressed by the MSR whisperlite international camp stove. The international edition is designed to work with a variety of fuel types-- white gas, kerosene, etc. The stove compacts down to a very small size. It produces a jet sufficient for boiling a pot of water in less than 10 minutes. It can be easily maintained and there is a market for parts. https://www.msrgear.com/stoves/liquid-fuel-stoves/whisperlite-international-stove/06633.html https://www.msrgear.com/stoves/liquid-fuel-stoves/whisperlit...
• garfieldnate 5y ago
  My Casio GW-9600 electronic dictionary [1] was an amazing help in learning Japanese. It's perfectly optimized for quick word lookup: it boots from sleep instantly, the definitions are previewed as you type words, it has a full physical keyboard, and the screen is large but low-power so it rarely ever runs out of battery. The metal frame also makes it durable to falls on cement, etc. The content was, of course, also huge, almost guaranteeing that every word I searched for would be there. Well worth the money. I'm sad that the newer models became much slower; when you have to look up hundreds of words a day, there's a big difference between 5 seconds and .5 seconds. My favorite dictionary app is a Thai one from word-in-the-hand and Paiboon [2]. The dictionary data is quite extensive, and includes linked categories like "food", "pronoun", "geography", "counter", etc. Tapping on the category tags takes you to other words of the same category (great for studying, say, restaurant vocab) and also to articles that teach you Thai via phrases and cultural info, and to grammatical explanations for, e.g. counters or prepositions. On top of all that, it supports several romanization schemes and includes baked-in information to help you learn to read the Thai orthography. It's a fantastic combination of extensive dictionary with good information for learners. Plus it has a (limited) export feature, which is something that Ex-Word never supported (except for if you bought special hardware to export to). [1] http://gakuran.com/casio-ex-word-xd-gw9600/ http://gakuran.com/casio-ex-word-xd-gw9600/ [2] https://word-in-the-hand.com/thai-dictionary/ https://word-in-the-hand.com/thai-dictionary/
• RickJWagner 5y ago
  I have a John Deere riding mower where you have to raise the seat to get at the battery and other mechanical components. To raise the seat, you have to swivel a tiny by stout metal latch that keeps the seat from bouncing around on it's hinges. The metal latch is held in it's position by gravity-- you have to use your finger to swivel it when you want the seat to move. This is engineering at it's finest. Effective, durable, efficient in it's purpose. Timeless design as well-- I don't think it could be improved upon.
• jerome-jh 5y ago
  I liked the HVAC controls of my 2005 Honda CR-V. Three big knobs: fan control, temperature, direction/mode. The temperature knob had one notch per °C. Simple and robust. All three were a pleasure to use even after 15 years, usually while keeping the eyes on the road. Oh and the vertical hand brake freed a lot of room between the front seats. No car is perfect of course. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=honda+cr-v+2005+dash&t=ffab&iar=images&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=honda+cr-v+2005+dash&t=ffab&iar=im... Wifi router WNR3500L with DD-WRT. True eventless running for 10 years. Cannot tell the same of my current setup. On PC the Debian GNU Linux distrib is pretty good for peace of mind. I like Vim for its modal interface with old-school menus as a fallback and mplayer for its complete command line and keyboard controllability, and its effective OSD.
  • defterGoose 5y ago
    The second gen CRV is a study in "where else can we stuff something useful into this car?" Mine is affectionately named "Truckquito" and he recently got a full length camper bed installed in the back.
• fattybob 5y ago
  You have clearly never tried to make a second cup - Allessi produce a far better designed coffee maker that shows a far more comprehensive design philosophy- I’ve been using mine for almost 40 yrs ( arghh so long!!!!)
• fattybob 5y ago
  Good design? I have a brompton bicycle which certainly scores high, and also a strida bicycle which scores high also , even though quite different in design.
• sdeframond 5y ago
  A good old Opinel knife. Simple. Robust. Efficient. https://www.opinel.com/ https://www.opinel.com/
• aristofun 5y ago
  Telegram app on ios & macos. One of the few near perfect consumers applications there are.
• logotype 5y ago
  Mahlkönig PEAK. It’s a coffee grinder, the build quality is really, really good. Super solid, and heavy.
• fri_sch 5y ago
  > I'll go first. I think the Bialetti Brikka is exceptional: https://www.amazon.com/Bialetti-Stovetop-Producing-Crema-Ric https://www.amazon.com/Bialetti-Stovetop-Producing-Crema-Ric... Sorry for the shameless plug but I have a problem with the Bialetti Brikka. I think it's great, but recently I did a full cleaning of all parts and since then it stopped working. Each time when the coffee is starting to boil up it spurts out of the hole in the lid and makes a huge mess. I checked everything but didn't find anything that might be causing this. Any ideas how to fix it? Thanks!
