What is a nifty little feature modern gadgets have lost?
What is a nifty little feature modern gadgets have lost?
For me it’s the notification light you used to find on older phones, was particularly good to know if your phone was charged without picking it up
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Physical buttons in cars
Repairable phones
Repairable laptops
Resoleable shoes
Hand-crank drills (for those quick and easy projects where dealing with batteries or cords isn't worth it)
External frames on hiking packs
Actually tough jeans that need to be broken in and last a while
Headphone jack
I miss physical buttons on everything. We're a tactile species living in a digital purgatory
I switched to the 2022 iPhone SE for this last year only for the EU to pull the usb-c thing toward apple (who of course requires the Apple certified cables now anyways so it solved nothing). and after that happened I know the writing is on the wall for this phone one day because of its design. I'm going to be using it until the very bitter end when not a single app is supported anymore. I will be a physical button warrior to the end.
That single button is hardly worth holding out for. If you switch, I think you'd find it's no worse, just exactly as shitty.
I agree with all but hand crank drills. If you own a battery drill it's probably stored with it's battery and with keyless chucks (that don't work on a hand crank drill) getting a battery drill ready for work is faster than a hand crank, and it will do the job faster too.
also it looks cool when you change the battery like a gun
Agreed and that was also my one exception to that comment.
If someone's really worried about having a super compact kit for smaller, light duty jobs, the 12v (and under) options from any major tool manufacturer will fit the bill nicely.
I’m guessing we’re a similar age because those are all on my list too, along with cars that come with full size spares and a jack.
Resoleable shoes are alive and well, just not in the mainstream brands. Rose anvil youtube has a lot of good shoes reviewed.
You can still readily get crank hand drills, I have a (vaguely) modern one that I use for situations where I want the control/tactile feedback and/or have restricted access or the like. It covers a different set of problems than the standard cordless.
Mine is Fiskars branded and a little plasticky (and not the version they sell currently). I like it enough that I'll get a nicer one if I kill it.
Nice! I inherited mine from my grandfather and I hope to pass it on myself someday.
There are some products that buck the trend for a couple of your points:
Repairable phones - https://www.fairphone.com/
Repairable laptops - https://frame.work/
I have a framework 13 and absolutely love it. Not used a Fairphone yet, and I believe the latest model might have sadly scrapped the 3.5 headphone jack, but will still be a strong contender when I next need an upgrade.
I've been eyeing the Framework for my next laptop, definitely looks interesting!
Physical buttons
in carsMy induction hob, my extractor fan, a light above the countertop... All of these things just in my kitchen don't have physical buttons and I hate it. Physical buttons are so easy to use and in so many ways superior to these "touch" buttons.
Dayyyyym Chuch!
Actually tough jeans that need to be broken in and last a while
Doesn't that have to do with the fact that modern jeans have some stretchy materials added in which makes them more comfortable?
Surely one could buy old type jeans if one really wanted too.