I saw this post and wanted to ask the opposite. What are some items that really aren’t worth paying the expensive version for? Preferably more extreme or unexpected examples.

    • Shadow@lemmy.ca
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      But real Advil has the candy coating on the outside, and I haven’t found a generic that does =(

      Otherwise 100% identical yes.

      • Raptor_007@lemmy.world
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        A few years ago, I wondered why that was and googled it. I came to an Advil site with an expandable FAQ, and one of the questions was “why does Advil taste sweet?”

        So I expanded it out to reveal this shocking answer (or something similar): “Advil tastes sweet because it is lightly coated in sugar.”

        Thanks, I guess. I just closed the tab in mild irritation and moved on with my day.

      • Otter@lemmy.ca
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        9 months ago

        Yep

        There may be a difference in things like pill shape, texture, release mechanism / time to absorb (if it’s not very important for how the medication works)

        So it’s ok to have a preference for one brand over the other when one of those points is relevant to your situation. I know some people also prefer the generic brand version over the regular (even if prices were the same)

      • Johandea@feddit.nu
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        9 months ago

        Wait, what? I have no idea what advil is, but sugar coating any drug is a recipe for disaster.

        • chaorace@lemmy.sdf.org
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          Sugarcoating pills is fairly common, especially for pills which are frequently ingested or target older demographics. It’s because sugar coatings are much gentler on the esophagus (i.e.: less likely to cause esophagitis, “pill burn”). Advil (i.e.: ibuprofen) is a cheap, well tolerated, and non habit-forming pain reliever – it’s about as safe as such a thing could possibly be, so hopefully that helps to explain why a sugar coating might be warranted given the aforementioned upsides (for the love of all that is holy; always read the directions on the label, it’s still quite possible that Advil is not safe for you specifically). FWIW: the bottles also have childproofing mechanisms built into the caps (… at least in U.S. markets. Not sure about elsewhere?)

    • bionicjoey@lemmy.ca
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      9 months ago

      Depends on the meds. I take concerta for ADHD and as I understand it, the generic doesn’t use the same release mechanism.

      • xmunk@sh.itjust.works
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        9 months ago

        I’m also on concerta (ADHD highfive) and I’ve found lower efficacy with the generic… I sure wish it was the same though.

    • Sterile_Technique@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Crunched the numbers years ago for cost per mg of a med in question, and unsurprisingly generics were the best deal, but Costco’s generics (Kirkland) specifically blew the competition out of the water. Comparing it to the most expensive options (name brands from places like Walgreens) was pretty comical - no exaggeration, some of them were literally over 100x more expensive per mg than the Kirkland equivilent. Comparing it to other generics, Kirkland still won by a factor of 5 to 10 sometimes.

      Between that and gas, a Costco membership pays for itself before you even step foot into the food aisles or other random shit they sell.

      Caveat: they do also sell a lot of fancy, stupid expensive shit, so don’t let the comment paint the picture that everything in that store is a super good deal - it’s not - but the things that are good deals, are crazy good deals, pharmaceuticals in particular.

    • Admetus@sopuli.xyz
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      9 months ago

      Aspirin and paracetamol I don’t think are patented by any one company now. Supermarket brand is super cheap.

    • IninewCrow@lemmy.ca
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      9 months ago

      Also, a cheaper alternative is to eat less and eat healthier. I know we can’t all afford expensive healthy foods but just simply cutting out excess fats, sugar and empty carbs from your diet will add years to your life and also add better years to your life.

    • WeeSheep@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Off brand Tums (and some newer flavors of Tums) is made with dextrose instead of corn starch. Sugar gives me heart burn, so generic and newer stuff does absolutely nothing for me.

  • nis@feddit.dk
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    9 months ago

    Water. At least here in Denmark. Bottled water is less regulated than tap water.

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      In parts of the Alps, the stuff coming out of the fountains in the town square is cleaner than the stuff that comes out of the tap lol 😂

      • 𝕽𝖚𝖆𝖎𝖉𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖌𝖍@midwest.social
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        In the states, you always filter or boil stream water, because animals shit it it, and you can pick up any number of nasty parisites and diseases. Tap water should at least be treated.

        Is there no dysentary in the Alps? No giardiasis? Cryptosporidiosis?

        I’d sooner drink tapwater short-term almost anywhere in a developed country than river water. The former may cause issues long term, but the later can make you life-threateningly ill in hours.

