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Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

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Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

#831

Post by theshrike79 »

codetrotter wrote: post #34
Phreaker00 wrote: post #2

Stream deck was a surprisingly good buy for me as well, although in 2020. Previously I had a keyboard with a lot of macro keys, but that died and I didn't want to go without the handy shortcuts I've set up. Now I'm using the stream deck for much more than what my keyboard offered. In terms of best buy in 2022 was the Peak Design Capture Camera Clip. For a photographer it's amazing to not have the weight of the camera…

> Previously I had a keyboard with a lot of macro keys […] Now I'm using the stream deck for much more than what my keyboard offered. Would like to hear more details about what you and OP and others use the stream deck for. I’m trying to understand what it can do that a regular keyboard plus macros couldn’t. I guess convenience is also a big part of it.

If it detects I have Zoom running all the relevant Zoom buttons appear, mute mic & camera on/off being the ones I use most.

For regular use it talks to Apple Music and shows me next/prev/play buttons, with the current album cover as the play button.

I can use it to adjust my Philips Hue lights or set Home Assistant variables directly.

For work I have the most used intranet sites as buttons (Jira, Confluence, version control, etc).

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

#832

Post by DougWebb »

Sohcahtoa82 wrote: post #684
Havoc wrote: post #146

Sodastream. Has significantly increased the amount of water i drink and conversely decreased other crap being drunk High end ricecooker ended up getting more use than expected. USB KVM style switch to change mouse/kyb over between work and personal device

I use a USB switch to swap mouse/keyboard/webcam, but I switch my main monitor between two inputs manually because if I use a monitor switch, then once I swap it to my work computer, Windows detects the monitor is gone and moves all my windows to the second monitor (Which is also a different resolution and has different scaling, so they also all get resized) which is a pain in the ass. I know you can get so-called "a…

I had a 4K Dell monitor as my main, a lower res monitor on one side, and a 16:10 in portrait mode on the other side, all serving two computers. The computer that used DisplayPort for the 4K monitor had the issue you mention; when I swapped source from one computer to the other my open windows all jumped around to the side monitors. Apparently it's the DisplayPort driver that's the problem; HDMI, DVI, and VGA don't behave this way, but DisplayPort does.

I've replaced the 4K Dell and side monitor with a big curved 8K Dell, which has a built-in KVM. My keyboard, mouse, headset, external speaker bar, and webcam are all plugged into the monitor, and they all swap from one PC to the other with a keyboard shortcut that also switches the monitor source. It's a lot handier. However, if I manually switch my portrait monitor to the PC that uses DisplayPort, my windows will still get moved to it when I switch everything else to the other PC. So I just don't switch that portrait monitor very often anymore. Using the keyboard shortcut has made my lazy and I don't bother with the last monitor unless I really need it.

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

#833

Post by theshrike79 »

hasbot wrote: post #521

Not 2022, but in 2021 I switched all of my clothing to synthetic including socks and underwear. This made living in a high humidity area (90+ pretty much every day) soo much more comfortable.

I went the opposite way and switched to merino wool everything. I sweat like a pig and synthetics make me freezing cold when they're sweaty.

Wet wool is still warm and dries _really_ fast.

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

#834

Post by theshrike79 »

snmx999 wrote: post #29

CO2 sensors for every room in my apartment. Before monitoring the CO2 levels I did not realize the relation of tiredness, mental fatigue and high CO2 levels.

CO2 fatigue is a thing.

At a company I used to work for we started wonder why one meeting room got especially rowdy if we had our 2 hour team meeting there.

Had the building management install a CO2 sensor, it got up to 1500ppm. We were practically drunk in there. Turned out it wasn't meant as a meeting room at all and it had zero ventilation ducts - they were all in the room next door, they had just slapped a wall to split it into two.

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

#835

Post by theshrike79 »

Rumel57 wrote: post #588

Kindle Paperwhite. I increased my reading so much with it.

I've been Team Kindle since the very first models that had a keyboard.

