5 ms·

Why an electric toothbrush and electric shaver? Both of those have well established and functional antecedents that are both smaller and lighter.

whimsicalism 4y ago
You can't trim with the functional antecedent.
- vidanay 4y ago
  Trim what? Do you mean maintaining a 2mm fashion length beard? (You can't trim with the pictured shaver either - it's only for smooth shaving)
  - whimsicalism 4y ago
    I'll admit I hadn't clicked on the article. I don't know what you mean by "fashion length" - as opposed to the fashion length of 0mm? or am I missing a term of art?
    - vidanay 4y ago
      I was trying to figure out what you mean by trimming. On one end of the spectrum is smooth shaved. On the other end is completely un-managed. Somewhere in the middle is where "trimming" would come into play.
dubswithus 4y ago
I find an electric toothbrush is much better for busting plaque. I have a Goby.
- sorokod 4y ago
  so sorry to hear that...
  - dubswithus 4y ago
    If it breaks or the battery dies they send you a new handle for free. I may switch to another brand in the future. Not sure.
corrral 4y ago
I thought electric toothbrushes were silly until I tried a modern one. A manual toothbrush is not a replacement. A half-assed job with an electric toothbrush will get your teeth cleaner than an extremely thorough effort with a manual toothbrush. I wish I'd tried one sooner. First time I used one it felt like I'd been in for a full dental cleaning. Bonus: their failure mode is that they become a manual toothbrush. Which, if you're used to electric, does suck a lot, but it's no worse of than you'd have been if you started with a manual to begin with. Agree about the shaver, though, but I gather some folks have a lot harder time with facial hair than I do (some ordinary soap in the shower and very cheap disposable razors do better for me than the electric razor I had years ago) so maybe it's important for them.
- vidanay 4y ago
  Electric toothbrushes are fantastic. I own and use one twice a day at home. I was strictly speaking in the context of the blog post with regards to being as small and as light as possible.
  - corrral 4y ago
    Oh, sure, if you're really optimizing for as light as possible I guess you could ditch the toothbrush entirely and just count on buying a manual brush for a couple dollars at your destination. Personally, I'd favor cutting space/weight in a lot of other areas before giving up the electric toothbrush, though.
    - dan-robertson 4y ago
      Electric is heavier but they’re also much bigger. I could fit 4+ manual toothbrushes in the space that my electric toothbrush travel case takes up. I think it doesn’t include the charger either. And the shape is quite inconvenient too which constrains packing
      - notjulianjaynes 4y ago
        Fun fact: Many electric toothbrushes that use a wireless charging base will charge from a wireless phone charger if you position it right. In a pinch I've even charged mine straight off my phone using the "wireless power share" function (Galaxy Note 10, not sure how common a feature that is).
jabbany 4y ago
The electric shaver "antecedent" isn't nearly as efficient as the electric version... (1) Those require some kind of lubricant like shaving cream (= extra space cost) or shaving in a shower/with water (= significantly reduced convenience). The modern electric ones do not require anything and can be used dry. (2) Modern disposable razors also dull quite quickly meaning you need to carry many extra blades (= more space) or only travel to places where you can easily buy more blades/razors (= less convenience). The electric ones can last years on a single set of blades and still be effective. (3) The older kind of "knife-like" or "safety" razors can largely get around (2) with sharpening, but as they are not allowed on flights, it largely excludes them as an option.
- karaterobot 4y ago
  I think having access to a sink or shower is not out of the question for someone living a digital nomad lifestyle — not so much if you're hiking or camping, though. But if you live in hotels or AirBNBs, there's a pretty good chance you've got a shower stall to shave in. In terms of dullness, I shave my head and face with a cheap Amazon razor every day or two, and one blade lasts for weeks. A 4-blade package easily lasts me over a month, and if you remove them from the carrying case it's about the size of, I dunno, a couple AA batteries. One downside of an electric razor is power. I suppose a USB-C based razor exists, but you probably wouldn't have very many options in that format, and probably not many nice ones to choose from. Perhaps that will change. In the meantime, I love the Braun electric razor I use for the back of my neck but it does need a little power brick and cord which, together with the razor itself, are probably more than the volume of several years worth of razor blade cartridges. Just providing a little counterpoint to your comment, I do like my electric razor and think it's probably a better option for many travelers.
  - jabbany 4y ago
    > But if you live in hotels or AirBNBs, there's a pretty good chance you've got a shower stall to shave in. A lot of these also provide disposable razors, shaving cream etc (either by default or if you ask the front desk), so definitely a good option when it is available. > one blade lasts for weeks I shave every day and have used random (not name brand) disposable ones during travel. In my experience it usually stays usable for 3-4 days and could stretch to about a week. Still, being able to just set-and-forget an electric one without worrying about getting more blades has been quite nice. > One downside of an electric razor is power Definitely agree, though, USB-C ones aside, there are also compact ones made specifically for travel that have integrated universal plugs & support all voltages (if you have access to that). I usually keep one of these in my travel bag rather than bringing along my regular one which is very nice but also needs an external power brick and cord to charge.
ubermonkey 4y ago
Electric razors never really worked great for me, but my teeth DEFINITELY feel nicer when I use a modern electric toothbrush. If I were traveling as much as OP, I'd absolutely take one with me.
mrwh 4y ago
To me, this is just the difference between packing for an occasional trip versus going full road warrior. For the former, yep why not just use something disposable. But for the latter, anything that avoids a visit to the dentist has to be prioritized. That little difference between manual and electric seems a very false economy indeed (begging the question that electric toothbrushes are genuinely better of course).
Ayesh 4y ago
Xiaomi's Mijia line up has super light and directly USB-C/MicroUSB pluggable tooth brushes. I use a super cheap T100 two years old now, which is almost the same size as a regular toothbrush, and needs no charging puck.
nicbou 4y ago
The electric shaver is one of the last things I'll remove from my pack. Shaving manually is a pain in the butt.
- galoisgirl 4y ago
  Most people use them to shave their faces.

