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“Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

andrewchen.co

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Re: “Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

#201

Post by ijidak »

It would be neat to see a more in-depth analysis on the success of these X for Y startups vs non.

A big reason for X for Y, besides simplicity of explanation is...

X is usually a novel NEW process -- or way of doing things -- that either became only recently possible , or was recently demonstrated as successful.

Suddenly it becomes clear that this NOVEL new process can be applied in other areas.

Uber and AirBnB opened up efficient sharing of expensive resources that were underutilized prior.

Now, the natural next step is:

"What other expensive resources are underutilized?"

Boats? Commercial retail or wharehouse space? Tractors and heavy equipment?

So, in the early stages of rolling out a newly realized novel process, it seems impossible that the process should not expand to a number of similar problems.

Until the low hanging fruit is all gathered.

Uber for Y, for example, seems to be only in its VERY EARLY stages.

No doubt there are MANY Y's out there to roll out the Uber model to.

Re: “Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

#202

Post by timc3 »

kkarakk wrote: post #197
amit_m wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I happen to own a Toyota Camry and a BMW 5 series (not M5 or any other specialty model). Even for day-to-day errands, the BMW is a pleasure to drive. There is a lot of feedback and sharp responses from the steering wheel and throttle. The Camry on the other hand is one of the least pleasing cars to drive. The suspension feels “floaty” and the steering wheel is completely dead. It also feels completely outdated and ch…

That's interesting, do you think you would buy a Camry that was as responsive as the BMW - if it were available- and replace your BMW with it? I think most of car ownership is Signalling personally

It can be but often it’s not, particularly when people are into cars.

Things like handling, the interior quality, noise makes a big difference to some.

Would I replace my BMW with a Toyota if it handled as well, had as good engine, had a better screen and computer system and such a well calibrated gear box - of course. And Lexus IS getting close.

Re: “Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

#203

Post by ss3000 »

QuinnWilton wrote: post #8
alex-wallish wrote: post #2

"Airbnb for Gamers" according to the infographic isn't taken. Any potential there? Letting people rent out their physical gaming rigs to other people in the area, in their homes. Seems like it'd be pretty easy to set up. I could see it be kind of like gaming cafe's in Asia, except you'd be renting a rig in somebody's actual home. I don't know if there'd be any market for this, but it seems like it wouldn't take to mu…

I suspect that, at least in places with decent internet, something like ShadowPC negates the need for such a service. I rent a top of the line gaming PC for ~$25/month, and run my games in the cloud. With what I used to spend keeping a gaming rig upgraded, it doesn't even make sense not to rent something that's always going to be state of the art.

First time hearing about Shadow. Their site doesn't mention anything about usage limits, so it sounds a bit too good to be true. Do they have any usage limits in practice?

Re: “Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

#204

Post by solatic »

amit_m wrote: post #189
throwaway1777 wrote: post #179

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That’s positioning and marketing too since you don’t really need the performance. For 99% of the time you use the car they’re about the same. If only life were all twisties and race tracks, but in reality it’s mostly traffic jams.

I happen to own a Toyota Camry and a BMW 5 series (not M5 or any other specialty model). Even for day-to-day errands, the BMW is a pleasure to drive. There is a lot of feedback and sharp responses from the steering wheel and throttle. The Camry on the other hand is one of the least pleasing cars to drive. The suspension feels “floaty” and the steering wheel is completely dead. It also feels completely outdated and ch…

Believe it or not, some people prefer that floaty feel. For them, it's like the difference between walking on carpet and on concrete. Not everybody desires or appreciates a "sharp response".

Market segmentation at work.

Re: “Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

#205

Post by ghaff »

xur17 wrote: post #159
SkyPuncher wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is exactly the point. I tend to avoid Kroger brands because I do not like that most of their sale prices are dictated by having a Kroger Card. I'm not particularly price conscientious and find Kroger has a great selection and quality. I simply choose elsewhere when I can.

