Ask HN: What did you buy or considering buying this Black Friday?

33 points by vinniepukh ↗ HN
I'm personally considering pulling the trigger on the 15' Macbook Air M2 to replace my current 15' Macbook Pro Intel

99 comments

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Logitech G502 Hero wired mouse on sale for $30 at Lenovo to replace a dying Razer. I heard it's a good mouse and I hope I will like it.
I have had that Logitech mouse for ages (and the predecessor) and love it.
this G hub software is pretty bad tho, am i missing somthing, i cant seem to tell it to write to the deivce i only want 900 dpi, on whatever im using. its either a snail or a rabbit.
What OS are you on? Most my experience with ghub is windows. I think I have 4 dpi stops set and it's typically defaulting to the lower middle one - unless I'm gaming.

I believe there's options to have the mouse run in device mode (settings stored there, but I think the features are more limited) or via ghub where the settings might be stored on the computer. I'd need to dig in again though to remember, I've not touched it ghub settings in a while.

Does that mouse by any chance not make too much noise when clicking? Need to find one desperately.
The skates and the side grip both fell off mine. A far cry from the old G5 I had that lasted 10 years. These new logitechs demand you install software and they barely last a year for me
I run Linux so hopefully I either don't need the software or there is some open source implementation I can use.
I've been using a G Pro Wireless without software for almost 2 years now?
I bought a hot water recirculator. I'm curious how it'll work out, and hope that it won't leak!
Don't you need to have the plumbing in a loop? Not something you just buy. You have to put in a return line back to the water heater.
I think they use the cold water line to return water.
* Celestron 15x70 binoculars. I planned on getting them anyway and they were 30% off.

* Glasses. Earlier in the week I broke one pair and then another pair spontaneously broke last night.

I searched ali express for a peristaltic pump for $1.50. Then I bought it on Amazon Prime for $7.00. Because I want to actually receive it.
haha, I don't know what peristaltic is, but I'm happy for you!
It's basically a rubber hose, and rollers that squeeze the hose to push liquids through. The motor runs the rollers.

Also means that the liquids don't touch the motor.

Very common in medical equipment that works with blood in fact
Very good, it's for a micro-aquarium so I won't hurt any humans if it's cheap (but I take good care of my critters, not to worry).
It's Buy Nothing Day. Didn't buy anything.
I respect your self-restraint
Is it? If you need something you would have got it already. If you don't then you're just wasting money.

It's more like a lack of self-restraint - not holding back beforehand.

> If you need something you would have got it already

Not necessarily, it’s common for people to wait for Black Friday for big purchases.

> Not necessarily, it’s common for people to wait for Black Friday for big purchases.

That's my point though - if you can and do wait you don't actually need it. Like unless you're in some financial hardship or other edge case...

E.g. would you wait 6 months without a TV so you can buy it on Black Friday? If you can do that you don't need it. It's a nice to have.

Depends. It can be something I need, but it makes sense to wait a few months to save a few hundred bucks. 20% on a nice TV can be 200-300€.

I see your point, but with your definition you never « need » anything except for food, water and healthcare, which is true to some extent but not a very useful definition for everyday use.

I’d guess that most big purchases are replacements for things people already have. E.g. the washing machine I bought earlier this month replaced my 20 year old washer that was starting to fail.

I probably could have kept the old machine working for a few more months so technically didn’t need a new washer, but if I’d waited until the old one actually died and then bought a replacement I’d likely have paid a lot more.

It seemed much more rational to just keep the old one until the next big sale and then replace it.

Buy buying nothing, I bought slightly more runway to spend more time on my projects and with friends.
Samsung frame TV, they're about 33% off this week from the typical price.

I know it has mixed reviews with the tech crowd but everyone I know that's gotten one for primarily aesthetic reasons loves it. I have an open floor plan apartment with not a ton of wall space, so I'm optimistic it will be a good way to have a TV when needed without making the TV such a focal point of the room. I'm also looking forward to getting exposed to new artwork in the shuffle mode.

it's a nice TV, though I prefer the video quality of LG screens. Samsung's tv OS though is better than LG's in general, although it could be much better. Enjoy it :-)
Our living room is made of windows and direct sunlight is a nightmare for most TVs. We don't wish to cover our windows every time we watch a show or kick on the nintendo switch, as we like having a house with tons of light and windows :)

We LOVE our frame TV. Its anti-glare is awesome. The samsung nagware and UI suck, but I've not found anything nearly as good.

