Whats something that is only worth getting the expensive version of?
I grew up with $20 walmart blenders, and hated anything that required a blender.
Recently bought a ninja and there is no going back. I'll never use a crappy blender again.
Anything else like that?
Boots.
A cute little passage from Terry Pratchett, but it holds very true if you ever need boots.
Paying for quality boot work, especially the kind that can be re-soled, is worth it for anyone who has to wear boots with any regularity.
When I first got a job that needed boots I was using an old secondhand pair. It was hell. Eventually I saved up for a quality pair and was totally worth it. I've not underspent on boots since.
As for suggestions as to what brand to go with these days for that... I'm less sure on that because I'm researching new brands myself since Red Wings are a joke compared to what they used to be. Danner still seems pretty all right these days.
You don't truly appreciate a good pair a boots till you park a 2 ton pallet jack on your toes and laugh it off.
I dropped a semi truck lift gate on my toes one time, and didn’t even notice until I went to walk away and realized I was pinned down. Red Wing doesn’t fuck around with their safety toe boots.
The shorter version of the Discworld quote is "being poor charges interest."
Redwing still makes some good stuff, but they also make some "fashion" stuff that looks similar. Unfortunately happens with a lot of quality workwear.
Rose Anvil on YouTube cuts boots and shoes in half and explains how and why they are designed the way they are, and where corners are cut, and what to look out for. He's a good resource for checking out a boot you are interested in.
Most of your "good" brands still have some crappy stuff in their lineup, but you might not be able to spot it by just looking at a web page.
Thanks for the suggestion, I'll check out those vids.
Wearing a 16 year old pair of Redwings as I'm typing this. I haven't even looked after them properly (e.g. greasing them frequently) and they're still in good shape. Gave them a new sole a few years back.
I wear a similarly old pair of Chippewa's that have also been poorly treated, and they are still good (though I don't have a job that would beat them up anymore)
I second boots. I went through 3 cheap pairs of hiking boots (between £40 - £70) all promising the world and dry feet. In the end, sacked it off and bought all leather boots with a vibram sole. Requires maintenance of waxing them but they've had many miles in them now and just as good as day 1.
Yes, second to boots is getting quality boot wax.
Upvote for discworld quotes. Pratchett was full of good advice. Some of that advice may have required living in a world full of magic and dragons but it was good advice all the same!
Clothes in general. Sure, you can get and Old Navy T-shirt for ~$3-4, but they break down quickly. However, even a mid-level shirt from someplace like Land's End or Eddie Bauer on sale can last year after year. Same with pants, jeans, coats, jackets, belts and other clothing. It's also why it sucks to be poor. Needs need to be met immediately, but since you're needing to keep food on the table and a roof over your head, so you buy what you can afford, even knowing that it's more expensive in the long term.
I agree, but I also disagree.
A lot of people completely mistreat their clothes and have no idea how to wash them properly or mend them.
I have lots of cheap Old Navy tees kicking around in good condition because I wash t-shirts on gentler cycles and hang them out to dry.
With modern detergents, you can wash almost all clothing on 30 degrees C and a regular/gentle cycle, as long as they're not visibly stained.
The dryer is the death of clothes. That stuff you pull from the filter used to be your shirts and pants.
Georgia boots are the shit...
Anything that separates you from the ground. So a bed, shoes, your health..
:cries in American healthcare:
I can't even afford the cheap shit!
Tires
Floors, carpets, stairs, your feet, a bicycle, maybe even your car, dirt, gotta invest in good walkable dirt, uhhh, what else here... socks, probably chairs, ladders, flights, if you're flying always invest a lot in it, uhhhh. yeah probably some other stuff.
I dunno I guess the point of my joke is that I think this is one of those heuristics, or like, general expressions, that ends up taking longer to say than what it actually means. "invest in your shoes and bed" takes longer to say than "invest in anything that keeps you off the ground".
Isn't dirt a synonym for ground?
I'll add ladders to this list. You don't want a ladder to fail you when you're at its top.
For most things in life I generally follow Adam Savage's advice: "Buy cheap tools until you know what you really need from that tool, then buy the best version you can afford."
However, when it comes to things that are related to safety or protect you from harm the more expensive/high quality they get, that advice goes out the window. Case in point, PC PSUs. You probably don't want your newly built PC to burst in flames because you skimped on it to buy a poorly rated PSU.
I sometimes buy pretty new (1-2yr old) premade computers from foreign exchange students at the end of a school year. They often sell them for the cost of just the GPU, sometimes lower. The number of garbage PSUs I've had to swap out is ridiculous. People buy like $3k+ computers and are content with $80 PSUs it's amazing. I've had them pop on me after only a couple months use. Meanwhile the PSU in my current machine was a major purchase for me back in 2010 and thing still runs every upgrade I throw at it.
Also a decent brand PSU will last and/or have warranty. My kids PC has a Startech PSU from like 2001 in it. I've used the same EVGA PSU in like 5 computers. Cheap ones die after a few years.
A PSU isn't a tool, so I think his advice actually holds even here. /pedantry
A low-quality one is a tool for setting houses on fire..
Can't agree more, especially because I have a mom that likes to spend big for "the best". First of all you can often find excellent performers for cheap. Second of all, expensive tools can suck too. Third of all you can often improve the performance of tools if you know how to tune and use them properly. Forth of all, buying an expensive product you know nothing about is begging to be scammed. Fifth, avoid sets, as an expert in a lot of hobbies, the big sets always include a ton of shit you will never need, but are paying big for.
My mom has bought this expensive shitty "japanese" knife, made in China and it sucks. 20 years ago my father bought a massive Cutco set, the knives suck, most of them are never used and it was 2000$. My mom bought a eye wateringly expensive set of pots and pans. She bought them all because she didn't know better and we hardly use most of them. Not to mention their Teflon so once they are worn out, are garbage.
I do a lot of cooking and every day I use this vintage 20$ Japanese rust bucket of a knife. After thinning, lots of polishing, sharpening and rehandling, it's a beautiful and excellent performer.
Kitchen knives, definitely. A good knife is a fucking godsend.
Quality underwear (once you're an adult).
A good office chair (not necessarily one of those expensive as fuck mesh ones - I hate those... But something quality).
Also, I'd distinguish between pointlessly expensive and quality.
Idiots buy expensive gaming chairs. They feel like you're sitting on plywood. I don't care how many colors it has im going to be sitting on it for hours a day.
Put that into a good office chair, where they put research into making sure you're comfortable for that entire time
You can get open box, unused steelcase chairs on eBay for cheaper than "gaming" chairs, BTW. There's no reason to buy those abominations.
And, let me tell you, those chairs are worth it. I paid about $1200 for my Leap (I needed an extra tank one for a drafting table desk) and have had it 15 years now. 8-10 hours a day my job is to ensure that my chair does not float away using only my 200lb body mass. Not only is it still in good shape* I never have a sore back even after a long day of ballasting. Prior to owning the Leap I’d go through a $100 office store chair in a couple of years.
*the seat cushion was a little worn at the edges and the cushion not quite as supple so I replaced that this year.
I paid $230 for an open box Think v1 like five years ago, still use it everyday. I tried to upgrade to a v2, but the wife ended up with it instead.
I bought a boring looking office chair from an ergonomic furniture store about 10 years ago. I spent about $600 and it’s still just as good as it was when I bought it.
That’s a sharp contrast from the shitty $150 chairs I would keep buying from Costco and having to replace because the foam or seat started to collapse after a couple years.
When I started working at home due to COVID, I decided to buy a new chair. I was tired of having shitty chairs with "genuine leather" (aka leather spray paint) that would peel off over time. So I looked into chairs and landed on a nice gaming chair. Sure, it's ugly, but it's gotta be comfy right? Nope. Sitting in this thing for hours at a time has quite literally translated into a pain in my ass. I had to eventually get a seat cushion to sit on, because it was killing me otherwise.
In hindsight, I should have just gone with a traditional office chair.