• pxeger1 5y ago
  YouTube's video player (almost the entire rest of the site is beyond crap, don't get me wrong! I'm just talking about the watching experience) (assuming you have an ad-blocker, which you obviously should). Plenty of other video players have some of these features, but YouTube has almost everything. - click to pause - double-click to fullscreen - customisable captions - speed controls - sensible keyboard shortcuts for practically everything (press ? to see them all) - theatre mode - picture-in-picture - loop (on the right-click menu) - dark theme - all settings are saved and synced across multiple tabs (with the irritating exception of video speed, but that can be fixed with a browser extension) - hover to preview - drag to seek - video chapters - clear and subtle indication of video buffering - auto-resume when you come back to a video after navigating away - easy and obvious translation of all controls to live-streams and "premieres" - pretty animations and obvious cursor changes that make it really obvious what you're doing (looking at you, Twitch) - you can scroll in fullscreen - "instant" page navigation that never gets out of sync with itself - 4K support - HDR support (not very good, but still) - 60+FPS support - 360° support - all of Google's CDN resources behind it so it never lags - excellent video quality detection that never picks an unnecessarily low-quality option when my computer could handle better, nor a too-high one that my connection can't manage
  • hunter2_ 5y ago
    I have a few minor gripes: 1. Click (pause) and double click (full screen) interfere with each other. I don't really want pause to have more of a delay than it already has, but that's the only way to allow a non-pause double click. 2. I'd prefer if spacebar paused unconditionally. When focus is on other controls, it activates those instead, which I understand for a11y, but it's a bit annoying when other players do grab every space for pause. 3. I think < and > used to nudge by a single frame (when paused) but no longer do?
    • arsenide 5y ago
      On 3: ',' and '.' go backwards/forwards by a single frame when paused.
      • 5y ago
• kleopullin 5y ago
  Zeiss Axio Imager research grade upright light microscope with DIC, phase contrast, and fluorescence. It's easy to use without training if you've had at least a high school or college bio course with a real microscope. It's stable and sturdy, the lenses rotate into position with a lovely stop, the stage moves steadily, the lenses are fantastic. All the microscopy perks are there, but just the way the basics are assembled into an instrument make it a gem, from focusing the eyepieces, to focusing the image, centering the stage, aligning the beam in the optical axis, inserting prisms or filters. It reminds me of my 40 year old Husqvarna sewing machine, built solid and heavy and designed to be used with controls to be handled.
• vort3 5y ago
  Call me old, but Total Commander. So much functionality and extensibility in a pretty small software, it almost didn't change in years, and still does its job very efficiently, and my favourite part is that you can literally do every possible action with just a keyboard. I love software that doesn't require a mouse. Terminal emulators and shells are obviously things I love using (hello vim users), but Total Commander is probably the only GUI software I respect because I could do just fine if my mouse got broken. --- Also, Keypirinha + Everything search. Both of those individually are great and do their job well, but the fact that you can combine them makes them even better. Oh, and Total Commander also can use Everything search.
• wedesoft 5y ago
  RethinkDB. You copy the default configuration, restart the server, and you have a database supporting queries and real-time notifications, and a web interface to monitor and interact with the database.
• Russelfuture 5y ago
  This may sound silly, but: - my hacked iPad. It's first generation, original software was stupid, but with "RedSn0w" and all of Freeman's Cydia apps, it has turned into my favourite device. It has a full, Linux-like file system, I can have all sorts of material on it, SSH works fine, can use it as a controller, and I can still browse (some) internet sites. (Using it to write this). I have Macbook Pro, a bunch of Linux boxes, couple of nice Acer laptops, but this ancient iPad is so very well made, and all the Cydia stuff just works. My partner has a modern iPhone, but I like this old iPad, where each key on the screen is half-an-inch across! - my AR-15. AK's are prohibited where I live (and so now is my AR), but folks need to understand what a fine triumph in modular design and excellent ergonomics, the American-designed AR-15 rifle really is. Early rifle designs were just not good - soldiers would pull the trigger, and be blinded as the breech blew up in their face. The AR is light, lethal, and reliable. Like most good design, it is the result of continuous improvements over a long time span. - The Piper PA-28 "Warrior" general aviation light aircraft. This is just an amazingly successful design effort. Everything in aircraft design is a series of trade-offs, weight, strength, durability, reliability, ease-of-use, safety, complexity, simplicity, and so on. I did all my fight training as a young fellow on Cessna 172's, which are also excellent examples of very good design. But the 172 feels like what it is, to fly - a solid, simple workhorse. The PA-28, with a 160 or 180 hp engine, manages to feel quite different - like being able to drive a Camaro around in the sky. It's not a Ferrari, but it had several fine design features that made it feel like a much more substantial and flyable aircraft, especially for a kid