A $1k Wheelchair • Hacker News Board

Re: A $1k Wheelchair

#431

Post by meowster » Wed, Oct 02, 2024, 10:24 PM UTC

nothercastle wrote: post #363

dsego wrote: post #301

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And it makes a world of difference for a small kid as I've experienced recently, totally worth it if you can afford a lightweight bike (eg 5kg 16" vs standard 8-9kg).

Absolutely, some of these bikes are the adult equivalent of 150lb bikes for kids. No wonder the kids hate them. Even a light weight bike is like a 70lb bike.

They do?

I don't remember hating my bike when I was a kid, and I had the cheap kind. I also don't remember it being too heavy or anything. Of course if I wanted to ride my bike, I had to lift the heavy wooden garage door up (elementary-school-age). Kids that I volunteer with all seem weak and have issues that I never had.

There's a parable about helping a butterfly out of a cocoon:

https://paulocoelhoblog.com/2007/12/10/the-lesson-of-the-but...

Re: A $1k Wheelchair

#432

Post by sterlind » Thu, Oct 03, 2024, 1:04 AM UTC

roywiggins wrote: post #235

sterlind wrote: post #193

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Traditional power chairs are much bigger and heavier than lightweight manual chairs. They're a nightmare to transport unless you have a custom van with an elevator. They also can't handle curbs. Ultralight manual chairs are often foldable, and light enough that you can transfer out of your chair into the driver's seat of a car, take the chair apart and put the pieces in the passenger's seat of a normal sedan. That le…

Power-assist chairs are pretty neat though, I knew a guy who basically DIYed one, I think from a kit, starting with a manual chair. He could wheel for miles on it and keep in shape.

Yeah, back when I needed a chair I used an ultralight with Yamaha power assist wheels. It was great - a little chonkier than a pure manual but I could go anywhere, plus I got to keep my VW Beetle instead of needing a $100k wheelchair van.

Re: A $1k Wheelchair

#433

Post by rtkwe » Thu, Oct 03, 2024, 2:06 AM UTC

pbhjpbhj wrote: post #240

bee_rider wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That sort of “I googled for 30 seconds, and found a cheaper option, why does this project exist” type response is anti-curiosity and anti-learning. It is possible that the YouTuber guy is a total idiot and decided to make a $1000 wheelchair instead of buying a $200 one, but that shouldn’t be a default assumption, haha.

Asking a question is "anti-curiosity"? The piece raises at least a half-dozen possible answers, not all of which are compatible. The author pushes the "low cost" angle quite heavily at the start, so there being much cheaper options is reason enough, IMO, to ask the question what the point of the project is. They say the chair won't make money, but it's a for profit company. They say they want it to be employee owned…

>Asking a question is "anti-curiosity"?

It's not asking questions though there's a lot of saying 'how is this cheaper? I found this crappy thing on amazon [that's clearly a completely different design] . why are they making this?!'.

I've yet to see a cheaper option that's the same type of chair. The ones I keep seeing posted are collapsible ones that are used in hospitals which are much heavier and way worse than the product in the article, they're not fitted to the user and much more likely to cause issues. When comparing to a similar product these chairs actually are much cheaper than what's out there.

Re: A $1k Wheelchair

#434

Post by eru » Thu, Oct 03, 2024, 5:31 AM UTC

saagarjha wrote: post #420

bityard wrote: post #384

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is that 1 billion adult bikes in particular? Because in the US, anywhere outside of big cities or college towns, children are ALMOST the only people who ride bikes regularly.

Lots of people have bikes who don’t use them regularly. It’s the kind of thing you have in your garage and bring out on a nice day sometimes.

Or at least you mean to, but perhaps never get around to it.

Re: A $1k Wheelchair

#435

Post by pkphilip » Thu, Oct 03, 2024, 7:24 AM UTC

leghifla wrote: post #417

pkphilip wrote: post #214

$1k for a manual wheelchair? and that is considered cheap? I have no idea why a wheelchair should be that expensive. We get them here in India for far less - you can buy pretty good wheelchairs for much less than $100. You can get powered wheelchairs for around $500. https://www.amazon.in/b/ref=dp_bc_aui_C_3?ie=UTF8&node=11365...

Let me use a car analogy. I have no idea why a car should be more than 10k. On Amazon you can get a go-kart for less than 100: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=go-kart It is really the same comparison. A true every-day wheelchair or a "hospital" wheelchair that will make you sweat after 10 yards

Please see the link i sent. These are good wheelchairs. There is ZERO reason why a cushioned seat on a pair of wheels should cost more than $1K. I am always amazed at the extent to which Americans go to justify the crazy cost of medicines, healthcare, equipment etc in the US. Folks, you are being taken for a ride. Don't keep making excuses for the profiteering healthcare companies in the US.