Ironically as someone who is physically very large, (I’m well over average height, and like 250lbs) gaming chairs are some of the only chairs that I can comfortably spend hours sitting in. Every single ergonomic chair I’ve tried has been garbage, and I’ve tried the ultra expensive ones through my job. Hell, I’m sitting in one right now as I type this. But ergonomic chairs all suffer from the same issue, that they’re built with the average body size in mind.
I far prefer my Arozzi gaming chair, because it’s one of the only chairs I’ve used that has actually been comfortable for extended periods. The seat cushion is foam, but it has a mesh “sling” underneath which stretches. So I get the firmness from the foam, but the flex of the sling. So it doesn’t go flat over time like cheap foam-on-plastic/wood chairs, and it doesn’t fit my ass in weird ways like mesh ergonomic chairs. And the entire seat is designed with bigger people in mind, so the armrests are a little bit wider, the back is taller and actually reaches my head, etc.
Plus gaming chairs seem intended to be as uncomfortable to sit on as possible. They're horrendous. The cheapest Ikea office chair for 130€ is worlds better than the priciest gaming chair you can find, since they all share the car seat form which is supposed to protect you during impacts, not be good for your back.
Anything OXO is tops in the kitchen
I wouldn't buy their knives, though. Victorinox makes great knives for a reasonable price. I've had mine for ~5 years and I haven't had to sharpen it, although I do hone it every once in a while.
Victorinox are literally professional-quality knives. They’re used in restaurant kitchens around the world. They’re that nice middle ground between “so cheap they’re almost certainly made out of pig iron” and “so expensive that only niche hobbyists will pay for them.” They strike a nice balance, where they’re quality knives and they’re cheap enough that a restaurant can afford to keep dozens of them on hand without going bankrupt.
Shaving razor. I don't mean the big brand stuff but getting yourself something that isn't the cheapest available is a godsend. Stuff lasts you an entire month or two instead of going dull after 2-3 uses.
I actually say the cheapest option is buying a good quality Safety Razor, and then packs of blades for pennies each.
It's how I've shaved for years, and I'm never going back to the multi blade bullshit disposables.
I’m actually looking at going back as the safety razors don’t work as well for me as the multi blade stuff. I’ve been using double edges for probably 7-8 years now and when I have to use a disposable when traveling it just works so much better for some reason.
I'd highly recommend the Leaf razor. It's like the best parts of a safety razor and a disposable razor combined. No guesswork on angles or anything.
Oh I'm pretty good with any razor just because I learned how to use cheap garbage razors.
Man, I get they're not for everyone, but after having a mesh chair, I will never go back. Currently on my second one in about 8 years, so it's not exactly BIFL material but the first one lasted longer than a 'normal' chair ever did, and neither were particularly expensive, as quality chairs go (I paid ~$150 for the first and ~$225 for the second, got both during sales, so I'm not sure what the regular price would have been but I'd guess $300 or so).
Yeah, I get so uncomfortably sweaty on my back if I sit on leather for long
It's absolutely a choice of personal preference - I just wanted to be clear that the super trendy silicon-valley office chair company from a few years back isn't necessarily best for everyone.
Mesh chairs can be extremely comfortable if you run hot.
This is big RE: the kitchen knives. Science/engineering has figured out how to produce good steel, so it actually does not cost much to produce a very capable, good knife. Maybe you had to spend a lot for a good knife 200 years ago, but not now.
I got a Mercer chef knife from a restaurant supply store years ago. Just looking it up, it costs <$25, and it's designed to be used all day by professionals. The often recommended victorinox fibrox is similar. They are easily sharpenable, and can do whatever you need.
I also have a ~$200 chef knife I got as a gift. It's super nice, but the only real non-cosmetic differences are that the edges of the back of the blade are rounded over to make it a little more comfortable to hold while choking up on it, and it has a long warrantee that includes sharpening.
But now is the question about longevity:
Will it hold a year of kitchen work and then be basically done or will it have near/equal/better resiliency than a proper forged non-mass produced knife?
Forging really isn't necessary for a good knife. What matters is the heat treatment, which isn't all that difficult.
Eh, it's really not that much money to get a half decent set. Learn to sharpen/hone a knife and learn how to use a knife properly and you can make even cheap knives last basically forever. Babish has a <$100 knife set that's serviceable as a professional set.
I'm very into cooking and have a $700 set of Wüsthof knives and they're awesome to use, but 100% unnecessary. They'd be no better than a dollar store knife if I didn't learn to take care of them. So many people drag knife edges sideways on cutting boards, cut on improper surfaces, cut in ways that dull the edge quickly, and then throw them in the dishwasher. Then after a year of not sharpening them replace them for more than the cost of a good sharpener.
With proper care/use and almost daily cooking I sharpen my chef's knife once a month, and my other knives once every few months. For $50 you can get a sharpening system with a guide that makes it almost impossible to fuck up and you'll never pay for knives again.
I mean, it's not going to break on me. I think there's enough debate on the "stamped vs forged" issue to show that it's not a huge difference that would be noticeable to most non-professionals. Maybe if I used my knives all day every day, I'd notice a difference in edge retention or ease of sharpening, but just making dinner ever night, I don't notice a difference.
Some of it is also going to be experience using it.
Like I have Rada and Cuisinart and Wustoff knives. The Rada is super cheap, and very sharp and holds an edge well. But its handle is pretty uncomfortable, and god forbid you're trying to chop a large cabbage in half, you'll hurt your hand on the top it's sooo narrow. But I can hit it with something and it's going to cut that cabbage the easiest because it's a narrow blade. The Cuisinart were a gift long ago, and really were just overpriced worse Rada. They have thin blades and don't hold an edge as well as the Rada. The Wustoff have the most comfortable handles to hold IMO, and nice thicker backs that make them hold up to lots of abuse - you can chop bones and such without worry. They also hold an edge pretty well, but also sharpen nicely. People also seem appreciative of Wustoff so you get some status when using them FWIW.
I actually think there are things that the cheap versions can work as well as the expensive ones, but in such a PITA way that you'll infrequently use them. Cameras are one of these things - pretty much any camera can take a picture, but try a low end Motorolla phone camera vs a mid range OnePlus or high end Samsung / iPhone and you'll have so much more frustration with the Motorolla you'll get a different phone to get a "camera that works". Same with ILC - you can get a Canon 4000D and it'll be capable of taking better technical shots than the high end smartphone. It'll just require quite a lot of skill. Put it next to a high end Canon R5 and you'll see how the quality of life improvements and everything else will make it a lot more fun to use.
I second the desk chair as a fat crippled IT worker that spends 10+ hours a day in a desk chair. I used to get a new $500ish chair every 3 or so years when it fell apart. This last time I saved up and dropped about 2.5k on a really nice chair rated for 24/7 use by someone much heavier than I am and it’s a life changer for my back, and this thing should last a lot longer
Really depends on what you need. I've been using a $500-600 24/7 rated office chair daily for over a decade and it's still as fantastic as the day I sat in it on the floor.
The $700 one I have at my other desk is good, but not quite as good as the cheaper one, but I didn't sit in it at the show room before getting it either.
Do you have a brand recommendation? I really need to replace my office chair
Yeah, the brand I went with was concept seating. I’m about 6’7” around 400 pounds - fat gut, big bones, decent amount of muscle - was a lineman before I got crippled. I am 100% a fatass, no excuse, but also big in other dimensions as well. Most chairs, even the big and tall ones from staples and the like, will get a bit of a gangster lean after a year or so of use as the chairs base plate slowly warps and tack welds come loose. You can grind it down and patch up the welds, but not much to be done about the plate warp. The concept seating chair I got has a massively thick base plate that seems like it will hold up to a lot more. One other thing I really like about the one I got is that it doesn’t have the most common failure point, the piston. Instead it has a fuck off huge solid threaded shaft that you use to screw the chair to the right height then lock it with a massive lock washer. Additionally it doesn’t recline or move in any other way other than to spin and roll. You can loosen bolts to adjust the fit then tighten them back up, but nothing is easily adjustable with levers and stuff which I love because those are just failure points and I’d much rather spend the time to set it up once Ave never worry about it again
I bought a nice sharp knife for my Mom because hers were dull. She has a utensil drawer she throws all the knives on.