          • Yah, exclusively. Wells (stagnant water, whether above or under-ground) are problematic because they tend to breed bacteria, but any out-flowing ground-spring is probably fine. Deep wells, such as aquifers, are alse safe, I think, but you’re unlively to encounter accessible ones of those in the wild.

            I’m suspicious of even mountain springs, although they can be utterly delicious and safe; my issue is nhen you don’t know what’s upstream. There are lots of farmers in the Alps who let their sheep, goats, and cattle forage in the mountains. Which is perfectly fine, except that they poop, and that gets into running water, often after having sat out and having had plenty of time to build up bacterial populations, hosting parasitic worms and such. People also contribute, but less so. I’m not worried about drinking someone else’s diluted pee, which is sterile in any case.

            But, yeah, ground springs are fine, and those are far more common in the Alps than most of the ranges in North America.

        • Lazhward@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          Depends on altitude really. If you’re higher up it’s freezing meltwater, which might have a non-zero chance of containing disease carriers but it’s probably extremely unlikely.

        • Mr_Blott@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          There’s natural sources everywhere, literally filtered water pouring out of rocks. So much so that the overflow from water treatment plants gets pumped to the fountains, and troughs in the countryside for walkers to use

        • Zahille7@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          When in a trip to Europe when I was 16, my grandpa and I visited Switzerland for a week. We got e-bikes for our time there and would take them everywhere we went around the country (absolutely gorgeous countryside, with bike trails literally all over the place). One day we went up into the Alps to visit and check things out. Our plan was to ride from one town on one side of the mountain, ride up over the mountain, then catch a train ride home.

          I rode on ahead because I was impatient, ended up getting lost so I had to make that ride myself (and it took literally all day). At one point I stopped to take a break and I saw a large tub filled with water, which I assume(d) was for some animals or something. Well anyway I was tired and thirsty so I just went right up to the tub and dunked my face in for a drink. I could see bits of grass and whatnot floating in it but I didn’t care cause I was so thirsty.

          I’ve been fine ever since.

          • That’s a great story, and it sounds like an amazing trip.

            It’s not a “will”, it’s a “might”. It’s a game of Russian roulette; 5 times you might be fine, but is it worth it if the 6th isn’t, and you spend the rest of the vacation puking and crapping your guts out?

            For me, the question is: are there any such parisites in the Alps? Maybe not. Giardia in the new world is spread largely by beavers, as I understand it, and those don’t exist (much) anymore in Europe.

            • Zahille7@lemmy.world
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              I mean I absolutely wouldn’t do it again lol. Nowadays I carry a water bottle with me anywhere I go

                • Mr_Blott@lemmy.world
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                  You can absolutely 100% safely drink water from the spout in a trough in a field in Switzerland or France. If it’s not drinkable it’s labelled “non potable”. If there’s no label it’s fine

                  Not everywhere is the US

          • BenPranklin@lemmy.world
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            I wish you’d shared this anecdote sooner. Think of all the money that could have been saved on water treatment if people had only known that one time you drank from a semi questionable water source and didn’t get sick.

    • interolivary@beehaw.org
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      One of the benefits of living in the Nordics is tap water that can literally be of higher quality than bottled water (assuming you don’t have bad pipes.) The only time I’ll ever buy bottled water is if I get really thirsty when I’m on the go and don’t have a bottle of tap water with me

  • Caomh_Cynbel@lemmy.world
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    In the UK, baked beans.

    In my work we did a blind taste test of 10 different brands of baked beans, with participants ranking them in order from best to worst. The name brand options such as Heinz, HP, and Branstons ended up in the middle, with the cheaper options from Aldi and Asda being the best. The most expensive beans were from Marks and Spencer and were voted the worst ones.

    If you’re paying more than 50p a can its not worth it.

  • workerONE@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    Speaker wire. Expensive speaker wire will not sound any better. You could use a coat hanger and get great sound. Tip: every few years cut the wire ends and expose fresh wire to use. Over time the wire can oxidize if I recall correctly.

    • teamevil@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Take two minutes and tin the ends with solder and you’re good for years… My favorite in ear monitor brand just was sold and they changed the headphone cord to ultra thin shite that is “more pure” I’m an audio engineer…it’s horseshit.

      • /home/pineapplelover@lemm.ee
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        The stuff in the audio world is mind boggling. I think LTT did a video on a network switch that made sound better or something.

        • jamiehs@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          Yup. That was Grade-A bullshit from the seller. People will say anything to try to sell you a “superior” product.

