Power rack, to be able to do squats and all sorts of other exercises at home.
So true. At my squat rack right now, which is 3 mt from my bedroom.
Ask HN: What did you purchase that measurably improved your quality of life?
71–80 of 530 posts
Re: Ask HN: What did you purchase that measurably improved your quality of life?
#72Cordless vacuum
Seconded. A while ago we had a bit of a windfall in the form of a Lowe’s gift card and so we splurged on a Dyson. It felt extravagant at the time but now we use it daily and it’s been well worth the investment.
Re: Ask HN: What did you purchase that measurably improved your quality of life?
#73Adguard. https://i.imgur.com/CCLHQTT.png
I use uBlock Origin and PrivacyBadger (which are both free). Does Adguard work better/differently to justify the cost?
>Does Adguard work better/differently to justify the cost?
I can't comment on better as I haven't used either of those products in anger or recently, but Adguard installs itself as a system app, not a browser plugin, and it just works. It's become a standard install on new computers when I set them up. The only side effect I see of an average day is some pages taking a second or two longer before the first paint, presumably due to the quantity of ads removed.
For where I am, the cost of an evergreen licence for a single seat is less than an hour of work, it looks after itself, and I only see ads in Tor. Well worth the $.
Re: Ask HN: What did you purchase that measurably improved your quality of life?
#74Apple Airpod Pros -- long battery life, near instant bluetooth tethering. Even other expensive headphones/earbuds (Bose) for instance could not compete with the ease of use, noise cancellation, and comfort. I don't think about headphones anymore, they just work the way they're supposed to.
Anyone would have a recommendation for a good choice of wireless earbuds (with a mic) for a Pixel phone?
I use Airpods on my Samsung Phone. You don't need an iPhone to enjoy the best aspects of airpods.
Re: Ask HN: What did you purchase that measurably improved your quality of life?
#75A Xiaomi Mi Pocket Magic Massager which I use almost daily. Because of decades of bad posture, I often have crippling tension in my neck muscles. After I discovered acupuncture, I realized that this small tens unit could provide a similar effect more conveniently.
What muscles do you use it on? My forearms have been super tight recently.
My forearms get tight when I'm stressed or sleep deprived. I have one of those large "thumper" massagers (like the "Hangsun Handheld Neck Back Massager" on Amazon). When you use them, find the sore spot in your muscle very close to your elbow. Work that out with the massager.
Re: Ask HN: What did you purchase that measurably improved your quality of life?
#76Re: Ask HN: What did you purchase that measurably improved your quality of life?
#77During Covid: an espresso machine (and quality grinder)
If you're more into coffee and are on more of a budget, the Ninja 12-cup makes an excellent cup of coffee. Combine that with Eight-oclock whole bean Columbian Coffee and any cheap grinder. I prefer this to any coffee-shop coffee.
Re: Ask HN: What did you purchase that measurably improved your quality of life?
#78Books. A few handfuls of them, combined, made a magnitude of a difference in my quality of life. An incredible amount of similar content is available now in video and text form for free, but I think that the same ideas non-book form wouldn't have had the same impact on me.
Examples, suggestions?
I've never created a reading list, so this was a fun exercise.
Programming:
* Analyzing Computer System Performance with Perl::PDQ - Gunther
* The Mythical Man Month - Brooks
Philosophy:
* A Journey Around my Room - de Maistre
* Anger, Mercy, and Revenge - Seneca
* Schrödinger - What is Life?
* Man's Search for Meaning - Frankl
* Essays - Montaigne
* Ethical Intuitionism - Huemer
* The Consolations of Philosophy - de Botton
* A Manual for Living - Epictetus
* Meditations - Aurelius
Psychology / Meaning / Purpose / Science:
* Purpose and Meaning in the Workplace - Dik, Byrne & Steger
* The Case Against Education - Caplan
* Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids - Caplan
* Dawkins - The Selfish Gene
* A Confession - Tolstoy
* Enlightenment Now - Pinker
* The Better Angels of our Nature - Pinker
* The Improving State of the World - Goklany
* The Skeptical Environmentalist - Lomborg
* Religion for Atheists - de Botton
* Ending Aging - de Grey
* Gut Feelings - Gigirenzer
Fiction:
* Heart of Darkness - Conrad
* Candide - Voltaire
* Brave New World - Huxley
* Selected Works - Goethe
* 1984 & Animal Farm - Orwell
Politics:
* Obedience to Authority - Milgram
* The Problem of Political Authority - Huemer
* The Communist Manifesto - Marx
* Socialism - von Mises
* Just One Child - Greenhalgh
* The God That Failed - Crossman
* Death by Government - Rummel
Thought-provoking:
* Free to Learn - Gray
* The Beautiful Tree - Tooley
* Education and the State - West
* The Machinery of Freedom - Friedman
* Against Intellectual Monopoly - Boldrine & Levine
* From Mutual Aid to the Welfare State - Beito
* The Not So Wild, Wild West - Hill
* More Guns, Less Crime - Lott
* Race & Economics - Williams
* Emancipating Slaves, Enslaving Free Men - Hummel
Re: Ask HN: What did you purchase that measurably improved your quality of life?
#79A bidet to save on toilet paper and improvement the quality of your life. I learned about bidets from a HN post a few years ago. Any bidet is pretty good compared to nothing and they are surprisingly easy to install.
Re: Ask HN: What did you purchase that measurably improved your quality of life?
#80Air Fryer
Instant Pot
Noise Cancelling Headphones
Pi-Hole
Custom Bed
Air Purifiers
Walking Treadmill (that turns my automated desk into a treadmill desk)
2-in-1 Shower Splitter