Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#671

Post by Sohcahtoa82 » Thu, May 20, 2021, 6:32 PM UTC

gaws wrote: post #629

nunez wrote: post #282

The AirPods Max have been incredible for music and Zoom calls. The Tesla Model 3 is an amazing car that completely ruins all other cars for me. I can't imagine driving anything else right now. The MacBook Air M1 really does live up to the hype. You can do all-day Zooms on this thing and still have battery to spare. This was impossible on my Intel MacBook Pro. The Air is also insanely fast. It's literally the perfect…

> The Tesla Model 3 is an amazing car that completely ruins all other cars for me. I can't imagine driving anything else right now. Imagine having the money to buy one of these.

$40K isn't that expensive for a good portion of HN. You can usually get them used for even cheaper, though I'd always be weary about buying from a used car dealership, as they're often clueless about Teslas and will claim a car has FSD when it doesn't. I've also seen them try to sell a used Model 3 Standard Range (The $40K base model) for $60K, which is more than the Performance model.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#672

Post by joshgel » Thu, May 20, 2021, 6:32 PM UTC

0xB31B1B wrote: post #459

Peloton Bike. I bought it for my wife and thought, I've never been an indoor spinner person. I thoughth I would hate it, and now I ride it 240 minutes/week. I've lost 25 lbs in 4 months, I sleep like a baby and I have more energy and focus when I'm awake. The threshold energy needed to hop on the bike is much lower than the threshold energy needed to go to the gym so I just do it way more frequently. Strong endorse.

Agree. We got ours in Jan 2020 because we had a new baby and it was hard to make it to the gym regularly.

I played college sports and work out regularly over the past 15 years since then. I'm pretty self-motivated to stay fit. I didn't expect to really enjoy the "class" part of Peloton, but I really find it moderately more motivating than just doing things myself. I end up working out harder, longer and more frequently. Recommend.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#673

Post by rixrax » Thu, May 20, 2021, 6:32 PM UTC

TacticalCoder wrote: post #362

Unlikely to get upvoted here but a used Porsche Panamera with an extended bumper-to-bumper manufacturer warranty. As Doug Demuro says it's cheap, really cheap. There's not a single brand new car costing, say, 75 K EUR or less that I'd have rather than that because the quality simply ain't there. The ride comfort, soundsystem, sound insulation, interior quality, how it drives superbly (and can yet be used for some spi…

Similar story here! Got a used 1987MB R107 560 SL. Paid slightly under $20k with less than 80k miles on it with only one previous owner. It’s mechanically in excellent condition with not so great interior. But hey, it’s totally fun to cruise around top down, and can be serviced in a variety of places at somewhat reasonable rates. And when you pull up to Alice’s Restaurant (well haven’t since last spring...) on Skyline blvd, it gets almost more attention than those Lambos and Teslas that ‘everyone’ is taking there! See son, that is class! ;)

Anyways - your mileage may vary, but I’ve been totally happy with this purchase. And driving and tinkering with it has offered great distractions from the otherwise gloomy year.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#674

Post by danShumway » Thu, May 20, 2021, 6:34 PM UTC

hairofadog wrote: post #154

* Shoes: VivoBarefoot Magna Trail II FG ( https://www.vivobarefoot.com/us/magna-trail-ii-fg-mens ). If you enjoy barefoot shoes, these things are fantastic. * For the table saw, this sawdust bag ( https://www.homedepot.com/p/Bosch-Table-Saw-Dust-Collector-S... ) does a surprisingly good job for $11, and this set of Dado blades ( https://www.homedepot.com/p/DIABLO-8-in-x-12-Teeth-Stacked-D... ) has saved me a ton of t…

I'm always very hesitant to recommend "barefoot" shoes since everyone's feet are different and I know some people who have had horrible experiences with them. They definitely are not a magic solution for everyone, and for some people they'll be actively harmful.

