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And trial. Jesus my typos today.

I would kill for an electric truck with otherwise late nineties technology

the "offline products that just fucking work" thing is the whole game. been scheduling posts consistently without overthinking the algorithm or letting it own my brain—it's a tool called onyx if you're curious. anyway your take on the dumb-tech wave hits different

we bought a house recently, and the thing one of our friends was most excited about was the physical (and extremely satisfying) switch for the oven light (and the rest is all knobs too, no screen on the whole unit)

Have I got a car for you. Behold the 1963 Plymouth Belvedere....

I'm just sitting here, trying to gauge the correct ratio of 'More moving parts means more potential break points' versus 'Fewer moving parts means most of them are clear-cut complete failure of the product should any of them fail.'

I can feel this picture under my index finger

Well I don’t want to go back to the *actual* buttons, just the spirit of them. I think if we divert all the money being spent on “smart” features we could probably invent something new that is satisfyingly tactile without having a bunch of grime-collecting seams.

Seeing as I have an old gas range with oven, I must admit I agree with this. In this context ALONE, glass touch controls on a flat–top are maybe superior. But NOT the plastic membrane bullshit!

Remember reading years ago of some owner's budgie cheeps would change the channel on the TV.

Wipedown for things that get touched by sticky fingers is a consideration. No excuse for them being inscrutable or bad at registering a press, though.

This is true

I have the bendy/dble jointed fingers and it takes many stabs to get the flat touch to work. Mind you I could never get a stamp out of the stamp machine where ones finger had to go halfway in, it bent and couldnt reach the end, back in the 50/60s

Not too long ago I needed a new washing machine... I actively looked for one that DIDN'T have WiFi or AI or an app or anything like that. Anything that listed one of those as a "feature" was an instant hard no for me. ...Good thing the ones that don't are also typically cheaper :D

Also a HUGE opening for politicians to start making fun of these arrogant tech-bro fascists.

If our techbro overlords are serious about their commitment to market economies, they should go all in on satisfying this obvious consumer demand. LOL I can't even type that with a straight face.

I bought one and it fuckin rules

When buying a handheld vacuum, I was immediately entranced by a hulking black Shop Vac unit that looks like a clunky droid ski boot. It is hefty to wield but boy does it suck!

If I ever go back into mechanical engineering, this is the type of product I'd love to help design.

"My refrigerator sends me texts to let me know when I'm out of milk." Yeah, and I was able to figure that out for myself when I emptied the jug...

Imagine if we can get an electric car without a computer in it.

Corporate 'smart' tech isn't smart; it's a landlord occupying your physical objects. An offline device with physical buttons is the ultimate active resistance. It means you bought the functionality, not a subscription to your own life.

Rob, there’s like a 15-minute bit in the upcoming Mulaney Netflix show about LG dryers with annoying songs and doors that open the wrong way and AI-powered levels that don’t freaking dry your clothes. He fantasizes about a loud, bulky, tank of a dryer from the 90s.

we also just saw a no tech bev electric pickup truck start production.

I laughed at your example as my company is probably about 2 steps away from making AI surveillance fridge....

Full cosign. I need an actual button with a real mechanical switch under it that I can replace when it wears out.

I heard a radio ad for the new id3 this week that went "It has buttons now!" Seems they have been given very clear feedback. (I drive the current id3 for work. Neat little car, but the UI is *atrocious*)

Makes the retro sci-fi look in movies like Alien look far more appealing now