721–730 of 1001 posts
The ancient microwave in my first apartment. It had two knobs: one for time, one for power. It's immediately obvious how to cook something for how long, how to add more time, etc. All other microwaves that I've used I had to have someone explain to me what buttons to press in what order to do even the simplest things. And I've never seen anyone use all of those fancy buttons.
#1 The Nokia N9 (specifically the alarm clock) When trying to find a clone for Android, I found this guy's blog post which explains why it's perfect: http://www.nition.co/2014/08/the-nokia-n9-alarm-clock/ The swipe interface of the operating system is also the best I've ever used. If I play around with the N9 for a few minutes now; then go back to android, it feels clunky an inefficient again. #2 The Nintendo Gamecub…
Also, one thing I don't understand with the iOS alarm. Why doesn't it work like the Android one? On android, when I set an alarm, it tells me exactly how long I will sleep if I go to sleep right away.
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All those buttons and not a single one to mute the microwaves beeping noises. It would really be handy when others are sleeping.
Now they have bluetooth and chromecast and webcams, so you can play the beeping noises on the stereo speakers of your home media center, and watch your food cook on your giant flat screen TV.
Ikea all steel espresso maker
DC3 aircraft
90s era steel mountain bike
Instant pot pressure cooker. Want to use it as a crock pot? sure. Want to saute things inside it first? sure. Frozen meat or dried beans? Why not! https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00FLYWNYQ?psc=1
Bialetti Brikka - Such an elegant design, and it makes delicious coffee, Italian-style.
Nespresso - If Apple made espresso machines. The espresso tastes great and it's easy to clean.
Patagonia MLC 45L - My pet peeve with luggage is that the good stuff tends to be heavy. Not this! It's big enough for extended travel, has backpack straps if you need it, durable (w/ lifetime guarantee), and is well-designed without being "design-y," if that makes sense.
Charles Schwab checking account - Okay, not a physical product, and doesn't have very impressive visual design, but well-designed regardless. No account minimums or fees, the best customer service I've ever experienced, no foreign transaction fees, and they rebate any and all ATM fees worldwide. It's the absolute perfect money bucket.
Blundstone boots - The perfect footwear if you're unsure of conditions. Hiking--check. Going to dinner--check. Walking in the city--check. Walking through snow--check. Traveling--check. They're very, very comfortable.
Elixir (programming language) - This is what happens when a tool is made for one's own use, as opposed to being designed for a hypothetical "other" who doesn't exist. It's magical.
Zojirushi fuzzy logic rice cooker. I've owned it for more than a decade and made maybe hundreds of pounds of rice. Always perfect. Cast iron skillet. Lodge makes cheap, very high quality, pans that just work, forever (there are many brands, several are great).
Counter argument: there is no point putting money in a rice cooker. Get the cheapest and smallest one (unless you're cooking rice for 6+ people) and you will get exactly the same result. The only annoying thing with these cheaper rice cooker is that you need to unplug them when done, but I bought a switch to sit between the socket and the plug and it works fine :)
Fuzzy logic rice cookers do not burn the bottom and leave a little bit in the middle not quite cooked. This may not be an issue with all cheap rice cookers, but the ones I owned before the Zojirushi left something to be desired even with plain old white rice.
Nice rice cookers have a warming mode that keeps the rice at a nice serving temperature for as long as you need it.
I'm not saying a cheap rice cooker isn't an upgrade over a pot with a lid on the stove...it is. But, a nice fuzzy logic cooker (of which I have only ever used Zojirushi) is better still.
My Zojirushi works fine after more than a decade of use (probably more like 15 years, as it's followed me through multiple houses). I guess it seems pricey compared to a $20 cheap cooker, but amortized over many years of great nearly fully automated rice, I think it's a bargain.
How is this kettle exceptional? I have an electric kettle that boils water ten times as fast (number made up, but it's really faster). As someone who drinks a lot of hot water every day, I find this odd that someone would recommend a non-electrical kettle.
Ortleib panniers ( https://www.google.com/search?q=ortlieb+panniers ): * Are actually waterproof * Don't have lots of unnecessary compartments and pockets * Lift on and off really securely, yet really easily * Can be wiped clean * Super durable * Light * Can be worn as shoulder bag, or carried as a tote * No zips, yet can be completely sealed
I got my pair of Ortlieb Back Roller Classics as a present four years ago.
After I had used at least one bag almost every weekday since then, the rubber shoulder pads had recently ripped and the inner pockets frayed over the screw nuts.
When I contacted their customer service with pictures of the damage, they sent me replacement shoulder straps and pockets free of charge (they even covered shipping costs) although I had no receipt to prove the age of the bags.
Google Reader. It actually let me add feeds, read them, and mark them read reliably. Everything after is focused on value-add instead of just fucking working.