whimsicalism 4y ago

You can't trim with the functional antecedent.

vidanay 4y ago
Trim what? Do you mean maintaining a 2mm fashion length beard? (You can't trim with the pictured shaver either - it's only for smooth shaving)
- whimsicalism 4y ago
  I'll admit I hadn't clicked on the article. I don't know what you mean by "fashion length" - as opposed to the fashion length of 0mm? or am I missing a term of art?
  - vidanay 4y ago
    I was trying to figure out what you mean by trimming. On one end of the spectrum is smooth shaved. On the other end is completely un-managed. Somewhere in the middle is where "trimming" would come into play.

dubswithus 4y ago

I find an electric toothbrush is much better for busting plaque. I have a Goby.

sorokod 4y ago
so sorry to hear that...
- dubswithus 4y ago
  If it breaks or the battery dies they send you a new handle for free. I may switch to another brand in the future. Not sure.

corrral 4y ago

I thought electric toothbrushes were silly until I tried a modern one. A manual toothbrush is not a replacement. A half-assed job with an electric toothbrush will get your teeth cleaner than an extremely thorough effort with a manual toothbrush. I wish I'd tried one sooner. First time I used one it felt like I'd been in for a full dental cleaning. Bonus: their failure mode is that they become a manual toothbrush. Which, if you're used to electric, does suck a lot, but it's no worse of than you'd have been if you started with a manual to begin with. Agree about the shaver, though, but I gather some folks have a lot harder time with facial hair than I do (some ordinary soap in the shower and very cheap disposable razors do better for me than the electric razor I had years ago) so maybe it's important for them.