From the drawer, into cutting the cardboard box, then the veggies, and straight into the dishwasher. And people wonder why their knives go dull so quickly.
Tbf, I keep my crappy box-cutting, hole pokinng Ikea knives in the kitchen drawer too. But if you do that to my good knives, I will stab you (with the Ikea ones).
So, I should buy my kids cheapo underwear?
Absolutely, growing humans will almost never wear through clothing.
They're just going to grow out of them.
What's special about quality underwear? I bought a bunch of fruits of loom ones which is pretty cheap but I never noticed it being and issue.
More comfortable and better able to wick away moisture... Even after a fair amount of exercise your underwear shouldn't feel damp.
Anything that separates you from the ground for long periods of time. Shoes, tires, mattresses, computer chairs, couches, etc…
🤯
I mean seriously… totally true and I never thought about it like that.
It's almost always better to not buy a cheap sex toy. There's no regulation of the industry and many materials in cheaper toys are just straight up dangerous. Here's an article (it's NSFW, there are pictures) that goes over what materials are and aren't safe.
Like thinking you’re wearing a 100% silicon butt plus to an MRI….
For the unaware: A patient wore a buttplug into an MRI, because it was marketed as 100% silicone. It had a metal core. It was rocketed up into their abdomen. The patient survived with serious injuries.
Silicon is a crystal. You're thinking of silicone.
Ouchie!
My first toy was hard plastic. After a couple years the painted coating was coming off. After that I only buy medical grade silicone, sometimes with hard plastic bullet inserts which can be replaced but never even touch my skin unless I'm taking them out for washing or replacing the battery.
100% silicon butt plug
I believe in the adage of, "If it sits between you and the ground, don't skimp".
Shoes, socks, desk chairs, lounge chairs, sofas, car( seat)s, mattresses...
You spend too much time in or on all of these things to be uncomfortable.
I also see posted here the Adam Savage advice of buying cheap tools first, and then upgrade after you better understand your needs. I also think that's great advice you can apply to most things. Just not the above things.
Not to be nitpicky but this advice is meant more for things like car tires and shoes than patio furniture.
Yeah, I was thinking tires instead of car seats. This used to be the three things we spend most of our day on, which is mattress, tires, and shoes to keep your back from going out and keep you safe on the road. If your car seats are messing up your back you need a new car.
Custom building a computer? Don't cheap out on the power supply or you might end up with a smoke machine
Once you let the magic smoke leave, you can never get it back.
You got RGB but my PC is a smoke show
Escorts
It's pronounced E-sports
It's pronounced escrow
It’s pronounced escargot
It's pronounced ex-spouse . . . Wait, what was the question again?
Maybe not the expensive expensive versions but good headphones and earphones make a massive difference.
As a dirt poor musician who grew up recording with a computer and a ham radio mixer I had rigged up, I was always disappointed when I’d hear my music on any setup that wasn’t mine. It never came out right.
Good headphones changed that. One day I’ll go back and remaster it all even though I have no clue what I’m doing.
Laptops. Cheap and midrange ones defined how people perceive laptops in general: slow, hot and awful to use. Expensive ones are usually amazing, but you still have to do your research before purchasing it.
Also, cigars. Nothing comes close to proper Cuban ones.
I've found a refurbished Thinkpad one generation out of date to be a great midrange option.
It does take careful research though since there are thousands of possible configurations and often subtle options that make a huge difference. One such option that made my recent purchase of a P14S III challenging was that there are two non-touch 1920x1200 displays, one of which has a crappy color gammut and less brightness.
Just as long as you're not searching for a "gaming laptop". IMO those do not exist to any degree of satisfaction. They are all a "choose two" among performance, size/weight, battery life, and noise.
Unless you are so mobile that you are never ever at home, and the prosect of only scraping mid graphical settings at best while being permanently anchored to a wall outlet any time you play is worth it to you, I'd suggest taking that money and instead putting it toward a combo of a desktop rig and a cheap netbook. You won't be gaming on the go, but you'll have a better experience for the price. And if there's a more mundane task that the little netbook can't handle, you can, provided you have an Internet connection, always remote in to the desktop workstation at home and delegate expensive tasks to it.
If all you need though is something that runs well with a dozen browser tabs open, doesn't struggle playing back high definition video, and can handle playing a less demanding game every now and again, you can definitely find laptops that can do that while still being relatively slim, quiet, and cool. Just temper your expectations on how far you can push it.
I'm a repair tech and can't agree more. Gaming laptops suck, so so bad. They are only good for performance but besides that are awful for everything else. Shit speakers, shit screen, shit battery, shit keyboard, shit trackpad, and awful build quality. These things drop like flies and break down often. On top of that they are expensive to repair because parts are expensive and it's almost guaranteed that they will be a nightmare to work in, so high labour $.
If you want a laptop to game on, get a used HP 8770w workstation laptop, upgrade the CPU, upgrade the ram (4 slots!), and upgrade the GPU with a GTX 980m, put in an SSD and HDD (2x 2.5" bays). You will need to do a lot of modifying and If you aren't comfortable you can probably pay someone to do it.
Other than that, absolutely the best solution for a laptop with high performance, excellent build quality (these things are TANKS) and price (around 600-700$ with laptop and parts). Plus it has a secondary battery attachment and a docking station with extra ports and I/O. Utterly insane value.
You can carefully buy a midrange laptop. Lenovo Legion has some pretty decent gear for a good price, 'specially if you're getting a model that's on it's way out. Plus, at that point you have tons of reviews.
Buy used refurbished laptops, it's insane how cheap they are. You can buy a laptop with quadruple the ram (32gb) and quadruple the storage (512gb SSD) for a quarter the price (250$) than the cheapest new MacBook (1000$). I like PC Server and Parts, good customer service, good warranty and quality refurbishment. Buy from their website instead of eBay store, you'll get cheaper prices.
Prices on used hardware are comically cheap, so use it.
For most things, imo, there's a middle ground. I don't think that getting the super-high end version of anything is worth it unless you truly use it enough to justify it, like for work or a serious hobby. But the cheapest option is usually junk that will do a poor job and won't last; if anything you'd save money by spending a little more for something decent, even if it's not world-class.
That's why I went ahead and got one of those 49" Samsung displays. I use it probably 300 days a year and I'll likely keep it for 10 years like my old ones. I could have saved money but this was a luxury that I can easily justify by how often I use it.
I have to say, the Odyssey line deserves some huge respect for the kind of response times Samsung has achieved with a VA panel, of all things.
I'll say a vacuum.
When I was a college kid in an apartment I bought the bottom-shelf, bagged Dirt Devil vacuums and dealt with it. All the clogging, hair in the brush, cheap quality/you get what you pay for, etc. Then I moved into a house I got a mid-range Bissell to help deal with all the pet hair. The thing was questionably designed, still got a bunch of the hair in the roll, and needed regular upkeep to make sure it functioned properly. When that one went out I wasn't going to pickup the same thing even though it technically lasted for years.
I recently picked up a Shark Rotator and it sucks in the best way possible. Was it expensive? Yes. Was it worth it? Absolutely. I can vacuum my whole house knowing I'm getting as much dirt, dust, hair off the floor as possible. And I'm not going to have to deal with even half the problems the low-end vacuums have. It pivots and gets right up against walls. There is a clear window to see the brush roll from the top. It also uses fins that just don't collect hair anyway. The whole canister comes off in one easy motion and I can dump it without spilling all over the now clean floor. There are two roll speeds for hard floors and carpet. The brush roll doesn't spin when it's locked upright so it's not flinging stuff around or grinding into the carpet while I try to clean corners or the couch. And even though it's one of their "heavier" models it's still lighter than the Bissell I lugged around for years.
This is a case that better design and features comes with a price. And those design choices can directly make your life easier. So if you can afford it, go for it.
Sure, but I'd also avoid Shark at all costs because they're not really made to be serviced. Also bagless, which generally suck in a bad way. I'd suggest something like a Sebo model with the electric brush head. Easy to service, last a very long time, use bags which are just cleaner and avoid needing to think about cleaning out dust storage areas to keep airflow up, and have great canister options.