    • spookex@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Can confirm, I bought my speaker wire second hand and the stuff is probably like at least 30 years old and sounds fine

    • Schlomocucumber@lemmy.world
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      Yep. Bought thin speaker wire at the dollar store 15+ years ago. Still using it in my living room. Bought a house and the basement stereo was included and had 'good" speaker wire for the connection. I cannot hear a difference

      • NotATurtle@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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        9 months ago

        I partially agree. While there are a lot of useless upsells there still are supported standards and features to considder.

  • Vode An@lemmy.ml
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    9 months ago

    Dogs, rescues are just as doglike and mostly free compared to the Hapsburg simulator known as breeding

  • bluyonder@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    My rule of thumb: Buy the cheap one. If it wears out or breaks, buy the good one.

    • MrAlpharius@lemmy.world
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      For me actually the other way Around. There is a saying in Spain that says “el pobre siempre paga dos veces” that translates as “the poor always pays twice”.

      It refers to the fact that you buy something cheap that barely covers the need and after it breaks you are forced to buy the good one. This is specially important for hand tools or similar.

      In my opinion, for using it a couple times is better renting/asking someone to let you use theirs. For several uses it is almost always better paying more for a better use and higher resell value.

      • hawgietonight@lemmy.world
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        On the other hand, if you are buying cheap it’s usually because you aren’t familiar with the product and it’s characteristics. So you can take it as the price for learning about said product and what you really want from it.

        For example, I got a cheap electric scooter for my wife on her birthday. We are new to these things, and didn’t even know if we would use it at all. Fast forward a year and we have used the crap out of it, even the kids can’t stop taking it out for a spin, and we now know what to look for and what sort of power and features we want when it comes time to replace it.

        • MrAlpharius@lemmy.world
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          That might be the perfect example for what I said. You have bought a cheap product that you ended up liking and when it tears up you are paying literally twice for the same product.

          It is not that tou took a bad decision or that the buying twice applies to everyone everywhere and everything, it just says you are in fact paying twice for the same thing while some research might have saved that.

          Don’t take me wrong, this is not criticism, I’ve done it a thousand times but in my experience, for something I consider might REALLY need, get the good (not the best) option first.

      • Herbal Gamer@sh.itjust.works
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        9 months ago

        Very much depends on what kind of things you’re speaking of.

        For example, the rule works very well with most tools; if you end up barely using it, it’s not worth paying more. If it breaks, it’s because you’ve used it enough or to warrant an expensive one, or because your needs exceed its use.

      • Aniki 🌱🌿@lemm.ee
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        the amount of trash generated by food production, the medical industry, and the construction industry trump personal waste by so many orders of magnitude I no longer give a shit about the waste I generate, especially if it’s in the pursuit of BIFL.

      • mub@lemmy.ml
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        That “if” can apply to the high price brand as well. If you know you won’t use the item a lot, going for off brand is a reasonable approach.

      • bluyonder@lemmy.world
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        Good point, I Wasn’t thinking about waste. I have several cheap tools from Harbor Freight that I’ve had for years. I’ve also had good name brand tools break down in the middle of their first job.

    • Showroom7561@lemmy.ca
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      That’s one way to never get the best experience out of something, though.

      Buy cheap shoes to go running, and you’ll probably quit after a few weeks.

      Buy cheap tools, and you’ll end up rounding off nuts and stripping screws.

      Buy a cheap bike and you’ll end up hating cycling.

      Etc.

      Better would be to buy the best quality for your budget, assuming it’s something you’ll be using more than once or is something that isn’t critical to have as decent quality.

  • ilinamorato@lemmy.world
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    Digital cables, like HDMI and USB. If they meet the spec, they should operate identically.

    ETA: It’s a digital signal: either it works or it doesn’t. There’s no “higher quality” version of the same image. Sure, if you have a 4K 120hz HDR signal you might need an HDMI 2.1 spec cable, but as long as it meets that spec, it’ll either work or need to be returned. The signal won’t be washed out, or crackly, or static-y (all the concerns we had with analog video cables back in the day); the signal might not work, or it might drop out from time to time, which means it doesn’t meet spec.

    Same with USB-C. If it doesn’t charge your phone correctly, or have the transfer speeds you want, because you bought it at a Dollar Store and it isn’t in spec, the problem isn’t USB-C, it’s the fact that the manufacturer sold you an out-of-spec cable.