The corporations say "buy!", we buy on command.

It's like the Force.

I fall for marketing tricks so easily...
These are the droids you’re looking for, now at reduced prices!
New case to carry a Starlink Dishy around internationally.

https://nanuk.com/products/nanuk-960 ($100 off for Black Friday)

Special edition coffee from a roaster I was introduced to.

https://www.modest.coffee/product/2023-special-collector/

(just happy with these products, no affiliation, not compensated in any way)

Nice looking case! I got the OEM starlink travel case ($250) and was quite pleased with it. Even has backpack straps, though I'm not going far from the vehicle with starlink.
I really like the design and style of the OEM case you mention, I just didn't feel comfortable checking it as checked baggage. Needed something that could take a beating as cargo (I also bought the foam and shaped it for the dish and base). Thank you for the recommendation.
I worked this Black Friday.
How were the crowds? Did you think the markdowns were lackluster this year?
I wish I could say more but I'd be disclosing information. Wasn't what I thought though.
Trail running shoes.
Same. 50% off on Altras.
Thanks. Trying them for the first time.
nice! Sounds like you'd buy them anyway, so might as well use the discount.
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Some more Renogy solar panels, because I live off-grid in an RV.

And then some Lectric e-bikes, to use up all that extra electricity.

Do you roof mount them? How do things go this time of the year, assuming you're in a winter hemisphere, regarding portable-tier solar?

I did this maybe 12 years ago in a very small RV for 18 months. I found during winter I needed to be sure I drove around a bit more to charge up my batteries.

I have 800W of roof-mounted solar panels, and I just got two 200W Renogy "suitcase" panels. All of these feed a 400aH 12V battery bank. Summer energy generation was pretty solid, and I went a max of about 8 days using just the 800W roof panels without having to top off with the generator. Now, in the fall, I'm in Quartzsite, AZ, and the 800W flat-mounted panels were are getting me a few days before needing to run the generator for at least a few hours. Adding the extra 400W of portable, direct-able solar panels did the trick, and I'm staying fully charged on sunny days (which is most days here).
Rice cooker.
best life enhancing product i've gotten recently
are those better than an electric pressure cooker?
My understanding is that it doesn’t really save time unless you’re cooking brown rice (and doesn’t make tastier rice in any event).
Do electric pressure cookers cook rice?

I mean do they switch off/warm mode correctly when the rice dries up, like a rice cooker, or do you have to time it?

oh right, it doesn't autodetect on the models i've seen, so that is one thing to think about, but it has seemed pretty forgiving. just remember to 1:1 the water since it's sealed

if you're asian or whatever and make rice 10x times a week then a dedicated device is probably a good idea but if not then i'd think twice before getting something mechanically similar to but not as capable as a pressure cooker

Yes I hate the proliferation too - these pressure/multicookers must have a temperature sensor, and so all the program needs to do is switch to a 'warm mode' when the temperature exceeds 102-3C, ie that's when all the water has evaporated. Tempting to buy one and hack around with it.
I have been waiting for this thread! I am mostly after holiday gifts, including a Nintendo Switch controller for kids.

Most of the stuff, I'd like for myself never gets discounted to what I would consider affordable :/

Where I live (Australia) a music store is offering a decent discount on the Akai MPC Key 61. I'm trying to resist the urge though.
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Nothing. Trying to go more and more minimal these days
IPA wipes and air duster to hopefully get my 2-month-old MacBook Pro’s enter key unstuck from an unfortunate drink…
I renewed my AlgoExperts, and photoshop subscriptions for a lot less.
Sled. Not on sale. Just happened to be near the store today.
A new pair of tramping boots (hiking boots to Americans).
Desktops been acting weird lately. Built it in 2017 so bought a new nvme drive with enclosure. Gonna clone and swap it out, hopefully the odd issues get sorted out