Yeah, ask anyone who uses a vacuum regularly (like a custodian) and they’ll tell you that bagged vacuums are far superior to bagless. Go get a Sanitare commercial, or an Oreck commercial. It’ll last forever, never break, be easy to service, and it’ll suck a fucking golfball through a garden hose. My Sanitare commercial literally lifts the carpet up off of the pad, and virtually every single part is replaceable, (though I doubt I’ll ever need to replace anything except the brushes, bags, and belts.)
Commercial vacuums lack a lot of the bells and whistles that home vacuums have, but that’s because they’re laser focused on two things: Reliability and suction power.
I could rant about vacuums forever. So many people complain about vacuums not working well, but also never pull out and clean or replace the filter.
If you're getting a BIFL buy-once-cry-once vacuum, I'd go straight for the Miele cannister vac. I went into an ADHD deep dive on vacuums a year ago when my own Shark needed replacing. Splurged on one and it completely changed how I feel about vacuuming. Of course, I'm 4'11, so ymmv on that, but using a good cannister vac that is lightweight VS pushing around something big and heavy makes a world of difference.
Plus, I like that it uses bags instead of a cannister; I was tired of emptying the cannister and getting a face full of dog hair and dirt that I then also had to clean up (again). That may also be personal preference, though.
I picked up a karcher shop style vacuum for my home, cost a bit more than the cheapest home style vacs, but a lot cheaper than the expensive home style vacuum, and boy does this baby suck (in a good way). I feel like most of the home vacs are only expensive to make them small and maybe a little quieter. But if you don’t care about that, you can get a very good vacuum for relatively cheap.
Some are expensive for filtering reasons. It can take some engineering to build HEPA or similar filtration along with seals that actually have the filters work, plus managing motors or filter designs that aid in the high speed airflow needed for a vacuum.
We have a Roomba for so many years now and what it taught me is that consistent daily effort > heroic occasional effort. It's not a great vacuum at all but it runs every day for a couple of hours and that keeps the floors so much cleaner than any good vacuum. No way am I going to vacuum every day everywhere like it does. Two dogs, two cats, three girls, so much hair, and clean floors.
Parachutes.
I guess this gets filed under "Anything that separates you from the ground for long periods of time."
You'll never make that mistake again.
I find orphans to test my parachutes so I can make as many mistakes as necessary for the advancement of science. Anyone want to test out my neurolink alternative?
Mattress and shoes.
Both of which you use multiple hours each day, and can really break your body if they aren't ergonomic.
The cheap ones also break often, costing you more money in the long run.
I understand the importance of getting a good mattress, but I’ll be damned if I can figure out whether a mattress actually is any good, expensive or not, without sleeping on it for a while. The whole industry feels like a giant scam.
Power supplies and motherboards for PCs
generally if either of them go the rest of your investment goes with it. Worst case scenario the power supply damages the motherboard meaning your cheap purchase made you lose more parts.
Yup, power supplies and batteries are also usually the first components to die. All the more reason to avoid cheap ones.
What you said + nicer motherboards often come with bios flashback which should (IMO) be a mandatory feature for motherboards on platforms like AM4. Makes CPU compatibility much better since a supported bios version can be flashed anytime, no matter what CPU is currently installed (if a CPU is installed at all!).
The current motherboard situation is a total clown fiesta though. There is no such thing as a cheap motherboard any more.
And you will have to upgrade them whenever you upgrade your CPU these days.
Almost like socket types aren't a thing anymore...
Toilet paper. Once you rip through cheap one, you'd pay anything to buy better one in the first plce.
One better: A bidet, leave the toilet paper behind and stop rubbing your butt raw with paper.
Butt how will I know that my butt is clean if I can't make the paper look like the flag of Japan? 🤔
If your TP looks like the flag of Japan after wiping your ass, you should go see a doctor.
Wooosh
You still wipe, just once or twice instead of 14 or 15 times.
I too, second a bidet. Especially a heated water bidet.
My wife and I love ours. We've been having our home remodeled and have been hopping through AB&Bs. We've missed it a lot.
Not having a bidet is the worst part of going on vacation
Cheap one ply toilet paper will make you question whether there really is a god or not. I'd sooner wipe my backside with a corn cob.
Cheap one play recycled plywood was exactly the thing my high school used to supply. It was real pain to shit in school. Literally.
My high school was worse - they had TP holders designed to only allow you to take like two sheets at a time, and they had absolutely awful 1 ply paper. It's been over 15 years and I still remember that bullshit. I'd rather be in class, but instead I'm stuck here wiping my ass.
Actual plywood might have worked better (!). I hate one-ply and I have a whole shitload of it because I bought it on sale without realizing it was one ply. Only good thing I can say about it is, ---- OK there's nothing good I can say about it.
I bought of pair of real, honest to goodness birkenstock sandals. They were stupid expensive compared to the shoes I normally buy.
.....now I almost never wear any other shoe. They fit, they're comfortable, the straps dont cut into my feet now that they're broken in, and I can take them to the store to get resoled for way cheaper than if I had continued my pattern of buying cheap sandals and running them into the ground every few months.
What are you supposed to do to break them in? Mine cut into my feet like hell
Just wear them. The leather softens from use. If they're dry and stiff, put some leather conditioner on the underside. Maybe you have them too tight. And maybe they're just not for you.
I went to a furry convention and spent the whole con wearing the birks with thick socks underneath.
I looked goofy as hell, but by the end of the con they were all worn in.
One thing that can help as well is rubbing a little oil into the leather wherever it makes hot spots on your feel to soften the leather a touch.
Pretty much all kitchenware is worth getting the good stuff if you can afford it, even if cheap versions will work.
Probably safety-related items.
One exception is one particular chef knife. Most cheap knives you get what you pay for. But there is one, the Victorinox Classic Chef Knife, that is around $30 but is competitive in comfort and sharpness with very expensive knives.
Edit: I was incorrect on the model, it's the Fibrox Pro 8" Chef’s Knife.
You're right! Their santoku is very good too. These knives are used by professionals in kitchens. I used one for years. I finally got a Wustoff set and a JA Henkels Zwilling Pro, and I do greatly prefer using those, but if you only have $30 then the Forschner/Victornox knives are outstanding values for the money.
I'll let you in on a secret: it's not just Victorinox Fibrox; other cheap commerical-style knives (Mercer, Dexter-Russell, etc.) are decent, too.
I feel like there are too many exceptions to this rule. Maybe dont get the cheapest but you dont need to spend a lot to have a very good:
I could go on but I believe Ive made my point.
Depends on your definition of "expensive", but in general, (semi-automatic) espresso machine under $450 is probably not worth getting. Most of the time, Areopress ($30) or moka pot will make better coffee than anything under this price rage.
I bought an Aeropress a few years ago and absolutely love it. Then I realised that my cheap grinder wasn't all that great, so I bougt a $400 grinder. My quality of life is at its peak right now.
Dude. I found a working baratza preciso at savers for $11 a couple days after I realized the same thing and decided I'd start hunting for an espresso grinder.
It was the perfect confluence of timing, interest in making different style coffees, and unwillingness to spend a fortune.
Undoubtedly my best thrift store find.
Now I can get pretty much like 75% of the way to real espresso (won't get crema, but whatever) with my free secondhand aeropress and my $11 grinder. It's amazing. Another $15 for a milk frother and I'm making yummy cappuccino style drinks easy peasy
A chemex has been the sweet spot of reliable, easy to use and good for me. 30 bucks.
Pour over is great but lot of people like "espresso-like" coffee either straight or as a milk drink. This is why I recommended areopress and moka pot, both are great at producing small and strong drinks for cheap.
While I agree, and know that the coffee maker is just doing the manual steps, there's a lot to be said for just pushing a button and getting a coffee.
Funny enough, I'll never use a Ninja again after getting a Vitamix.
Can a blender really be worth USD 600? I don't own any kind of blender and barely miss it. I do own a hand blender though, but that was like USD 50 and has been working fine for years.
Absolutely. Even something as simple as a fresh fruit shake comes out so much smoother from the Vitamix. As the person who commented below you also mentioned, it is great for making soups as well. I have the food processor attachment and it's mind-blowing how much quicker I'm able to prep my food because of it. I haven't gotten the dry mixing bowl yet, but a buddy of mine uses it when making flour and swears by it.
