A cheap phone stand for my desk, saves me putting it down in a random place and then losing it. Also a MASSIVE thermos cup that I can fill with ice and water and doesn't need refilling all day.
ASK HN: What’s a small thing you’ve purchased which has made your life better?
71–80 of 186 posts
Re: ASK HN: What’s a small thing you’ve purchased which has made your life better?
#72A retractable USB-C cable and a 3M one. A backpack that's also a bike pannier (Ortlieb Vario PS). This is great for shopping. Bicycle gloves, for colder days. The Decathlon midrange model is good.
I have a few retractable multi-cables (micro USB, usb-c, lightning) and they bring me joy every time I use them. No hunting for or switching out different cables. No dongles. No long cords cluttering the space. I think everyone I know that has seen mine has gone on to buy their own
Re: ASK HN: What’s a small thing you’ve purchased which has made your life better?
#73A Pitbull Skull Shaver: https://skullshaver.com/products/pitbull-silver-pro-head-and... Shaves well dry (which I do when camping) but is also water resistant for the shower. Recharge once a week at most. Used to dread shaving my head each morning, but having an excuse to stand around in the shower longer suits me just fine.
Does it get a decently close shave? I use a razor every other day because I haven't found anything electric that gets that "clean shaven" look. Definitely open to not having to do that.
Re: ASK HN: What’s a small thing you’ve purchased which has made your life better?
#74Re: ASK HN: What’s a small thing you’ve purchased which has made your life better?
#75Noise cancelling headphones have been a revelation. I can now work in an open plan office without blasting music etc in my ears. I can drive my old cheap car on the highway without lots of annoying noise. Etc etc. The benefits are many.
Someone told me that noise cancellation gave them tinnitus, and some weeks later out of cheer curiosity I was looking into how people who lose some of their hearing can get it back, and it turns out, when you have hearing loss, your brain / ear tries to adapt as much as possible, and you essentially could get tinnitus, its your brain trying to fill in the quiet. So if you've got any sort of hearing loss, I would take…
I don't usually listen to silence as there is still a slight hiss from the headphones regardless. Brown noise is my preference for "null sound".
Re: ASK HN: What’s a small thing you’ve purchased which has made your life better?
#76Noise cancelling headphones have been a revelation. I can now work in an open plan office without blasting music etc in my ears. I can drive my old cheap car on the highway without lots of annoying noise. Etc etc. The benefits are many.
Any recommendation for best noise cancelling headphones? I'm looking at bose quiet comfort 45 or Sony WH-1000XM5, but I can't decide.
Re: ASK HN: What’s a small thing you’ve purchased which has made your life better?
#77Ergonomic split keyboard + tenting kit. Ergonomic mouse too.
Re: ASK HN: What’s a small thing you’ve purchased which has made your life better?
#78A Kelly Kettle: https://www.kellykettle.com/ .. cheap, light, and easy to operate, it has made my outdoor expeditions so much more comfortable, and for some reason provides peace of mind since, if the grid goes kablooey, there's plenty of twigs for the next cuppa tea ..
do you take it backpacking? i would be concerned finding dry kindling if you relied in it for boiling water/cooking
Re: ASK HN: What’s a small thing you’ve purchased which has made your life better?
#79More ergonomic peripherals are a good suggestion:
A good trackball instead of a mouse. (I love my Elecom Huge).
Non-standard keyboards where you can uses your thumbs (e.g. ZSA's moonlander) are a significant improvement over keyboards which retain an impractically large spacebar.
Re: ASK HN: What’s a small thing you’ve purchased which has made your life better?
#80A remote control for the bedroom ceiling light. I can take my prosthesis off and put in on while sitting on the bed. The light is better than the bedside lamp