> I tend to avoid Kroger brands because I do not like that most of their sale prices are dictated by having a Kroger Card. Aren't most grocery chains like this?

Not really. The grocery chain I shop at the most doesn't even have a loyalty card. The other has one but it's a fairly nominal discount only on house-branded items. But there are certainly chains that require a card to get routine large discounts. (Safeway for example.)

Re: “Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

#206

Post by jlokier »

rhizome wrote: post #152
greggman2 wrote: post #115

Earlier quoted context omitted.

me being stupid but I actually thought flickr for video would fail because video takes more work than photos to create and because it takes more time to view them. clearly I was wrong

The part that gets me with video is the upload time. Do people just have faster connections than me, or is the secret to create a phone app that restricts the files to greatly reduced resolutions? Seems like flickr for video would require greater bandwidth or time requirements, but I might simply be clueless.

Mobile data has been fast enough for many years now, depending where you live.

My 2 year old phone has 20Mbit/s upload and 79Mbit/s download on a good day. I don't upload videos, but if I did I expect that's fast enough in the background.

The phone upload is way faster than my "fiber" connection at home was, when I still had one.

Re: “Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

#207

Post by MuffinFlavored »

RHSeeger wrote: post #191
tybit wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Sure, we can point at the extremes and find differences, but I am not talking about that, I am focusing on what the vast majority of consumers look for or need in a car.

You don't really need to look for extremes, though. Even jumping up one brand "level", you see differences in the "details". I (generally) won't buy anything below the Nissan/Toyota/Honda level, and usually the middle range car (eg. Nissan Maxima). At that level, you start to see all the little things that make driving a pleasure; lumbar support, heated steering wheel, etc. You tend not to get those details when you…

> below the Nissan/Toyota/Honda level

What is below those brands in your opinion? Hyundai/Kia?

Re: “Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

#208

Post by RHSeeger »

MuffinFlavored wrote: post #207
RHSeeger wrote: post #191

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don't really need to look for extremes, though. Even jumping up one brand "level", you see differences in the "details". I (generally) won't buy anything below the Nissan/Toyota/Honda level, and usually the middle range car (eg. Nissan Maxima). At that level, you start to see all the little things that make driving a pleasure; lumbar support, heated steering wheel, etc. You tend not to get those details when you…

> below the Nissan/Toyota/Honda level What is below those brands in your opinion? Hyundai/Kia?

Mitsubishi, Buick, Mini, Chevy, Dodge, etc all fall below the Nissan/Toyota/Honda level in my mind. That doesn't mean all their cars are worse than all of Nissan's cars; it just means my experience tells me that aren't "made as nice" (the details I mentioned).

Re: “Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

#209

Post by luckydata »

nostrademons wrote: post #138
dkarl wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I found the best thing about Tinder when I used it was that by stripping down information and interaction to the bare minimum, it gets people face-to-face quickly with few established expectations, which is the best way to get to know anybody. There is so much about a person you can't learn through a web site or an app, and conventional dating sites worked very hard at getting you to invest a lot of time and work int…

It doesn't work with the reality of being a parent. There's no such thing as low-stress, low-commitment way of meeting people when you have an infant or toddler. At the very least, you need to arrange for a spouse to take the kid or deal with their retinue (car seat, stroller or baby carrier, snacks, water, milk, bib, baby wipes, and diaper). At worst, you need to arrange for a sitter, schedule everything, communicat…

I have a different perspective as an immigrant and parent of a toddler: Americans make it a lot harder than it needs to be. My friends in Europe do all kind of things with their little kids, constantly meet friends... Americans have a LOT of excuses but at the core they just don't prioritize social life above other considerations.

Re: “Is your startup idea taken?” and why we love X for Y startups

#210

Post by mrbuttons454 »

malodyets wrote: post #91

Is anyone else offended by the non-dismissable email signup pop-over on this page? Ctrl/Cmd-R refresh allows continuing to read from the same point, but still....

I came to the comments looking for this, and was surprised it was so far down. They are just asking for garbage input...
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