Is it overkill for most, probably, but given it's going to last me for at least 10 years, I'm okay with the purchase price.
I bought someone a Vitamix once - I was sort of shocked I was able to throw stuff in it, blend it, turn up the speed, and the blended stuff came out hot and consumable as a hot soup. It was easily cleanable, motor is strong, and just consistent and reliable. I suppose I had sticker shock too, but after seeing them in action, I feel it is top end stuff that one would happily pass on to kids, but I don't use a lot of blenders to really compare
wow, it blending so hard that it heats up the contents is pretty impressive.
I've had my blendtec for like 12 years. It's got a counter on it for some unknown reason. I just made my morning protein shake. I'm at 5473 uses. My previous blender was an oster that lasted a few years and didn't work well. I'd previously broken cheap blenders after a few uses. If you use it for more than just mixing up simple things, the vitamix and blentec are worth it. Literally the only reason I picked blendtec is because it fit under my counter. The vitamix was too tall.
3D printers. Yes, there are lot of $100-$300 models out there. Unless you want 3D printer repair and maintenance to become your new hobby, just go buy a Prusa (or other well supported, full featured printer).
looks at remnants of two broken printers
Yeah you right. I really should save up a grand before trying again.
Yup. Though printers like the Bambu A1mini are very good and nearing that $300 level.
Only buy an ender if you want 3D printers to be your hobby. Buy something better if you want 3D printing to be your hobby.
Just got a Bambu P1P this week for my first printer. It's incredible. I looked at the Press and while they are pretty highly spoken of, the $ to performance/quality wasn't there for me.
But to your point, yes. A good printer is a good investment.
I needed this comment 2years ago. An Ender3 sucked all the ambition out of me
Man... It's been over 5 years since I gave up on mine... Sits on a shelf in the garage now...
Yes, this 100%!
I'm new to 3D printing myself, mainly got into it to make my ideas become reality - at the moment I don't want to get too caught up in the weeds modding and customizing my printer, I just want it to work, not turn it into a project
Extremely happy that I went for a decent used printer though (Delta style Flsun), instead of buying a new cheap one and being disappointed. My next printer will probably be a compact CoreXY, Voron 0.2 is what I have my eyes on but those kits carry a price tag and take days to assemble 😳
If I was buying a printer for my partner or friends though, 100% Prusa. The extra is worth it IMO for the highly refined UX, preconfigured slicer+filament combos, actual support, and most importantly their ongoing contributions to open source.
Nearly everything, TBH. You just gotta decide which things are important to you. Like, do you do a lot of working on cars? Spend some good money on tools - totally worth it. Tinker with something once every couple of years? Cheaper tools will get the job done, and maybe last several years at that rate.
This is true of your blender too, honestly. I don't blend stuff often and don't really care, a cheap blender is fine for me. Anyone who likes blended stuff and uses it often? Totally worth getting something really good.
Motorcycle helmets, and lawyers.
Most other things, I cheap out on -- for example for my professional tools, I buy a lot of good midrange Chinese brands. Usually quality is high and price is affordable. Same goes for phones, laptops, gadgets, and so on. I live near China though.
I disagree to an extent on motorcycle helmets. Yes, never ever buy a used helmet. ("Open box" might be okay.) Never buy a helmet off Wish, Ali Express, or similar; buy helmets from reputable motorcycle apparel dealers, like SportBikeTrackGear, ChapMoto, or RevZilla. But beyond that, you need to look at safety ratings. Don't get anything other than full face if you actually plan on riding, and that includes modular helmets (the chin bars tend to collapse in a crash). DOT approved (in the US) is bare-bones, and a helmet that's only DOT approved is not worth getting. Snell is... Okay. It's a North America-only standard. ECE is the global standard for helmets. The UK's SHARP - Safety Helmet Assessment and Rating Programme - probably gives the overall best idea of how effective a helmet will be in real-world situations. (SHARP ratings can be frustrating at times, because they don't let you sort readily by date; that means that you can end up seeing a lot of helmets that are no longer produced, and newer helmets may not be listed at all.)
An AGV K1 is going to be as safe as an AGV Pista GP RR, and will be about $200 v. >$1400. My $150 AGV K1 is a better helmet in every respect than my Shoei Neotec, despite the Neotec being about 4x the price.
At the upper end, you're paying for fiberglass or carbon fiber shells (less weight), better aerodynamics, better airflow, and better sound isolation. You notably aren't paying for better safety.
There are new helmet safety standards that started to be rolled out about 3, 4 years ago; not many helmets meet the new standard yet, and it's not clear whether it's a serious improvement on old standards or not. IIRC the new standard is mostly affecting helmets that are used solely or primarily on the track at the moment.
Niche musical instruments. A "cheap" hurdy gurdy can cost up to 2000 dollars and still sound like a bag of cats in a washing machine.
Some new recent models that are relatively cheap and sound okay exist now, but you really need to do your research.
I'd argue yes most of the time but with some exception. I can't imagine something like a gut bucket or musical saw sounding considerably better even with more expensive materials and construction techniques. I'll admit I'm not like a music person I just dabble though so idk just guessing
I'm now really interested on how does it sound to have a bag of cats in a washing machine but there's some ethical problems...
Lots of kitchen tools are like that. Expensive probably isn't the right word, more like minimum acceptable quality. Restaurant supply stores are great for this: a restaurant owner won't buy the fancy brands, but they also won't get something that won't do the job right. When you get something more expensive than the restaurant supply store, you are mainly paying for cosmetics.
Food processors and mandolins come to mind: they are a pain to clean, so unless they work really well, you're better off using a knife.
Stock pots you can get thin, crappy ones from Walmart that will never let a large volume of liquid get up to temp without scorching whatever is touching the bottom. Better to save your money for something with thicker material.
Also,
For non-kitchen stuff, one that immediately comes to mind cause I just bought one is plant grow lights. Even with LEDs, you need a pretty high power output for it to be worth anything, and power output isn't even the right metric. I'm far from an expert at it, but a couple of things to look out for is if it uses a USB port, it's junk. USB (specifically type a) cannot produce enough power to be remotely useful for plants, so all those weird no-name brands you see are just annoying purple lights. Good brands will tell you the wattage, the PAR, the brand of LED used, and so on.
Weber kettles are fantastic in this regard. They're not super expensive brand new and can be downright cheap secondhand, but if you take care of them they'll last decades. Also, Weber is pretty good about their warranty, and replacement parts can be found in most bog box hardware stores
Lol, that's exactly who I was thinking of. I have had several cheap kettle grills, and they only last a couple years, even taken care of decently. I got a weber, and it still looks new after a few years, plus the metal is way thicker so it holds steady temperature way better.
I haven't seen it mentioned, so let me say: Outerwear. Especially if you are into snow sports, the difference between quality outerwear and cheap garbage is not just getting wet sooner. It could very well save your life if you're wearing something that will keep you dry while maintaining breathability. And nothing beats lifetime no questions asked warranty where you just hand it in and it gets repaired for you. In the long term this saves a decent penny whil also reducing your environmental impact
Same goes for base and mid layers. Cotton will kill you, and lots of cheap synthetics don't breathe well. Spend money or higher end synthetics or merino.
Lastly, don't get cheap goggles from Amazon or eBay. Heck, don't get the cheapest models from even more reputable brands. You will want your goggle lenses to provide good UVA and UVB protection, while also providing contrast enhancing features like polarization and very importantly: fog resistance. You will not have a good time if you can't see where you're going. I can't stress enough how big of a difference visibility makes for your enjoyment and safety.
Custom golf clubs versus off the rack. Took 30 strokes off my game.
Haircuts / hair dyeing
God damn. I heard they help, but I didn't realize it was that drastic.
How tall are you? I think the impact is much greater if you're outside of average heights or strength levels.
Caulk, screws. Very much not worth having saved a few dollars when these things end up not working.
blender yes. Vitamix is really good
A mattress
And your pillow.
And my axe!
