Ask HN: Life-changing purchases since 2020? (Under $100 and under $1000)

Not sure about the privacy but afaik you can’t use the thing without the app and being connected to the internet. That was a dealbreaker for me

Under $100:

- NEXUS ($50 for 5 years). Comes with TSA Pre and Global Entry.

- ChatGPT $20/mth and Claude $20/mth. Completely changed how I ideate and work.

- Cosori Air Fryer $70 + a stack of wax paper. Changes my food bill and health. I can buy a bunch of healthy stuff from Costco, and make delicious meals daily in under 20 mins.

- AirTags ($28/piece). I tag my car, my luggage, my wallet, my keys, etc. And I never get anxious again.

- Black socks from Amazon. I bought 17 pairs of identical black socks, so I don’t ever have to match socks again. I can just grab any two.

- Samsers folding Bluetooth Keyboard $60. I pair this compact foldable keyboard with my iPhone and iPad, so I can type with an actual keyboard anywhere I go.

There are also a bunch of high quality grooming tools like a Panasonic electric razor, Tweezerman tweezers, rounded scissors, etc. that improveme my quality of life. There’s also a clever porcelain $4 toothbrush holder from Muji that is amazing. There’s also a toothpaste squeezer from Amazon.

Health wise, I’ve gotten better sleep from heavy curtains which blocks street noise. Also a wedge pillow has helped decrease snoring. An Aroma USB heated eye mask has helped with dry eye.

Under $1000:

- $180 per pair - 2 pairs of AirPods Pro 2. ANC for 10 hour work day, peace of mind.

- $200 Apple Watch Series 7. I charge it twice a day when I shower but otherwise I wear it all the time. Great for health tracking and sleep alarm, but it’s most useful feature for me is Apple Pay. I pay for stuff with a double click on the dial, no need to whip out my phone. It also unlocks my Mac automatically. I used to wear Tissots but no more. I’m sold on Apple Watch.

- $180 Levoit humidifier

- $200 Coway Air purifier.

- $100 Allbirds shoes. They’re expensive but I’ve had mine for 4 years, worn daily. They’re tech bro shoes but they do live up to their reputation.

- $120 Patagonia Better Sweater vest. This is more of a finance bro getup but it is warm and pairs with anything and still looks smarter than a hoodie. This matters. As much as tech people don’t care about dressing well, the person who dresses just a bit better gets taken just a bit more seriously. Humans are hardwired for superficial things unfortunately.

- $150/week up to deductible (I have HSA so high deductible but folks on FSA can get therapy for more cheaper plus most therapists have sliding scale). Best investment ever is weekly therapy sessions. I’ve worked through so many things that I’m a much more regulated person and am able to heal from a lot of stuff that were affecting new relationships. I wish I did this 20 years sooner.

I bought a Tushy during the pandemic, it took about 10 minutes and a flathead screwdriver.

I liked it so much that when I had a new bathroom installed a year later I put in a Toto Washlet.

Thanks, I’ll try customer support and see how it goes.

Strongly disagree about Spotify. Quality aside, many albums simply aren't there! I have my own routine of discovering new pearls (YouTube used to help me with that years ago, nowadays it just suggests what I already viewed or some random stuff) and I set aside some time for that. After that, I choose the albums I really like, in the best quality.

The problem that Spotify actually tries to solve is that no matter how much we love that particular piece or album, we will get bored with it at some point, even if you dose your pleasure. So in theory Spotify could ease the process of finding interesting music. But in practice, I wound nothing can bet the tedious process of manual research and selection.