  • baseless_discourse@mander.xyz
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    I personally do not find expensive wine and liquor worth it. That obviously don’t mean all cheap wines are good, but I find the percentage of bad wine I had at $50 - $70 range is pretty much the same as wine around or under $20.

    I find the best way is to research online before you buy or go for couple known-good brands. Most of the results actually tend to be on the cheaper side (around $20 for wine, around $35 for liquor).

    • slowwooderrunsdeep@lemmy.world
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      I’ll agree on the wine front, but I also don’t care for wine much. Never developed a palate for it.

      But liquor, very much disagree. If you’re one to enjoy a scotch on the rocks or something, there’s a huge difference in taste once you splurge and get the good $100+/bottle stuff. And the cheap liquor always gives me a bad hangover.

      • Vode An@lemmy.ml
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        9 months ago

        under $20 for 1.75 L is the one of the better vodkas out there. Very smooth, little to no flavor, its actually like drinking water

        hop on that cheap danish shit

    • HelixDab2@lemm.ee
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      I’ll disagree to a point on liquor.

      I like single-malt Scottish whiskey. I like Islays the most, followed by Speysides, Cambelltowns, Highlands, and Lowlands (in that order). I’ve found that, generally speaking, the longer a whiskey has been aged, the better it’s going to be at mellowing out the harsher flavors in a given distillery’s offerings. Compared to blended whiskeys–which are usually cheaper–single malt, and single barrel are a better experience in my opinion. I’m usually paying $50-200 for something that I’ll really enjoy, with most being in the $100-150 range.

      But $5000 for a 40yo bottle of Macallen? Absolutely not.

      • baseless_discourse@mander.xyz
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        9 months ago

        I heard whisky can be quite expensive, so I retract my point on whisky. The liquor I had in mind is mainly tequila, which is generally rather cheap.

        • HelixDab2@lemm.ee
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          FWIW, whiskey is expensive because the market had grown sharply, and production runs a minimum of seven years behind demand (for Scottish whiskey, due to laws on aging). Ten years ago you could get a perfectly decent Laphroaig for $25-35; now it’s more like $60 for the same thing.

        • foreman@lemmy.world
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          I will say legit well crafted tequila I had in Mexico, was so tasty you could drink it straight. No clue the price, but there are def differences and pretty much all of the cheaper tequila in America sucks ass.

    • IMHO, there are two price bands for wine: under-$10, and over. I have an unsophisticated palette, but I can tell a cheap wine from a not-cheap one. I can’t tell a not-cheap one from an expensive one, though. Some really expensive wines taste like crap to me, worse than the mid-range ones. That’s the only time I can pick out on expensive wine: it might taste bad, but it doesn’t taste cheap.

    • RBWells@lemmy.world
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      I am picky but it doesn’t correlate directly with price. Wine, no. I don’t like wine enough to like bad wine so just saving money by drinking it rarely(maybe 6xa year) but buying the ones I actually do like works better. They are between 30-50 USD but again, maybe 5 or 6 bottles a year at most.

      Liquor - I have favorites but they are mostly not high end stuff. Evan Williams bottled-in-bond is fantastic and so cheap. ABK6 cognac and vodka are great. Tequila, I like a few and none are too spendy.

      Liqueurs though, and mezcal- paying more does seem to make a huge difference in these. The good ones are better than the cheaper analogues.

    • ObsidianZed@lemmy.world
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      I’m a classic ____ and coke person myself, and I’ve settled with Evan Williams White label with RC Cola, almost indistinguishable from Jack and Coke for well under half the price at probably twice the ABV. And the more I drink, the less I care.

      • BenPranklin@lemmy.world
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        When I see people say stuff like “rc cola is almost indistinguishable from coke” it blows my mind. Do you actually mean you can’t taste the difference? Or that you don’t think the difference is worth the extra money?

          • Welt@lazysoci.al
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            I only had it a few times in Australia but I didn’t like it, it tasted very different from the other colas.

  • idunnololz@lemmy.world
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    Dish washer soap. Gotta rep technology connections for teaching me that not only is the powdered stuff cheaper, it’s also just straight up better. Also store vs name brand shouldn’t make a big difference either, at least not from my tests.

    When I buy dishwasher soap now I just compare price per gram and grab the cheapest option.

  • xkforce@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    Cheap pregnancy tests work just as well as expensive ones do. Theyre highly regulated either way.

  • Thevenin@beehaw.org
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    Fashion accessories. For most fashion (not workwear), the expensive stuff is made from the same material and in the same factories as the cheap stuff, they just market it harder.