I'm at a level where my kindle broke down when I took it out during lunch (half of the screen updated, other half didn't), I just grabbed my phone, ordered a new one then and there and kept reading the book on my phone's Kindle app :D

I went from maybe a book a year to 20-24 books a year.

It's easy to keep always with you, it weighs the same even if you're reading Brandon Sanderson's latest 1600 page tome and it's always on the exact page you left it at.

And if you read longer book series that end in a cliffhanger, you can tap to buy the next one, grab more tea and continue reading even if it's 2 in the morning and you need to work the next day :D

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

#836

Post by hatchoo »

tushar-r wrote: post #9

Replacement battery for the family MBP. Going strong since 2014, and I want to see how far we can use it safely as the family computer without replacement.

Bought a replacement battery battery for my wife's mid 2012 MBP. It was really slow even even after I upgraded RAM to 16GB and put in an SSD. Replacing the battery restored the performance.

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

#837

Post by gooseyman »

bmitc wrote: post #316
dougmwne wrote: post #147

Airpod Pro 2 They are basically bionic ears. Headphones, headset, earplugs, hearing protection, hearing aids, extendable ears, and more. Wish they could act as universal translators, but I suppose that's still yet to come.

Do they actually provide hearing protection? Hearing protection requires a pretty tight seal, which I wasn't aware of any headphones providing aside from in-ear monitors.

I have often wondered if the ANC creates more noise in overcoming the outside noise. I did some googling, but the results made me feel like I was asking a dumb question.

I'm genuinely curious: are there any audiophiles on here that could answer?

FWIW - with the ANC off, sounds that make me 'cringe' (sawzall, table saw, hammer drill, etc.) are very much muffled and seem to be just as muffled as when using foam ear plugs. As others have said, there is a big difference between noise levels for a guy remodeling his bathroom with power tools and a someone that saws concrete for a living.

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

#838

Post by theshrike79 »

daveyjonezz wrote: post #505

- Proper cycling / mountain biking glasses. The amount of air that slips in from the sides with normal glasses can tire your eyes on longer rides or at high speeds. - Safety razor. No longer do I have to buy $30+ cartridge refills but rather 100 packs of blades for ~$10 - A pickleball paddle. The game really is addicting and so far the community has been welcoming.

I started the Safety Razor life around 2006 or so. Bought a 100 pack of blades then.

I'm still going through that pack... Managed to break one handle though =)

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

#839

Post by theshrike79 »

jackschultz wrote: post #351

Meta comment, but I'm curious about the money range of $200-$1000. Many threads like this are for cheaper products (granted, upper limit here of $200 is higher than usual), and a lot of the answers are repeated. I feel it's hard to justify spending larger amounts of money in the range I provided, but in the end, there are times when the value absolutely is worth it. Finding those times is the difficult part.

Standing desk with memory, not the ones with just the up-down buttons. I can just slap number 2 on the desk, push back and stand up. The table will stop exactly at my standing work position.

Walking mat for said standing desk. A coworker of mine swears by this, I'm still considering one. They even walk while watching movies on the TV :D

A proper working chair, your ass is going to be on it for 8+ hours. Don't skimp on it.

Steam Deck. Seriously. It made gaming fun again. My gaming PC hasn't been booted since September when I got the deck. I can only do one thing with it, play games. It's always suspended on exactly where I left with the game I'm currently playing through. I can use it on the couch, toilet, train, vacation or even when there is downtime at work =)

Re: Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022

#840

Post by thedougd »

albert_e wrote: post #213
jannw wrote: post #6

I work from home - with a 5 minute screensaver with complicated password required by corporate - USB MouseJiggler - https://www.amazon.com/Undetectable-Computer-Simulate-Moveme... Best - Purchase - Ever - !

I open a PowerPoint and put it in screenshow mode. this usually keeps the laptop from going to lock screen bonus: press B to blackout the screenshow to avoid monitor burn-in

Opening a YouTube live stream also works to keep my screen from sleeping.
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