Office chairs around 400 to 800$. It's god damn pricey but an absolute life change if you spend a ton of time at your computer. Are so much better for your back and butt and is worth the money 10x over considering the pain it'll save you.
If you can't fork up the cash, do a ton of research, learn a lot about specific models and then on Facebook marketplace (or any other local marketplace) search up "office chair". Oftentimes people sell premium office chairs without ever knowing, this way you can snag some for ridiculously cheap. Usually around 100-200$ but if you are lucky 10-30$.
Also avoid "gaming" chairs. Like most gaming related stuff, they're awful and you're just paying for the edgy look. I had multiple of these and each one was an ergonomic catastrophe, even expensive ones.
The suffix "gaming" implies bright colors, low quality, and a higher price tag. It's right next to "premium" for identifying garbage products.
Also, I've had so many cheap chairs in my life that just failed. The "leather" peels, the gas lift breaks, or the seat cushion wears out and causes pain and discomfort.
That said, you can buy new gas lifts to fix a sinking chair very cheap and buy additional cushions to reduce pressure. If you can't afford a good chair, don't keep buying new bad ones!
Most liquors, but gin and tequila in particular.
I would say depending on the purpose, you can get some cheaper stuff. Like I'm not gonna expect people at a college party to make rum and cokes with the nice stuff. And they're just shooting back tequila for fun.
But I also still wouldn't get bottom shelf. Its still worth avoiding that. I worked at an Albertsons liquor store back in about 2010. You could get a handle of Albertsons brand liquor for $10. Was always tempted to get some just to see how bad it is, but could never force myself to do it.
If you're just making cocktails or doing shots, get the third cheapest, unless it's something like a G&T comparison or something.
To name a few. I'll leave some stuff for other people.
Gasoline?
Probably a poor selection, or some who drives a “performance” vehicle for pleasure, or possibly an older vehicle The only real thing to concern yourself with is that there has has not been sitting for a long time (weeks/months), but any popular station will have multiple deliveries a week. Get the cheap stuff. If you feel guilty you can run a cleaner and dryer through the system occasionally, but modern consumer vehicles are pretty well designed to function efficiently on a range of gasoline-based fuels.
The additives in top tier gas will keep your engine running better longer.
https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/fuel-economy-efficiency/top-tier-gasoline-worth-the-extra-price-a7682471234/
... Yeah just buy the grade you need not the "expensive" one, it's a commodity!
Not sure about hand tools. I always buy the cheapest ones that apply to my needs, and they last. The only time I broke one was when I bought a screwdriver at Dollarama, but I understand that I went too far with the cheap tool. Power tools is correct 👍
Saran Wrap doesn't stick as well as the Costco stuff. They removed the polyvinylidene chloride years ago. I'm unsure if the Costco film still has it.
Scissors comes to mind. Don't spend a lot, just don't be shit dollar store ones.
Office chair
Wow lots of replies but here's another one. Anything that connects you with the world. Boots, glasses, headphones
Nah, glasses don't have to be expensive. I notice literally no difference between pairs I've had that were over $400 and pairs that were $50. It's just shaped glass... And whilst I mostly agree with you on headphones, there are a very small number of manufacturers out there who are doing some fantastic budget headphones. The earbuds I use now cost me $40 and shit all over any others I've had (and have lab verified frequency response curves to prove they are legit too). Should add, that even though they are budget, some of their products can easily cost over $1k, but then they are emulating headphones that cost over $5k...
Glasses are one I’d specifically advise against spending tons of money on. All of the different brands and designers are all owned and manufactured by the same two or three lens manufacturers for dirt cheap. I can guarantee that the $400 pair of glasses is using the exact same lenses and frame materials as the $40 pair, because they’re both made by the same companies on the same machines in the same factories using the same materials.
The only reason different designers and brands exist is to give customers the illusion of choice. The same way Nestlé owns an entire conglomerate of food companies that are on the shelves next to each other so you can “shop around”, the glasses brands you’re comparing in the store are all owned by the same company.
Glasses are only expensive because those lens manufacturers also own the major glasses retailers, and force smaller retailers to play by their rules if they want to be able to sell their glasses. The glasses only cost ~$10 to manufacture and ship, regardless of the style. The rest is pure markup.
Buy those fuckers online for like $50 a pop. Hell, if you want to spend $400, just buy like six different pairs. Now you can style them for your particular needs. Maybe you have a daily beater pair, then a more classy pair for going out, a sports pair for working out, etc… And they’re all made using the exact same machines that the $400 glasses were made on.
Google Luxottica (which is one of the main lens manufacturers) just for a glimpse of how wide their ownership goes. All of the big optics companies have focused on vertical integration. So they own the companies that produce the lenses, the companies that produce the frames, the companies that market the frames, etc… And they only keep them separate to give the customer the illusion of choice. When you walk into a LensCrafters, it doesn’t matter which glasses you buy; All the money is going to the same parent company regardless.
Someone's lucky enough to only need single strength lenses and/or have choices of lens suppliers.
My previous pair was single strength, cost me $60.
The ones I recently got are different strength in each eye and a reading field since I'm both near sighted and 41.
The new ones cost me almost 10 times as much WITH a Black Week discount. These aren't designer glasses or anything. They're the cheapest rims that could accommodate big enough lenses from the cheapest optician using the ONLY lens supplier available in Europe.
It's a huge fucking scam and the only way to avoid being taken advantage of would have been continuing to have truly atrocious vision.
Nope. Both eyes are vastly different, and I've never shopped around for lenses, just buy what the optometrist recommends me. I am in Australia, so things may be different due to that. And I feel you on the limited frame selection thing, one of my lenses may as well be the bottom of a coke bottle, I too don't get much choice when I select a new pair.
Yeah, sounds like the lens situation is vastly different because Australia. I'm gonna look into seeing if I can't find a much cheaper supplier online for my next and/or reserve pair in spite of my pain in the ass ..
As for frame selection, that doesn't really bother me as much since the one I got costs basically nothing compared to the lenses and looks good on me.
I just mentioned it to point out that the glasses weren't so expensive because I'd foolishly gone for one of the name brand/designer frames 😁
Mattress
I used cheap mattresses my entire life and had back pain most of my adult life. We broke down and bought a good mattress a few years ago and my back pain went away almost immediately. It's crazy how much of an impact it has.
Now that more devices are on USB-C, but the standard isn’t labeled well, it’s worth getting a good cable/charge block that will regulate power appropriately.
Adam Savage had the team that does CT Scans of various products and you really can start justify why some good charging cables cost $100.
I probably wouldn’t spend that kind of money but I’m willing to spend more on one really good one that I can use in many devices.
For a little more than $100, you can get a Chromebook, which will come with a USB-C PD cable. And now you also have a Chromebook.
This is no joke. I had a cheap usb-c cable catch fire when plugged into my laptop.
Link?
A mattress, sheets, and at least one pillow. It can be expensive, but the first time you lay down in a bed that’s actually comfortable, you’ll know it was worth it.
For me it's toner for printers: I have a Brother laser printer at home that is not heavily used but at least once a week. I thought I'd save some money when I bought some cheap ass toner from Amazon that cost about half of what a original Brother toner costs and promised something like double the capacity.
Oh boy... I had the worst mildly infuriating two years of printing you could imagine: always disappointed of the printing quality but not THAT disappointed to replace this shitty but still at 2/3 capacity toner. I paid money for that toner so I'd squeeze every last page of shitty quality prints out of this fucking toner!
Last week I gave up and bought an original Brother toner and it's a bliss. 🙄
I find that surprising. I've bought knock off toner on Amazon for both brother and cannon printers, and it's great. No issues whatsoever.
Hmm maybe I had bad luck but I won't dare to try again because the experience was so bad.
I'd take issue with the "only," but setting that aside: musical instruments. Guitars, for example. You can find perfectly serviceable guitars for cheap and they'll be playable with a decent setup, and you can obviously find deals. But in general, if you try your $100-$200 Fender acoustic guitar or mandolin and then go to a guitar shop and try out a high-end Martin, for example, there's a world of difference.
I've actually heard that a lot of beginners quit because no matter how hard they practice it sounds like trash and feels bad to play, and it's to do with the cheap guitar they got.