    Body wash. It’s watered-down soap. Just buy a bar of soap.

    Amazon Prime. Amazon used to be space-age Sears. Now it’s just Aliexpress. Fake reviews and bribery are rampant, dangerously nonfunctional products get top recommendations, used and broken products get resold as new while untouched returns get thrown into landfills, Amazon Basics violates IP, and they’re putting ads in Prime Video now.

    Microwaves and space heaters. The boxes may try to convince you otherwise, but the amount of heat these devices can deliver is bottlenecked by the power outlet. Every 1100W microwave is just as effective as the others. If you’re paying more, it’s for looks and for features you’ll never use like popcorn mode.

    Electronics, for most people. Most people won’t get more use out of a new $1500 phone than a last-gen model from the same manufacturer for $500. Do you really want a $200 smart coffee maker, or a $20 dumb coffee maker with a $10 plug-in timer?

    Software. Obligatory FOSS plug. I don’t blame people for sticking to what’s familiar, but if you have the time and energy to spare tinkering, most software out there has a good free or open-source equivalent these days. At least for personal use. In my use case, LibreOffice beats Microsoft Word, Photopea beats Photoshop, and Google Sheets beats Excel.

    • PelicanPersuader@beehaw.org
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      Hard disagree on body wash vs soap. Soap always leaves a weird filmy feeling on my skin no matter what brand I use. Plus having to lather up the bar is annoying and I don’t want to deal with wet washcloths in the shower. Give me a poof and a bottle of body wash any day.

      • CCMan1701A@startrek.website
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        9 months ago

        Yeah, body soap last me a lot longer as well. People gift me Lush some times and the large bottle lasts months, I’m almost 1/4 done with one I got back in October.

      • Thevenin@beehaw.org
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        9 months ago

        Huh. I had to google it, but you’re right – body wash isn’t technically soap, it’s detergent. So it’s less likely to leave a film, particularly in hard water.

        You learn something new every day.

    • legofreak@feddit.de
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      9 months ago

      I agree with everything but using Google sheets. It’s neither free nor open source. You don’t pay with money but with your privacy. Libre office is just as good as a desktop application and is actually FOSS. If you absolutely need the cloud storage, get a provider you can trust, buy the space and sync your files online, after editing locally.

  • mommykink@lemmy.world
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    Two things that have been very relevant to me recently:

    Car washes. If you want the best outcome, wash it yourself. If you’re just trying to knock some grime off, the cheapest one will do. The finishing sprays don’t last a week.

    Also beverages when hosting a party. No need to buy name brand when store brand is half the cost and will get drank the same anyway.

    • chillhelm@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Also beverages when hosting a party. No need to buy name brand when store brand is half the cost and will get drank the same anyway.

      People will drink it, but they may also remember. I have a cousin at whose house I turn tea-totaller, because the beer & wine they offer at parties is literally the cheapest stuff available and it’s fucking horrible.

      • mommykink@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        FWIW I was mainly talking about things like soda. The difference between store brand and name brand drinks is almost unnoticeable in taste but costs half as much. I agree that the cheapest beer is borderline undrinkable though

        • 31337@sh.itjust.works
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          9 months ago

          The difference between soda is very noticeable to me. Some store-brand sodas taste almost flat.

          I can’t tell much a difference between wines of the same type. They taste slightly different, but I can’t say which taste “better.”

          Cheap liquor seems “harsher” than more expensive liquor; even with vodka, which doesn’t really have a taste. The difference in taste of say, the regular Jim Beam and a barrel-proof bourbon is pretty noticeable.

          I’ve noticed no difference in 100% fruit juice by brand. Well, except for orange juice.

          Tea quality is very noticeable to me, but I’m a heavy tea drinker.

          Even different water brands have different tastes. But, as long as it’s not my tap water (which is very hard and smells like a swimming pool), I don’t really care.

      • fruitycoder@sh.itjust.works
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        9 months ago

        I had this issue. I buy generics and had a couple friends literally complain that I didn’t have anything to drink. Less of an issue as we actually grew up, now less people bitch and mostly got over it.

        People live for those brands, though, man.

        • chillhelm@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          For me it was kind of the opposite. I care less about getting shit faced and more about flavours. Getting buzzed is just a pleasant side effect.

        • psud@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          I make beer, and I take suggestions of friends of different styles (if left to my taste it would be English and Irish ales, and heavily hopped pale ales)

          I am disappointed when people suggest “something like VB?” (Victoria Bitter is a mass market beer tuned to be inoffensive. It’s boring.)