learning to fly. It was real fun. The wings were tapered. Compared to older "Cherokee" models, which did not have tapered wings, the difference was significant. It is, of course, a low-wing aircraft. This makes for a much more attractive flying experience - you are driving a platform, not hanging from a wing, in a little box. And this aircraft has a stabilator, instead of a tail-plane and an elevator. On the Piper, as you pull and push the control wheel, the whole rear wing tilts up and down. This is just a genius design feature, and gives the aircraft a nice lively feel, even if you are flying the cheapest, entry-level version, which does not have retractable gear. (If renting at a flying club, you probably won't have any retractables - since some student might forget to drop the gear, and may well wipe out the aircraft.) Our club had one Warrior, and it was a very big treat, when I could book it and take it away up north, for a weekend. The little design genius features, made it very fun to fly. I recall dropping the flaps involved pulling on a lever, much like a sports-car emergency brake. (On the Cessna, to put down flaps, you throw a switch on the panel, and listen for the servo-motors). But on the Piper, you pull on this lever, and feel the wind on the flaps, as you pull them down. You literally could feel the air, as you flew thru it. And with those tapered wings, and the rear stabilator, you could drop a wing and dive down quick, and the whole experience was wonderful, because of these specific design improvements over the old square ( non-tapered) wings of the older "Cherokee" models. - lastly, (call me crazy, if you must), the original APL computer language, which I learned when very young, because it was the only interactive environment available. APL was (is) very different, but it turned out to be an amazingly useful languange and environment to learn. I met Ken Iverson (the inventor author of APL), and he and I did not see eye-to-eye on things. But APL was a work of genius. APL was very popular inside IBM in the early days, and the first IBM P/C was actually pre-dated by an IBM Personal Computer that ran APL, called the SCAMP, which came out in 1973, if I remember correctly. I still use APL applications, and we use them, because they make us money. And that is always important in any product design... :)
• FreeInFlorida 5y ago
  KitchenCraft pots and pans https://waterlesscookware.com/ https://waterlesscookware.com/ We paid $1,000 (a LOT of money) for our set when we were just married in 1980. Every piece of that set still looks like new, with a mirror finish, and every lid handle and pot handle is still tight like it just came out of the box. They are naturally non-stick, cook everything with only a tiny bit of water, and are indestructible. The ones pictured on the website today look exactly like the ones we have used daily for 40 years, since they cannot be improved upon. Made in Wisconsin since 1906 and every piece is guaranteed forever. They are only sold direct or at county fairs, home improvement shows and the like, but they are worth the high price since you will NEVER need to replace them.
• porknubbins 5y ago
  Japanese sportsbikes are some of the best designed and engineered things I’ve used. Some designs haven’t even really evolved that much since the 80s as they were already pretty much the apotheosis of a high performance two wheeled vehicle . Tires, suspensions and brake designs have improved due to (i guess) materials science and manufacturing more than even design. Plenty of engines are used in models for decades because they were so good and overengineered. Aside from the engineering side of excellent performance and reliability the UI is very intuitive, and especially on Honda the ergonomics are near perfect to the point of disappearing out from under you. Of course same could be said of some cars but the design space is so huge its harder to nail down an ideal car.
• mitchbob 5y ago
  For working on bicycles, my favorite tool by far is the DT Swiss Spokey Pro spoke wrench [1]. Beautiful, ergonomic, pricey, and worth every penny. It completely transformed my attitude toward wheel building and truing. There are very few activities I do that are more meditative and satisfying than putting together a great wheel. [1] https://www.jensonusa.com/DT-Swiss-Spokey-Pro-Nipple-Wrench https://www.jensonusa.com/DT-Swiss-Spokey-Pro-Nipple-Wrench
• dqpb 5y ago
  Workflowy
• aj7 5y ago
  Bridgeport milling machine.
• redwood 5y ago
  Considering we just had Thanksgiving and I love it with pumpkin pie, whipped cream cans!
• gaoryrt 5y ago
  I'd say Rollei 35 film camera.
• balkotdude 5y ago
  Telegram. It's fast. It's snappy. It pushes the limits of what a messaging app can be. Every time I want to do something, I find the feature already there. And the performance of the app is consistent throughout all the platforms.
• jmakov 5y ago
  Clickouse
• dannyphantom 5y ago
  Perhaps not the answer you're looking for but 'Mastering the Art of French Cooking' has remained a top-tier cookbook.
• JensRantil 5y ago
  Old-school microwave ovens; one knob for effect, one knob for timer (which implicitly starts the microwave), and one button the open the door (which implicitly stops the microwave). Today's modern microwaves ovens have _horrible_ UX. I talked to someone a few years ago who'd worked at an oven manufacturer and told me that UX people aren't involved in designing these ovens anymore; the process is entirely driven by marketing departments requiring more buttons, weird sliders, digital UIs and other ridiculous features - all to increase sales and convince people they need a new microwave when 99% of people really don't.
• lcordier 5y ago
  Swing-A-Way can opener.