Yes, this is especially true when dealing with a cheaper guitar with high action (distance of the strings from the fretboard). Without a proper setup (which will generally try to get the strings as low/comfortable as possible), it can make the process really hard on your hands, especially with an acoustic. You're much more likely to quit if, in addition to slow beginner progress, it also literally hurts you to play it or the strings won't stay in tune properly, etc...
I'm saying this mainly from bass perspective. But generally you have to get lucky in the cheap department to get decently good instrument. When you shift to like $500 range it gets better and for "normal use" $1000 is good enough (normal = not professional, just hobby player). Most things above $1500 are usually just waste of money to show off.
(All calculations including pre-owned prices.)
That used to be really true when I was a kid in the 79's, but not so much today. Back then, a quality guitar cost way more than the cheap stuff and the cheap stuff was rubbish.
Nowadays, with CNC machines everywhere, there are lots of modestly priced guitars that are very playable. The junk that we used to have to settle with back in the day only exists in the realm of "toy" instruments that almost aren't intended to be played.
Seriously, $300 can get you a very playable instrument, especially in electric guitars.
Anything that broke and you need a replacement of.
Safety equipment, especially SCUBA. Also clothes, shoes, your bed, and your computer chair.
If you drive a lot, a "low-end" luxury model that isn't fully equipped will likely drive better, be more comfortable, and every feature it does have will be at least a little bit nicer than the equivalent in the "normal" brand.
You might even get a lower sale price on a used luxury car vs buying a new Toyota or something these days.
Maintenance will definitely cost more, but the experience of having that work done is a whole lot better than how it used to be on all the shitty cars I've had.
Not everyone will agree with this one, but I pay more for better seats on planes too, and tend to fly only with Delta for status. That's because I have extra blood clot risk and need the wiggle room, and because I have beef with most of the other companies due to many years of experience.
My travel curse has largely been managed after getting all the stuff that gets you through the lines faster, including global entry.
Recently we were about to miss our transfer and there was a dude waiting at the gate when we deplaned who loaded us into a Porsche and drove us around the runway directly to our next gate. That was probably random, but there's a 0% chance Southwest or Spirit would do that.
Also treat yourself to some fine dining if you are able, even if it's just once every year or two.
Maybe get someone to deep clean your place (even once a year) .
Note that I am in no way a baller when I say these things. I always thought you had to be rich to get anything cool like that, but it's not attainable than you think, assuming you're not in a paycheck -to-paycheck situation (which many are and I certainly was for like all of my 20's and a good chunk of my 30's).
What is this computer chair you speak of?
A true quality office chair, like the Herman Miller Aeron, and not one of those awful "racing chair" game streamer pieces of junk.
Doesn't even have to be brand new. I bought both of my Aerons used, and I think their manufacture dates are like 2008 and 2013. I've had them for many years, sat in the 2008 one every workday for the past 10 years, and it might as well still be new. I see no reason that I won't sit in it for the next 10 years. I could have gone through a bunch of crappy Office Depot chairs in that span.
$1,400!? That must be one hell of a chair to justify the price.
High-end office chairs (Steelcase is another popular brand) can be found used for $500ish. Been thinking about making the jump myself lately but I'm insanely picky and I don't think I'd know for at least a week if I've found a good match (dunno about returns at that point).
I've heard they are worth it, though I have never sat in one. IKEA also makes surprisingly good office chairs, those I know and recommend.
I got one Aeron a few years ago. Black Friday deal for 1.200 euros, the fully kitted version which costs 1.600 normally. My IKEA Marcus fell apart after years of good service and the IKEA jarvfjallet or something like that was giving me butt and back problems, so I returned it.
The Aeron is very good, but if sit in it for 5 minutes it's just a chair. It doesn't even have that many adjustments. However over time you notice some things. First, it doesn't let you sit incorrectly (like with your leg folded under your butt). Second, you can sit in in for hours (covid work from home situation) and be perfectly fine. Third, after 3+ years of ownership, it's immaculate. Mesh is like new (and I'm a big a heavy dude), everything is just perfect. They do come with 12 years of warranty after all.
That being said, the price is just astronomical. In my case I can offset the cost from my taxes, since I use it to work from home, and l could sell it after 10 years used for still half the price (so it's kind of "free" almost), but if you expect some ridiculous luxury just because it costs 8 times more than a Markus, you'll be disappointed. It's comfortable, it remains comfortable all day and it doesn't break, but it's just a chair at the end of the day. I don't regret my purchase, for what it's worth, I fact I'm quite happy with it.
I feel like 1500 for THE premium office chair really isn't much when you look at, for example Smartphone prices. And lots of people spend nearly as much time in their computer chair as in their bed. And I don't think 1500$ is a lot for a bedframe, mattress, pillow and blanket.
This right here. People expect to sit in an expensive chair and get a soft, plush, "comfortable" feeling. No, that's not what a quality chair is for. A quality chair's purpose is to let you be 40 years old, sit in it for an 8 hour workday, and get up at the end of the day with zero back pain (at least, none from sitting in the chair).
I forget how uncomfortable chairs can be until I travel for work and have to sit in something else for a whole day.
I got a Steelcase Series 2 like 3 years back. I work from home and usually am on my home machine the rest of the day because I've got a problem. This chair is going to add years to my back I'd be losing if I got cheap or "gamer" chairs. I was hesitant to drop that kind of $$ at the time but I'm a convert now, only the good shit for me
Funny and true:
Porsche consistently has the second best brand rating for reliability of all major makes of vehicles on the market in the west. They take second place to Lexus. Some years they manage to beat Lexus (although not often). Yeah, repairs are expensive when you need them, and maintenance is too (IIRC oil changes use a lot of oil, and be a hassle to do on some models). On the other hand, they're actually more reliable than Honda, which sounds crazy. Conversely, VW--and the VW Group owns the Porsche brand--is not very reliable. When I looked up TSBs on my 2012 GTI, it was... A lot. And a lot of them were pretty bad, things like the time chain tensioner failing and needing to be replaced as a warranty item.
Which company is almost always dead last on the reliability lists? Land Rover. Do not buy a Land Rover, unless you can afford to buy two.
Everything that you use for prolonged amounts of time every day. For me it was ergonomic chair, keyboard, pillow. Expensive is a word, but I would rather think higher quality when choosing replacement for stuff I use.
Another category of things is hobby equipment, for me it's instruments. When I buy one it's to last. So when I was buying digital piano I went for one over my budget because I don't plan to get rid of it for next 5-10 years still, and it was 5years ago. Overall stuff that you don't usually think of buying frequently.
Last category I think of i go for higher quality stuff then generic ones are travel stuff. Last thing you want during your trip, short or long, distant or near, is to deal with faulty bag, broken wheel, or such.
A refrigerator with a good ice maker is worth the extra expense. Our ice maker just gave out, and I'd forgotten how much a pain in the butt it is to make ice in plastic trays.
Made the leap to an undercounter ice maker when we renovated, since the fridge ones keep breaking, and it has been the best decision, despite the initial ridiculous cost.
I go through sooooo much ice and ice water every day now. It makes me so happy every time I open the door and see the heap of perfect clear cubes waiting to be scooped into my cup.
Not necessarily expensive nowadays, but I agree. Just bought a new fridge because our old one gave up. Icemaker is a must. I fucking love icewater. It broke once a year ago, until I fixed it, it was awful. Never going to not have fresh ice now, so of course our new one has that. Now it's on its last legs, and the icemachine doesnot work anymore :(. The new one also has a larger inside volume due to better insulation!
For the few things that I do want chilled, I prefer reusable cubes - they don’t melt and make my drink all watery.
A square cooking skillet pan. So many of these will bend if it's not made of cast iron, but found the scanpan one to work wonderfully.
https://www.surlatable.com/scanpan-es5-11-square-griddle/PRO-5844956.html?cgid=SCA-428040&start=-4
Regarding cooking I just bought my first decent knife (from Fein in Solingen, which is a traditional knife-making company)
Not the absolute high end, but just one step better as most of the normal industrial stuff - ai couldn't be happier.