          Beer drinkers are as bad as wine drinkers for being fussy

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      9 months ago

      Kirkland frozen pizzas are the exception, they may come three to a box but it’s straight cardboard with bland toppings and sauce. Plus they don’t reheat worth a shit, might as well get 10 totinos

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        9 months ago

        And sometimes coffee, they are great if you are into consistent generic dark roast, but kirkland coffee is not for people who are not into that.

    • blindsight@beehaw.org
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      9 months ago

      Not their (organic) eggs, at least in my area. They have pale, tasteless yolks. Other than eggs, we get Kirkland if it’s an option.

    • ribboo@lemm.ee
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      9 months ago

      100% the other way around for me. My phone is the one thing I own, I use the most. To have a more fluid experience is worth a couple of hundred dollars. The hourly price difference is minuscule.

      • weeeeum@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        I have found that most mid tier phones and high end ones are pretty similar in practical performance and use. Even cheap phones around 300 or 200$ are pretty good nowadays and there’s not much of a reason to get a really expensive one anymore. Expensive Phones simply haven’t innovated much in the last couple years while cheap phones have gotten better and better, which is why phone sales are at a 10 year low right now.

        • Mango@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          My super phone is excellent and does everything I expect it to. My roommates’s cheap phone somehow has worse versions of each app we install. He had to find something very specific to cast to the Roku. The type c to HDMI adapter does nothing with his phone. For some reason a mech game we play straight up wouldn’t let him use certain core features until half a year later. Also for some damn reason, texts barely make it through to his phone. I gotta hit ‘switch to SMS/MMS’ all the time after sending him something that fails to send.

    • fruitycoder@sh.itjust.works
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      9 months ago

      Agreed. I’ve gotten expensive android phones, and I know plenty of people with expensive apple phones, but they all go to crap. A cheap phone last about as long and does 90% the same stuff and into photography or gaming, both of which have better alternatives at the high-end phone price ranges.

      • Bwaz@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        Or get several models previous, bought used. I had a Pixel 3 I bought for very little on ebay… Now I have a Pixel 7, from a deal with my wireless company (which will of course cost me over time). And at least for my use, I can’t say the 7 is any more useful or nice to work with than the 3.

        • ridethisbike@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          I bought my pixel 4xl at the end of 2019 used and it’s still going strong. There was an issue that affected the batteries that Google fixed under warranty, but other than that I see no reason for me to need to get a new phone for a couple more years. It’s plenty snappy and the camera is still good enough.

          • miss_brainfart@lemmy.ml
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            9 months ago

            The only argument would be software support. Getting newly discovered flaws fixed would be ideal, but many manufacturers don’t do that for nearly as long as we should reasonably expect them to.

      • nicerdicer@feddit.de
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        9 months ago

        A cheap phone last about as long and does 90% the same stuff

        This is true. You can get an almost equal performance out of a cheap phone. But I learned that more expensive or high-end phones recieve more software updates than cheaper entry-tier phones.

        For instance, I own an LG K8 (Model LG-M200E) from 2017. The battery still holds enough charge (although it is designed to be replaced), the camera works, the touch display still responds properly - but it only recieved one update (Android 7 --> Android 8) in 2018. I wouldn’t consider it secure and I certainly don’t have my online banking on the phone. Meanwhile it gets very hot and slow when I use Google Maps. Unfortunately, there is no way to replace its operating system with an alterntive OS, linke Grephene OS or Lineage. None of the many alternative operating systems offer suppert for this specific model.

        My next phone will propably be mid-price ranged.

        Edit: typos

    • MrMusAddict@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      I guess with all things, depends on the financial position of the customer.

      If you’re stretching yourself to get any phone, then yeah, diminishing returns for forking out $800+ for a flagship.

      That being said I’ve owned multiple phones in each price category, and can say that the best phones are unfortunately among the most expensive.

      • teichflamme@lemm.ee
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        9 months ago

        I’ve owned phones across all price ranges and had a different experience.

        Don’t get the cheapest one, but a used Pixel or OnePlus that’s 2 years old works the same way as the newest Galaxy 12345.

    • the16bitgamer@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      I think we need to define cheap.

      Cheap as in a used iPhone that still works. Agreed

      Cheap as in a new Android phone with Android Go and the bare minimum specs that will keep it going. Hard disagree unless you are using it as just a dumb phone.