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Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2023

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Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2023

#111

Post by rimunroe »

The_Colonel wrote: post #107

I got into Audiobooks this year. I first listened on headphones or just phone loudspeaker (thought it's OK for voice). Then I bought JBL Go 3 and it's a different experience. The speaker is compact, lightweight and has a nice design. Sound quality / loudness is fully sufficient for voice and does a great job for its size for music as well. It's waterproof, now I listen even while showering. The only downside is lack…

I used a JBL Flip 4 speaker to listen to audiobooks and podcasts while floating in the pool for a while. Bluetooth doesn’t penetrate more than a few centimeters into water, so I’d just put my phone in a dry bag, tie it to the side of the speaker, and set it adrift. Way less clunky than a headset and worked great

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2023

#113

Post by Cockbrand »

straight-shoota wrote: post #54
jmye wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why does a soldering iron need an OS? I read the product page and I think I’m still missing something.

IronOS is actually a firmware, not a classical operating system. The soldering iron is like many modern appliances a smart device and contains a RISC-V CPU on which the firmware runs. I bought a Pinecil as well this year, and it's really a great tool, and I dare say much more versatile and powerful than many traditional soldering stations which cost much more.

I got the older TS100, for which IronOS was created originally, and it makes such a difference compared to a "dumb" soldering iron. I'm not very skilled in soldering, but the tool makes up for a lot of that.

Nevertheless, I would never have thought that I'd ever own a soldering iron requiring firmware.

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2023

#114

Post by Cockbrand »

marconey wrote: post #4

The Wera Toolcheck Plus has been a great addition to my toolbox Generally now grab it first, when a job comes up! https://products.wera.de/en/ratchets_and_accessories_zyklop_...

I have a different ratchet set from Wera, which is also really nice and handy. Wera generally makes excellent tools, especially for the price point. My only gripe is that the printed-on size information on the handles of their screwdrivers wears off quickly, which is especially annoying for Torx drivers.

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2023

#116

Post by maxglute »

rimunroe wrote: post #111
The_Colonel wrote: post #107

I got into Audiobooks this year. I first listened on headphones or just phone loudspeaker (thought it's OK for voice). Then I bought JBL Go 3 and it's a different experience. The speaker is compact, lightweight and has a nice design. Sound quality / loudness is fully sufficient for voice and does a great job for its size for music as well. It's waterproof, now I listen even while showering. The only downside is lack…

I used a JBL Flip 4 speaker to listen to audiobooks and podcasts while floating in the pool for a while. Bluetooth doesn’t penetrate more than a few centimeters into water, so I’d just put my phone in a dry bag, tie it to the side of the speaker, and set it adrift. Way less clunky than a headset and worked great

There's $100 waterproof bone conduction headphones with built in storage that works great. Speech is pretty trippy and well suited for bone conduction. Only issue is you have to find mp3s of audio, which usually means sailing high seas.

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2023

#118

Post by dragonwriter »

baron816 wrote: post #15

This box cutter tool, which is https://a.co/d/aOxoVOp . It makes opening packages so much easier. It doesn’t have a blade, so it’s much safer to use than scissors or a knife.

> It doesn’t have a blade

It says it has a "ceramic blade" that "stays sharp up to 11x longer".

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2023

#119

Post by majkinetor »

nslice wrote: post #57

Wyze Smart Deadbolt. $79, secure, and convenient. You never have to worry about losing a key again. I live in a cold area and it works reliably. The auto lock is so nice so you don’t worry about if you locked the door. Also great to allow guests or contractors in if you can’t go home to let them in. Makes my life so amazing.

Yeah, smart locks are nice. I have Nuki 2 and am equally happy. Even though it disconnects from the wifi, get huge latency on notifications and battery lasts only 2 months at most, the autolock and opening door with fingerprint is total addiction and works flawlessly. If all other features worked as promoted for that price, I would buy it for all the doors. A friend of mine wasn't so lucky, his Nuki blocks constantly and drains battery after a couple of days...

I was always behind an open door during the day until I bought Nuki. Now I am always locked and surprisingly, after only 6mo of usage I am very uncomfortable when autolock is not enabled.

Not needing a key but still having a backup in case it stops working is awesome.

It is expensive though, Nuki without fingerprint reader and dor sensor is less than $200 but with everything price is around $450

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2023

#120

Post by brianjking »

Cockbrand wrote: post #117

Portable 16" monitor with 4k resolution and USB C passthrough. Very handy when travelling. It makes me much more productive when working from a hotel room or anywhere else, and it's just about the size of a 16" laptop, but thinner.

Ooh, nice, which did you purchase?
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