Flux core solder for electronics
The cheap stuff doesn't stick to the things you're trying to solder. The good stuff melts and flows into the joint like magic. It's really satisfying.
Toilet paper.
GPU's, usually the budget ones have worse performance per dollar ratios
Rtx3060 is loved so much with a reason
I am going to replace my 980ti this year. Most expensive GPU I ever bought, but I have been using it for almost 8 years. I am not optimistic about my next one lasting that long. Waiting for the Supers to release so I can get some benchmarks and see what prices do.
I bet a lot of users will get 8 years out of a 3080 if they bought it at launch. 4080 value went uh, a bit downhill
Windshield wipers (that don't go SQUEEAK SQUEEAK & actually let you see out the window).
I would argue blenders/mixers aren't on that list. Used my mothers fancy one, used fancy ones at school, used friends fancy devices. And used my rubbish $12 blender from BigW, so I do not see why anyone pays more than $12 for a mixer ever.
Boots, though, shoes, headphones, and laptop. Those are good to be quality.
Personally, I don't think most people need super high end headphones, but I know a few people who'll buy a new pair of gas station headphones every month. There are several companies making decent, affordable headphones that will sound better and last much longer. You don't need to spend $500, but you better spend at least $50
They can only last at long as I can find them.
$12 blenders are fine until you want to make a frozen drink without pea sized chunks of ice in it.
As far as mixers go generally agree, unless you want to use it weekly or to make dough. To be able to make dough balls you need to have something with some cojones.
It's one of those right tool right job kind of things. If the job is to mix Pillsbury cake mix, anything works.
In order to understand the usefulness of the blender you have to actually use it a lot. It has to be a common item of use in your life. As a kitchen person who loves cooking, that new blender is the best thing since I used a commercial robo coup in restaurant kitchens. A $12 blender is a piece of crap that has to be poked, prodded, messed with and talked nice to just to make a damn smoothie.
Shoes though. I'm with you there. Feet and teeth. You get one life with them and use them every day. Take care of em.
I mean my new blender has 3 blades that mean I never have to poke, shake, or worry. One blade at bottom, middle, then top, and the blades reach near the sides of the blender. There is nowhere my fruit can hide from my Ninja.
Those blenders that only have blades at the bottom always get stagnant and you have to like stir, poke, and prod. Like you'll get a frozen strawberry down by the blades, and it'll just kick it up higher into the liquid. Felt like it never evenly blended things.
This is so hard to specify because it really depends on a lot of factors. It's usually more like there are specific models that are really worth getting, or pricepoints or brands depending.
Like, I don't think cordless drill/drivers that are sub $100 are really worth it if you're ever going to do more than screw into pre drilled or pre made screw holes. But a Bosch (blue), Dewalt, Milwaukee, Makita, etc are all pretty good. They're just usually over $100.
You're right about blenders - I never had a use for Oster blenders, but a BlendTec in 2008 changed my life (well, not really, but did do things that I have uses for at least).
Ohh, pressure cookers - I don't want to risk it exploding, so I avoid the $70 and under crowd. Actually, I went Kunh Rikon which is pretty expensive, but also really hard to screw up (like 6 layers of safeties), and easy to get refurb parts for seals and such.
Lots of safety equipment - there's all sorts of ... "fake" in that it won't actually work stuff at super cheap prices. I'm thinking like laser safety glasses or chain saw safety pants. Mid range is def worth it there.
Dishwashers IMHO. I've used cheap ones before and they clean poorly and are extremely loud. Depending on your house, you won't want to be in the next room to them. OTOH, Bosch higher end ones, like the 800 series, cost a pretty penny, but are darn near silent and actually live up to the washing claims - shit just comes clean in them. I'm usually surprised in a good way. Oh, and that third tray for silverware - I'm never going back to the basket (though lots of brands have that now).
Stand Mixers - especially if you want to get into bread or attachments for grinding things. I strongly recommend the Bosch Universal Plus. That thing is like a power tool for the kitchen. We've abused it for over 10 years and it's not slowing down. I know many people online who have had them for 30 years.
Vacuums - look into Sebo.
I'm gonna say phones. If you're getting a new phone and you're on a budget, always get a refurbished flagship from Samsung/Google (they support those ones for 5-7 years of updates now). They're often far better than new budget phones for the same price. They are built better, they last longer with far better specs, and are generally far more refined in all aspects.
Hard disagree here. My daily driver is a 5 year old Motorola phone here that cost me a whopping €159 back in 2019. It is fast enough for the things I do with it. If I'd bought a flagship phone by then, the OS updates would have stopped long ago (but things appear to have improved since).
I don't consider my pocket 'puter a lifestyle accessory or a status symbol, so... no.
Like you, IDGAF about status symbols. It's just that a two year-old flagship/high-end phone will work better and longer than a new budget phone for the same price. Like you can get a 300-350$ Pixel 7 Pro right now refurbished from Amazon and you'll have a better experience than the myriads of new phones on sale for the same price. This holds true for the cheaper Pixel 7 as well. That saves you a ton of time and money. Not to mention it's better for the environment.
Some people value a fresh new battery that can last rather than gamble on a similarly priced refurbished flagship with unknown battery degradation.
Nutella.
If by expensive version you mean the original Italian gianduja spread. The Ferrero version is overly sweet and tasteless in comparison.
The Nutella receipe is different in every country based on consumer testing panels.
And wherever you go, its always a spread that technically isnt chocolate spread, as there is not enough cacao in there :p. Well, depending on the country's law at least. I know here it isnt legal to call nutella a chocolate spread. Label can only say "hazelnut spread"
After buying chocolate spread in italy on vacation I will never buy nutella again. Right now I rotate between the italian coop store brand dark chocolate and pan di stele because I can't find my favourite gianduja in stores anymore :( i think they went out of business during covid.
It used to be headphones but the stuff in recent years out of China is so good on sound quality. You can get what used to cost over $1000 USD for < $350 with great stuff @ $150 & even servicable stuff @ $20 for a spare.
Cuisinart food processor
KitchenAid mixer
Vitamix blender
Kan chef knife
Silicone rubber spatula (won't melt)
Stainless steel measuring cups and spoons
You have to be very careful with KitchenAid mixers - I think the 700Pro is the only currently made one that's worth very much - the gears strip out in most of the cheaper ones, and all of them made from like 2000-2014 or so. At least if you mix anything in there you couldn't do about as easily with a hand mixer that's $20 on Amazon.
A good quality bread machine.
A good tip for bread machines is that a lot of people buy them but then don’t like them, so you can get good secondhand ones cheaply. I love my bread machine - it was about £120 new, but I got it in a charity shop for £10.
Huh. I just use a bowl, and the oven.
The difference between my Zojirushi and the Black and Decker we had prior is indescribable. My home made bread suddenly wasn't dry from the middle down and would last without losing freshness for a whole day extra. With the same ingredients. It's absolutely worth it to buy a quality bread maker.
Interior wall paints (and rollers/brushes). I recently remodeled my house.and decided to buy the really good stuff instead of just the well known brands from the DIY store. Man, what a difference that makes. Painting is sooo much easier and it dries much nicer.
With the expensive paints, single-layer is actually true, so it really isn't all that much more expensive.
Nothing. I always pick the mid-range products
I grew up with the cheapest and most worn down vacuum cleaners. It was awful, everything from having to pull it out of a cabinet to finding an outlet and, having bad suction, awful cleaning heads and annoying hoses.
So when I got my own apartment and worked for a bit I decided to go all in on a Dyson Absolute V12 Detect. It's actually very painless and super quick to vacuum now. Also a bit fun.
With a rechargeable battery it's wireless and the battery lasts me about 4 vacuuming sessions in my apartment, no keeping track of vacuum bags and filters. All in all it takes me from touching my vacuum to being done cleaning my, albeit 1 room apartment, about 10 minutes. It's great!
Luggage.
You don't want to be repacking your shit while late a for a flight because you're a kg over the limit and it's gonna cost an extra $100 if you don't and mistakenly rip the zipper off your carry-on. You really, really don't.
You don't have to completely break the bank either, but if you value your sanity, I wouldn't spend too much less than $200 on a carry-on/check-in pair.