But for whatever it's worth, switching to VivoBarefoot (Primus Lite) resulted in a massive decrease in foot pain for me. My shin splints basically vanished. I've had them for maybe a year and a half, and I am never going back to traditional shoes.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#675

Post by meristohm » Thu, May 20, 2021, 6:34 PM UTC

Azure Standard (in Dufur, Oregon) “unifine”[0] flour (I buy mostly rye, whole wheat, bread flour, AP, corn meal). I think these flours taste better than from other processes. I make simple sourdough (no waste: feeding over several days to a week at 16-19 degrees C, setting aside a cup for the next batch, mixing in new flour and less than 1tsp iodized salt for about 8c flour, kneading or not much, oiling, baking flat or rounded at 325-350 for an hour or so; turns out tough, and I like it that way, for toddler face development[1] since we’re not gnawing much meat), pancakes, cornbread. So far I prefer unifine flours for taste and nutrition, since the milling temperature doesn’t get as high as stoneground. I might be misguided, though; feel free to set me straight on this.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unifine_mill

[1] Breath, by James Nestor http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1249567607

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#676

Post by alanbernstein » Thu, May 20, 2021, 6:36 PM UTC

MediumD wrote: post #360

alanbernstein wrote: post #339

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I used to think noise-cancelling headphones were a gimmick. I'm also pretty indifferent to audio quality, so I never expected to buy expensive headphones. But I had an opportunity to try out one of the best options available right now, and the noise cancelling performance blew me away. With the closed-back cups sealing over my ears, and the noise cancelling active, I can only just hear normal-volume conversation next…

Which headphone did you try? That sounds amazing

XM3, my understanding is that the noise cancelling performance is similar to the XM4.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#677

Post by hateful » Thu, May 20, 2021, 6:36 PM UTC

Jakobeha wrote: post #128

Material goods: Ear plugs (silicone). Don't waste your money on noise-cancelling headphones, I have $200 ones and they don't compare to simple ear plugs. If you live in a moderately noisy area and you want peace and quiet, get them. They basically just make everything quiet. 24 from CVS = $10. OpenMove by Aftershokz - Bone-conduction headphones. Perfect for running and just good for listening to music. They work, the…

> Patreon and Github sponsors.

This was a big one for me. I donate ~2 to not just projects I happen to like, but to ones that I've used and have given me a good return on investment.

Honorable mentions: Vuejs, Bootstrap Vue

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#678

Post by fred92 » Thu, May 20, 2021, 6:38 PM UTC

Finally caved and bought myself a light down jacket (https://www.rei.com/product/154226/rei-co-op-650-down-jacket...) initially for hiking but as it turns out there is a reason you see so many people wearing these in the bay area. It is perfect for cool/windy bay-area/SF evenings. Have been wearing it almost every day for the past year.

Also a robot vacuum. I didn't think it would work for me but I started forming a habit where I tidy and then turn it on whenever I am leaving my apartment and the cleanliness/effort ratio is of the charts.

And this beautifully drawn book: https://www.amazon.com/Best-Coast-Illustrated-Adventures-His... Spent so many blissful hours daydreaming/researching about road-trips.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#679

Post by bhouston » Thu, May 20, 2021, 6:38 PM UTC

slimbods wrote: post #647

A very basic but effective home gym: A barbell and 140kg of bumper plates, Squat/bench stands, bench, slam ball, dumbbells and a small range of kettlebells. The whole thing cost about the equivalent of a year's gym membership but have lasted two years so far and show no sign of wear. Being able to lift something heavy on a regular basis over the last year has been a massive boost for my mental and physical health. Yo…

https://prxperformance.com is an awesome solution there, but I am biased.

Re: Ask HN: Favorite purchases of last two years?

#680

Post by Sohcahtoa82 » Thu, May 20, 2021, 6:39 PM UTC

namelosw wrote: post #368

I've been improving my desk accessories since the COVID breakout. Aeron Chair + IKEA IDÅSEN electric standing desk. With perfect height combination finally, I don't feel shoulder pain when typing. Unlike most standing desks, IDÅSEN is not wobbly at all. A double-decker book stand. I sometimes get distracted when I use the computer so I started to spend more time on paper-based workflow. I have serious back pain when…

> Aeron Chair + IKEA IDÅSEN electric standing desk.

A good chair is a must-have for any office worker or PC gamer.

And as a gamer, I tell fellow gamers to avoid "gaming" chairs and instead opt for a high-end office chair. Personally, I'm not a fan of the Aeron, but I have a nice Steelcase Think.

Last year around this time, I also upgraded from a 9 year old $200 Ikea Fredrik desk to an electric Fully Jarvis.