Re: A $1k Wheelchair

#436

Post by pkphilip » Thu, Oct 03, 2024, 7:26 AM UTC

delfinom wrote: post #391

pkphilip wrote: post #214

$1k for a manual wheelchair? and that is considered cheap? I have no idea why a wheelchair should be that expensive. We get them here in India for far less - you can buy pretty good wheelchairs for much less than $100. You can get powered wheelchairs for around $500. https://www.amazon.in/b/ref=dp_bc_aui_C_3?ie=UTF8&node=11365...

Customized to your dimensions wheelchair. Because people shopping for these are permanently disabled and are looking for long term comfort and performance. Performance meaning the chairs can actually be used to enjoy life instead of being a fragile "medical chair". There are plenty of sub $200 wheelchairs on US Amazon.

Even then it shouldn't cost $1k. A customised wheelchair will still use the same wheels. Most likely the only customisation available may be for the width/height of the chair. Not a big deal of work at all.

Re: A $1k Wheelchair

#437

Post by [deleted] » Thu, Oct 03, 2024, 7:34 AM UTC

TrainedMonkey wrote: post #403

daedrdev wrote: post #353

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Which is like 0.1% of us co2 emissions

I actually looked it up, per EPA in 2022 6343mmt of CO2 were released in U.S - https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/inventory-us-greenhouse-gas... So the estimate would range from 0.12% to 0.4% (for 8mmt and 25mmt respectively).

[deleted]

Re: A $1k Wheelchair

#438

Post by valval » Thu, Oct 03, 2024, 8:40 AM UTC

Damogran6 wrote: post #381

tim333 wrote: post #317

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you look on ebay there are loads of wheelchairs for sale from about $100-$200 (£80-150 if british). They are mostly made in China and I think work ok - I bought one for £80 to use with my dad and it was fine. But that was for occasional use. I guess if you were to use it all the time you might want something fancier.

That raises a whole host of other issues. They're $200, because they don't have to pay their employees or provide a safe environment, the Government is subsidizing the manufacture or other unsavoury reasons. You can make things really cheap if you don't care about your staff.

Complete speculation, you’ve downed too much propaganda.

Manufacturing is cheaper in cheaper countries because of less taxes, inflation, bureaucracy, and a dozen other factors that aren’t negative socialist bullshit. Their workers get by just fine with the wages they’re paid.

Re: A $1k Wheelchair

#439

Post by valval » Thu, Oct 03, 2024, 8:53 AM UTC

ChrisMarshallNY wrote: post #410

spaceman_2020 wrote: post #408

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Some of these comments are so bizarre that they could only be made by AI Do people here really not grasp the difference between a disabled person being forced to use a wheelchair - which they can’t get out of casually and stretch about - vs a fit person willingly using a bicycle?

What is the malfunction? > I don’t think most bicycles are designed for 16 hours of daily use… Was stated. The answer directly to the statement was: > In nations where bicycles are the norm, I would not be surprised if many of them get used 12+ per day. NYC is awash in bicycle couriers, and they probably ride all the time. No AI needed. Looks like it might be necessary for interpretation, though. That's not something…

I’ve noticed that the most racist, ableist, you name it, individuals are the people who most claim to defend the group in question.

I guess this might be because strong opinions are best formed from a surface level understanding of a subject, while intricate and complex opinions require deeper understanding.

Re: A $1k Wheelchair

#440

Post by leghifla » Thu, Oct 03, 2024, 9:21 AM UTC

pkphilip wrote: post #435

leghifla wrote: post #417

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Let me use a car analogy. I have no idea why a car should be more than 10k. On Amazon you can get a go-kart for less than 100: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=go-kart It is really the same comparison. A true every-day wheelchair or a "hospital" wheelchair that will make you sweat after 10 yards

Please see the link i sent. These are good wheelchairs. There is ZERO reason why a cushioned seat on a pair of wheels should cost more than $1K. I am always amazed at the extent to which Americans go to justify the crazy cost of medicines, healthcare, equipment etc in the US. Folks, you are being taken for a ride. Don't keep making excuses for the profiteering healthcare companies in the US.

How do you know they are good? Did you use one for an extended period of time?

A set of wheels and a cushion do not make a good wheelchair, if you want to live an active life. Please see https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41721976

I am from Europe and chairs are a bit less expensive here, but an "active" wheelchair is usually more than 2k$ anyway, often closer to 3k$. And some are much more than that (for instance if you want a soldered chassis)