Ask HN: What sub $200 product improved your 2022 • Hacker News Board

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

#951

Post by nickthegreek » Sat, Jan 07, 2023, 3:05 PM UTC

antifa wrote: post #913

nickthegreek wrote: post #117

If you control 2-3 computers next to each other, I recommend the Logitech MX Keys and MX Master 3s. I can control multiple computers and switch between them by holding ctrl and bringing my mouse to the edge of a screen. It then jumps to the other computer seamlessly. Now my desk is clutter free of multiple mice and keyboards.

> bringing my mouse to the edge of a screen Doesn't work on Linux. The keyboard is great, but you have to physically pick up the mouse and press a button on the bottom. It's way easier to just have 2 or 3 mice at $100. Switching to bluetooth has a seconds long delay. Regular wireless is instant. Android apps (not the YouTube app, but definitely jellyfin and some others) tend to shit themselves when you connect the MX…

If you use their software with Flow setting, you don’t need to hit the mouse button, but as you state. This isn’t Linux friendly. I also use the logi bolt, which removes the all switching lag.

The button being on the bottom of the mouse is the absolute dumbest thing that they did with this setup for sure.

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

#952

Post by chegra » Sat, Jan 07, 2023, 4:03 PM UTC

Surgical Tape. I read Breath by James Nestor[1]. One of the suggestions is to put a one inch tape over your mouth during the night. It prevents mouth breathing and reduce instances of sleep apnea. I tried it; I start feeling refreshed after 3 days. You can give it a try, surgical tape is like $5USD.

1. Point 20 - https://www.chestergrant.com/summary-breath-by-james-nestor

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

#953

Post by shireboy » Sat, Jan 07, 2023, 4:12 PM UTC

samsolomon wrote: post #407

This is a weird one—Fiskars 4-Claw Weeder https://www.homedepot.com/p/Fiskars-34-in-Aluminum-Handle-an... Our dogs are frequently out in the yard, so other than spring pre-emergent I try to avoid herbicides. I bought it after a hand weeder broke pulling up crabgrass. This thing has oddly been one of the most satisfying purchases I've made in years. You put it in the ground, step on it and the thing easily pulls out w…

If I pulled all the weeds out of my yard all I would have is dirt.

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

#954

Post by dublinben » Sat, Jan 07, 2023, 4:36 PM UTC

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.

A properly fitting bicycle that will get you out for exercise and transportation will pay immense dividends. Decent e-bikes are in this range now, and can now realistically replace a car for many people who would not consider themselves ‘cyclists’.

Similarly, a membership to a gym or other kind of physical activity (martial arts, etc.) that you’ll stick with is worth it to anyone who largely sits in front of a computer for work.

Pretty much anyone can also benefit from a few months of therapy. We all have baggage from our childhoods that can be overcome, and all of your personal and professional relationships will prosper as a result.

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

#955

Post by christophilus » Sat, Jan 07, 2023, 6:47 PM UTC

rPlayer6554 wrote: post #498

A fountain pen! I got a LAMY safari and it's so nice to write with. It's expensive for a pen although cheap for a fountain pen which can get expensive. I was peckish about buying it for 20 bucks but now that I use it I'm eying a $200 LAMY 2000.

Same, but I got the Muji aluminum pen. I love that thing. It’s way better than I thought it’d be.

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

#956

Post by christophilus » Sat, Jan 07, 2023, 6:50 PM UTC

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.

Started using a safety razor maybe 10 years ago. Still haven’t gone through all of the blades I bought back then. This is maybe one of the best inexpensive purchases I ever made.

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

#957

Post by jdmg94 » Sat, Jan 07, 2023, 6:52 PM UTC

bonestamp2 wrote: post #546

holy_diver wrote: post #209

A bidet. We got one with heated water and seats and going to the bathroom feels super luxurious now. Not to mention all the toilet paper we save and increased hygiene.

I've always wondered what people do with their wet butt after using the bidet... dry with a towel, smaller amount of toilet paper... what's the norm?

I use charmin ultra strong to dry off, and it always comes clean so its reassuring

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

#958

Post by lucb1e » Sat, Jan 07, 2023, 7:02 PM UTC

dajonker wrote: post #739

lucb1e wrote: post #142

Space heater, 20 bucks. In the past I chose to heat the bedroom a little on cold days and otherwise suck it up and dress while shivering (no point burning a ton of gas to heat an entire bedroom). Now, I use 1.5 kW for ~3 minutes (0.01 kWh) to have hot air be blown on me while getting dressed in the morning. Because it changes how warm I feel while going downstairs, I also don't need downstairs to be as warm to get wa…

Your math is off by a lot. 1.5 kW for 3 minutes is 0.075 kWh.

> Your math is off by a lot. 1.5 kW for 3 minutes is 0.075 kWh

Oh, you're right, I rounded the three quarter up to a one, but failed to remove the zero before it. Either way, it's a lot better than even just filling up the cold radiator with hot water, let alone it heating the rest of the room up!

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

#959

Post by lucb1e » Sat, Jan 07, 2023, 7:10 PM UTC

satvikpendem wrote: post #475

lucb1e wrote: post #142

Space heater, 20 bucks. In the past I chose to heat the bedroom a little on cold days and otherwise suck it up and dress while shivering (no point burning a ton of gas to heat an entire bedroom). Now, I use 1.5 kW for ~3 minutes (0.01 kWh) to have hot air be blown on me while getting dressed in the morning. Because it changes how warm I feel while going downstairs, I also don't need downstairs to be as warm to get wa…

When I used to mine cryptocurrency, I ran the miners as my space heater too. Now with gaming PCs and GPUs pulling up to 1.5 kW as well, I just use my computer, running GPU tasks, plying games, etc, when I need some warmth. It works well and at least the miner and computer were doing useful work rather than simply shedding heat.

> I just use my computer [...] when I need some warmth

The difference is that the computer's fans don't blow directly at you and make you warm while leaving the room effectively unchanged as in my use-case.

When heating up a room, regular natural gas central heating is usually a lot more efficient than electricity. A gas power plant creating electricity for you to turn back into heat is rather lossy. Heat pumps are different: they roughly break even if you have a 100% gas power mix, because they move heat at 300% efficiency instead of creating new heat.

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

#960

Post by lucb1e » Sat, Jan 07, 2023, 7:17 PM UTC

angry_moose wrote: post #641

lucb1e wrote: post #142

Space heater, 20 bucks. In the past I chose to heat the bedroom a little on cold days and otherwise suck it up and dress while shivering (no point burning a ton of gas to heat an entire bedroom). Now, I use 1.5 kW for ~3 minutes (0.01 kWh) to have hot air be blown on me while getting dressed in the morning. Because it changes how warm I feel while going downstairs, I also don't need downstairs to be as warm to get wa…

I posted this separately, but look into a heated mattress pad too. Its life changing for cold climates. Direct heat into your covers makes it so much cozier.

Got something like that too! Not sure why I didn't mention it honestly. So in the morning I get out of bed and turn on the air heating so I get dressed in warmth; in the evening I turn on the heated blanket while brushing my teeth and warm up the bed and covers. Also allows me to leave the room colder while not being cold in bed for the first twenty minutes.

I don't know the power draw while it warms up. The packaging says 100W but I measured it to actually use only ~30W, average during 1.5 hours. Maybe it does use 100W the first 5 minutes or so. Let's say it uses the full 100W for up to 15 minutes while I do my evening hygiene ritual as an upper bound, that would be 0.025 kWh (1 cent last year, 2 cents at current prices).

Definitely recommendable.