vidanay 4y ago
Electric toothbrushes are fantastic. I own and use one twice a day at home. I was strictly speaking in the context of the blog post with regards to being as small and as light as possible.
- corrral 4y ago
  Oh, sure, if you're really optimizing for as light as possible I guess you could ditch the toothbrush entirely and just count on buying a manual brush for a couple dollars at your destination. Personally, I'd favor cutting space/weight in a lot of other areas before giving up the electric toothbrush, though.
  - dan-robertson 4y ago
    Electric is heavier but they’re also much bigger. I could fit 4+ manual toothbrushes in the space that my electric toothbrush travel case takes up. I think it doesn’t include the charger either. And the shape is quite inconvenient too which constrains packing
    - notjulianjaynes 4y ago
      Fun fact: Many electric toothbrushes that use a wireless charging base will charge from a wireless phone charger if you position it right. In a pinch I've even charged mine straight off my phone using the "wireless power share" function (Galaxy Note 10, not sure how common a feature that is).

jabbany 4y ago

The electric shaver "antecedent" isn't nearly as efficient as the electric version... (1) Those require some kind of lubricant like shaving cream (= extra space cost) or shaving in a shower/with water (= significantly reduced convenience). The modern electric ones do not require anything and can be used dry. (2) Modern disposable razors also dull quite quickly meaning you need to carry many extra blades (= more space) or only travel to places where you can easily buy more blades/razors (= less convenience). The electric ones can last years on a single set of blades and still be effective. (3) The older kind of "knife-like" or "safety" razors can largely get around (2) with sharpening, but as they are not allowed on flights, it largely excludes them as an option.

karaterobot 4y ago
I think having access to a sink or shower is not out of the question for someone living a digital nomad lifestyle — not so much if you're hiking or camping, though. But if you live in hotels or AirBNBs, there's a pretty good chance you've got a shower stall to shave in. In terms of dullness, I shave my head and face with a cheap Amazon razor every day or two, and one blade lasts for weeks. A 4-blade package easily lasts me over a month, and if you remove them from the carrying case it's about the size of, I dunno, a couple AA batteries. One downside of an electric razor is power. I suppose a USB-C based razor exists, but you probably wouldn't have very many options in that format, and probably not many nice ones to choose from. Perhaps that will change. In the meantime, I love the Braun electric razor I use for the back of my neck but it does need a little power brick and cord which, together with the razor itself, are probably more than the volume of several years worth of razor blade cartridges. Just providing a little counterpoint to your comment, I do like my electric razor and think it's probably a better option for many travelers.
- jabbany 4y ago
  > But if you live in hotels or AirBNBs, there's a pretty good chance you've got a shower stall to shave in. A lot of these also provide disposable razors, shaving cream etc (either by default or if you ask the front desk), so definitely a good option when it is available. > one blade lasts for weeks I shave every day and have used random (not name brand) disposable ones during travel. In my experience it usually stays usable for 3-4 days and could stretch to about a week. Still, being able to just set-and-forget an electric one without worrying about getting more blades has been quite nice. > One downside of an electric razor is power Definitely agree, though, USB-C ones aside, there are also compact ones made specifically for travel that have integrated universal plugs & support all voltages (if you have access to that). I usually keep one of these in my travel bag rather than bringing along my regular one which is very nice but also needs an external power brick and cord to charge.

ubermonkey 4y ago

Electric razors never really worked great for me, but my teeth DEFINITELY feel nicer when I use a modern electric toothbrush. If I were traveling as much as OP, I'd absolutely take one with me.

mrwh 4y ago

To me, this is just the difference between packing for an occasional trip versus going full road warrior. For the former, yep why not just use something disposable. But for the latter, anything that avoids a visit to the dentist has to be prioritized. That little difference between manual and electric seems a very false economy indeed (begging the question that electric toothbrushes are genuinely better of course).

Ayesh 4y ago

Xiaomi's Mijia line up has super light and directly USB-C/MicroUSB pluggable tooth brushes. I use a super cheap T100 two years old now, which is almost the same size as a regular toothbrush, and needs no charging puck.

nicbou 4y ago

The electric shaver is one of the last things I'll remove from my pack. Shaving manually is a pain in the butt.

galoisgirl 4y ago
Most people use them to shave their faces.