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

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

#341

Post by bm-rf »

grech wrote: post #151

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 cal…

I’ve owned both the pro and the max. Returned the max because the pro has noticeably superior noise canceling. Also weight + portability.

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

#342

Post by tootie »

ethbr0 wrote: post #255

Oxo's old style ice cream spade (apparently discontinued?) 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... Shaving was a cheaply…

Almost everything oxo makes is great. Their tongs are perfect.

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

#343

Post by akeck »

japhyr wrote: post #134

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/produc... For mechanical pencils, the Rotring 600 is the best thing I've ever written with: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AZWYUA4/

My absolute favorite pencil with which to do math is the Pentel Kerry .7mm. It feels so good.

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

#344

Post by fatboy93 »

brundolf wrote: post #290

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…

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.

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

#345

Post by tootie »

langcalvin wrote: post #278

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.

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.

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

#346

Post by hooande »

toomanyrichies wrote: post #155

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 t…

"When a device as simple as a door has to come with an instruction manual—even a one-word manual—then it is a failure, poorly designed."

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

#347

Post by alok-g »

grech wrote: post #151

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 cal…

I hear the latency is high, which is a challenge for all wireless earphones. So good for music and calls, but not for videos, games, singing. Do I understand correctly? :-)

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

#348

Post by adjkant »

shepherdjerred wrote: post #334
hn_throwaway_99 wrote: post #310

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…

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.

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 :/

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

#349

Post by atulatul »

japhyr wrote: post #134

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/produc... For mechanical pencils, the Rotring 600 is the best thing I've ever written with: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AZWYUA4/

Wolf Garten tools are good, too.

https://www.wolf-garten.com/

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

#350

Post by dhosek »

micro_cam wrote: post #227

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 a…

In high school, I occasionally used my grandfather’s M3. That was one damned fine camera. Some great glass too.

The telephoto lens was great for sports photography because I could see the activity outside the frame with the viewfinder.

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