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Pay Too Much for everything

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Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#91

Post by freehunter »

roc wrote: post #88
freehunter wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As an anecdote to add to your great analysis, I know a lot of my engineering coworkers (including me) who refuse to buy new cars. I drive a 15 year old truck not because it's fuel-efficient, not because it's beautiful, not because it has all the features, and certainly not because it needs no maintenance. It's because when it does need maintenance, I can do it and it's relatively cheap and easy. It's the Timex vs poc…

Cars are a good example of why "built to last" doesn't make universal sense. We don't make trucks like we did 15 years ago, because we know what happens to the human body inside a rigid metal shell during a collision. We know that we can design engines and transmissions that will keep you on the road better, keep you out of more accidents and at least halve your fuel bill. And these gains will trivially outweigh the…

A good point about reliability not being the only factor in buying a car. I drive a Toyota 4Runner, which has a 4-star safety rating. It's from years before pedestrian safety laws, so the pedestrian safety rating is low, but the passenger safety rating is quite good. 20mpg is still hard to get from a V-6 truck engine these days. The only modern safety features I wish I had are hill start assist and traction/stability control. Maybe side-impact air bags.

Your point is perfectly valid for most cars. I would never drive a Corvair just because it's more repairable than a Volt. But there certainly is a market for a dead-simple yet modernly designed car.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#92

Post by alain »

On the topic of paying less, there's a saying which goes something like this : "the cheapest price you can get for a thing is to not buy it" [1]. Of course this can't be applied for everything but a lot of people, myself included, tend to buy a lot of gadgets they don't need and don't use. This is a simple advice but I think it can go a long way to saving money.

[1] if someone has the exact quote, I'll be thankful for it.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#93

Post by KC8ZKF »

lazerwalker wrote: post #89
bobf wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A $300 meal can be 10x better than a $30 meal. Most $30 meals are fine , but a $300 meal may be the best meal you have ever had.

The key word there is can . A $300 meal may be the best meal you've ever had, but spending $300 on a meal isn't a guarantee that it will be. Conversely, it's also possible that $30 meal could be the best meal you've ever had. Less likely, sure, but possible. It reminds me of advice I've been given from friends who are really into wine: the difference between a $10 bottle of wine, a $50 bottle of wine, and a $100 bott…

There is at least some evidence that an expensive bottle of wine tastes better because it's expensive. When the cost of the wine is unknown to the taster, the differences disappear.[1] And, when a wine is presented to the taster as expensive it is perceived as better than cheaper wines even when it is the same wine.[2]

[1] http://www.wine-economics.org/journal/content/Volume3/number...

[2] http://scienceblogs.com/cortex/2008/01/15/expensive-wine-tas...

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#94

Post by baseh »

dredmorbius wrote: post #85
bobf wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A $300 meal can be 10x better than a $30 meal. Most $30 meals are fine , but a $300 meal may be the best meal you have ever had.

The best meals I've ever had were generally cooked by me or someone I know personally, and were shared with good friends or family. An outdoor BBQ 20 years ago. Christmas dinners. Camp meals backpacking. Mom's home cooking after workouts as a kid. Picnics out of doors. I can think of maybe two or three restaurant meals that were memorable. The best of these a long long time ago with a girl I was very fond of, in a sm…

I agree eating with people you love makes all the difference

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#95

Post by karolist »

Wilya wrote: post #17

I definitely disagree. Maybe sometimes, paying twice as much gives you something that lasts ten times longer. Or maybe, you will pay five times as much, and get something that (hopefully) lasts a bit longer. I use a lot of earphones, and they tend to break quite fast. Once or twice, I decided to move away from the usual 15$ models and pay 60$ for better brands, with good reviews, and everything. Did they last longer…

Regarding the headphones, some 7 years ago I've bought Phillips hp805 after reading an article that titled them "king of the budget cans", they've cost something around $30 and are the most comfortable headphones I've ever had on my head and the sound quality is great too.

After all those years they work like new, though I do have a habit of being careful with things. I'm afraid of these breaking because I'd have no idea what to replace them with.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#96

Post by nosse »

jakeonthemove wrote: post #62

Instead of overpaying, I think it's better to get the best product you can for the money you have. It does require you to learn how to recognize quality and know the prices, but it pays off in the end. For example, I wouldn't buy a Ferrari or even Porsche 911 (both high quality cars, no doubt, but expensive) when a Nissan GTR R35 performs just as well and costs less. All three will last a lifetime with a bit of care…

If you just need to move from place to place Peugeot 308 will do as good as any of above.

You can get four of them with the price of GTR R35, so if one 308 doesn't last as long, you can get three more with the same price and every time with updated tech. And maintenance is probably cheaper too.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#97

Post by typicalrunt »

I liked the article in general, but this got me:

I usually eat at the same few restaurants all the time. They’re maybe 10% more expensive, usually locally owned, and the food doesn’t come out of a frozen pre-made bag before being tossed in the oven. I never tip less than 20%, and I’m not an asshole….at restaurants.

I don't understand this thought process. Why not pay 100% tip then? Is the 20% number somehow magical and affords the ability to be elitist? So if I tip 15%, which is the average suggested tip in Western Canada, I'm somehow an asshole???

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#98

Post by karolist »

jakeonthemove wrote: post #62

Instead of overpaying, I think it's better to get the best product you can for the money you have. It does require you to learn how to recognize quality and know the prices, but it pays off in the end. For example, I wouldn't buy a Ferrari or even Porsche 911 (both high quality cars, no doubt, but expensive) when a Nissan GTR R35 performs just as well and costs less. All three will last a lifetime with a bit of care…

Some people have other criteria to buying a car, emotional more often than not. For example, Ferrari's and Porsche's are known to a lot of common folk and associated with rich people, GTR - not so much. Also, different cars have different feel to driving them, different sound isolation, suspensions, seating position and road view, these tiny bits can be evaluated subconsciously even though you're after performance.

If I based my purchase only on performance I'd buy BMW S1000RR which performs just as well (albeit comes with less safety) than the other 3 and cost just a fraction!

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#99

Post by wahnfrieden »

nsxwolf wrote: post #59

Generally: Cheap jeans last forever. Expensive jeans tear in about a week.

Actually cost has very little relation with cost to quality in denim jeans, besides that there is a production cost for higher quality denim fabric and stitching which doesn't seem to factor much into pricing besides increasing the minimum.

Re: Pay Too Much for everything

#100

Post by theorique »

wccrawford wrote: post #68

A while back, I stopped buying the highest-priced goods and started doing research instead. What I found what the best things weren't the highest-priced. I also found that I could find the best items for me because what I care about isn't necessary what others care about. Using this, I've managed to buy better shoes, toasters, and even a car than I've ever had before, and at less than I would have spent if I hadn't d…

Good point. Sometimes the cheapest is indeed the best ... for a given person, if it meets their needs and doesn't deliver features they don't use.
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