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Wow. Absolutely stunning. I had forgotten all about DAK, but I must have spent hours poring over each catalog (the earliest I remember is the 1985 one), and cou

by rconti 3y ago

Wow. Absolutely stunning. I had forgotten all about DAK, but I must have spent hours poring over each catalog (the earliest I remember is the 1985 one), and could spend days re-reading now. The funny thing is -- and I don't see it mentioned anywhere -- the hyperbole felt like something bordering on a scam as I grew older. I think it's one of those things where, as you grow up, you realize the way you read it literally as a naive kid is not the same way you read it as an adult, so you feel this strange disconnect between the promise being sold and what the product actually does. Of course, I was never able to actually buy anything from DAK, but his writing truly drove my interest in technology.

derekp7 3y ago
I recall we (my family) bought a couple things from them. The big thing about DAK, Sharper Image, etc was that this wasn't just selling regular electronic stuff. They were selling electronics that were new inventions. So the hype was not just on the product, but the product category -- CD players, Bread Machines, DVD-ROM with massive databases [such as encyclopedias, greatest book collections, etc], and all the hi-fi equipment such as compact speakers with a separate subwoofer. This is something that makes be a bit sad in that now that I have money to buy whatever, there isn't anything "new" category wise (just upgrades on existing tech) that are worth buying. I miss dreaming about gadgets. I think the closest modern gadget that opens up a new category to play in is things like 3D printers and laser cutters/etchers.
- rconti 3y ago
  The internet and globalization of markets and cheap shipping has taken a lot of the wonder away. It used to be a friend would go to Japan and come back with this absolutely futuristic walkman that simply wasn't available in the US market, and looked like nothing you had ever seen before. That's not really a thing anymore, and to the extent that it is (there are still products that aren't sold/marketed worldwide for various reasons), you can always just buy it on eBay or something.
  - fomine3 3y ago
    It seems that it's still a thing in China, especially for a bigger products that's hard to ship by mail by AliExpress.
    - derekp7 3y ago
      What types of products would these be? Are they new categories of products, or variations of items that we currently have but work in a novel way? Examples would be ebikes before they were widely available, or electric cars that is more ebike material than car material.
      - fomine3 3y ago
        Mainly the latter. Most significant one is China domestic xEVs. I sometimes find interesting model but very few English info available. Foreign house equipment are tend to be incompatible and local brands are strong, so sometimes weird one is found like this https://www.g-mark.org/en/gallery/winners/18335 https://www.g-mark.org/en/gallery/winners/18335
elf25 3y ago
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pjc50 3y ago
> the hyperbole felt like something bordering on a scam as I grew older I think with the benefit of hindsight we can recognize techno hype as a kind of creative writing genre in itself. People got pleasure from reading it even if they never bought any of the products. And part of the joy of all but the most utilitarian product is always the fiction around it. People sell pans with dreams of Tuscany. Maybe it's good sometimes to hang on to the suspension of disbelief and enjoy the show. You know if you're going to the Barnum circus you're going to get scammed, but you're getting the privilege of being scammed by the greatest show on earth.

by rconti 3y ago

derekp7 3y ago

I recall we (my family) bought a couple things from them. The big thing about DAK, Sharper Image, etc was that this wasn't just selling regular electronic stuff. They were selling electronics that were new inventions. So the hype was not just on the product, but the product category -- CD players, Bread Machines, DVD-ROM with massive databases [such as encyclopedias, greatest book collections, etc], and all the hi-fi equipment such as compact speakers with a separate subwoofer. This is something that makes be a bit sad in that now that I have money to buy whatever, there isn't anything "new" category wise (just upgrades on existing tech) that are worth buying. I miss dreaming about gadgets. I think the closest modern gadget that opens up a new category to play in is things like 3D printers and laser cutters/etchers.

rconti 3y ago
The internet and globalization of markets and cheap shipping has taken a lot of the wonder away. It used to be a friend would go to Japan and come back with this absolutely futuristic walkman that simply wasn't available in the US market, and looked like nothing you had ever seen before. That's not really a thing anymore, and to the extent that it is (there are still products that aren't sold/marketed worldwide for various reasons), you can always just buy it on eBay or something.
- fomine3 3y ago
  It seems that it's still a thing in China, especially for a bigger products that's hard to ship by mail by AliExpress.
  - derekp7 3y ago
    What types of products would these be? Are they new categories of products, or variations of items that we currently have but work in a novel way? Examples would be ebikes before they were widely available, or electric cars that is more ebike material than car material.
    - fomine3 3y ago
      Mainly the latter. Most significant one is China domestic xEVs. I sometimes find interesting model but very few English info available. Foreign house equipment are tend to be incompatible and local brands are strong, so sometimes weird one is found like this https://www.g-mark.org/en/gallery/winners/18335 https://www.g-mark.org/en/gallery/winners/18335

elf25 3y ago

[dead]

pjc50 3y ago

> the hyperbole felt like something bordering on a scam as I grew older I think with the benefit of hindsight we can recognize techno hype as a kind of creative writing genre in itself. People got pleasure from reading it even if they never bought any of the products. And part of the joy of all but the most utilitarian product is always the fiction around it. People sell pans with dreams of Tuscany. Maybe it's good sometimes to hang on to the suspension of disbelief and enjoy the show. You know if you're going to the Barnum circus you're going to get scammed, but you're getting the privilege of being scammed by the greatest show on earth.