# Products you had low expectations for but then fell in love with **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 27, 2021, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007 "2021-05-27T04:19:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/21 "2021-05-27T20:20:29Z")
Some years ago, my MIL gave me a Ron Popeil set-it-and-forget-it rotisserie for Christmas. I thanked her and stuck it on a shelf, figuring it for another stupid appliance from her (like the salad shooter!) When we moved here 17 years ago and I unpacked it, still in its original box, I told my husband I was going to take it to a thrift store, but he suggested I try it out. _OK, fine, I’ll try it…_ OMG!! Turns out I love it! Rotisserie chicken, and pork roast, and beef roast… So easy to use, and not quite as awful to clean up as I’d feared. And to think of all those wasted years that it sat in a box. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/22 "2021-05-27T20:26:15Z")
Same here. I still use the Mach 3; I find it gives a much better shave than the 5 or 7 or 57(?) blade models that came out afterward. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/23 "2021-05-27T21:18:16Z")
> [@Mama\_Zappa](#): > > Dunno if the kid has tried it yet and I’m not about to ask him - but if we are travelling, we really miss our bidet seats. I love the heated seat. When I have to use the toidy out in the world, sitting down on an ice cold seat is enough to slam everything shut. And during The Big Texas Freeze back in February, when it was 40 degrees in my house for two days, oooooh, did I ever miss that warm seat… ---
**Author:** ![Ranch\_Dip](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranch_dip/32/5238_2.png) [@Ranch\_Dip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranch_Dip)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2021, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/24 "2021-05-27T22:29:19Z")
For me, it is the Echo. When they first came out, I thought they were stupid. I got one free and I use it literally every day. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/25 "2021-05-28T02:19:35Z")
> [@JohnGalt](#): > > It was a dollar or so more expensive to buy the gentle soft-closing toilet seat, but it turned out to be something that makes me smile every time it closes without slamming shut. Soft-close _anything_. I paid the extra for soft-close drawers on all my new furniture, and that was more than a dollar. As you say, it’s not so much the functional aspect, it’s just that it’s so pleasing. I’ll happily spend 5 minutes open and closing a drawer, practising pushing it with just enough force that it catches the mechanism. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/26 "2021-05-28T02:37:19Z")
One of these guys: > **[Amazon.com: Brod & Taylor Folding Proofer & Slow Cooker: Home &...](https://www.amazon.com/Brod-Taylor-Folding-Proofer-Cooker/dp/B01MEEH0SE)** > > Online Shopping for Kitchen Small Appliances from a great selection of Coffee Machines, Blenders, Juicers, Ovens, Specialty Appliances, & more at everyday low prices The bidet toilet seat. ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/27 "2021-05-28T03:09:06Z")
I have one of those in my gardening shed @Snowboarder_Bo. Don’t you have monsoons? We did until a few years ago, swamp coolers don’t work well then. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/28 "2021-05-28T03:51:15Z")
No; we don’t get monsoon season in Las Vegas. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/29 "2021-05-28T03:59:46Z")
Missed the edit window: > **[Driest City in the US - Current Results](https://www.currentresults.com/Weather-Extremes/US/driest-city.php)** > > Information on the driest city in America and rankings of large US cities for the least amount of precipitation and the most days a year with no rain. > [@](#): > > Many cities in the western United States have dry climates. Las Vegas and Phoenix get so little rain or snow, less than 10 inches (250 millimetres) a year on average, that they’re considered deserts. The rainfall at Riverside and San Diego amounts to just over the desert threshold. > > One of these cities stands out as much more arid than the rest. > > Las Vegas is the only large US city to average less than an inch (25 mm) of rain for every month of the year. At its driest, Las Vegas hasn’t even accumulated an inch of rain throughout an entire year. > > The driest year on record for Las Vegas is 1953, when 0.56 inches (14 mm) fell at the airport. More recent dry years include 2002, 2006 and 2009, each of which received less than 1.7 inches (43 mm) of rainfall. In comparison, the second driest of America’s large cities, Phoenix, has never had under 2.8 inches (71 mm) of rain in a year. > > When a rain cloud does pass over Las Vegas, it usually drops less than one-tenth of an inch and seldom does the city get more than half an inch of rain in one day. That’s not to say Las Vegas doesn’t have the occasional cloudburst. Just over two inches (51 mm) of rain soaked the city on July 8, 1999 and 2.6 inches (66 mm) landed on August 21, 1957. It’s uncommon, though for Las Vegas to get more than two inches of rain in an entire month. > > The city’s rainiest year on record was 1941 when 10.68 inches (271 mm) of precipitation accumulated. Even then, the weather for two months that year was completed dry. > [@](#): > > Las Vegas, the least rainy of all, usually never sees more than four wet days a month. That would be a notable month, btw. Last year we broke our own record of 150 days without measurable rainfall, shattering it by going 240 days without. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/30 "2021-05-28T04:13:03Z")
> [@](#): > > Many cities in the western United States have dry climates. **Las Vegas and Phoenix get so little rain or snow, less than 10 inches (250 millimetres) a year on average,** that they’re considered deserts. The rainfall at Riverside and San Diego amounts to just over the desert threshold. > > One of these cities stands out as much more arid than the rest. > > **Las Vegas is the only large US city to average less than an inch (25 mm) of rain for every month of the year.** At its driest, Las Vegas hasn’t even accumulated an inch of rain throughout an entire year. I’m having trouble reconciling the two statements I bolded. ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/31 "2021-05-28T04:21:16Z")
Yeah, I’m wondering about how they measured Phoenix rainfall. If its just the city of Phoenix, yeah, I would probably agree. If its Phoenix like everyone thinks of Phoenix, I disagree. Our last home had a swamp cooler and an AC. The AC got used about 4 months out of the year, the other 5 or 6 months we used the swamp. Our last home had a trash compactor. When we moved in, we discussed having it taken out so we could use that under the counter area differently. We didn’t have it taken out in a timely manner and had it for over 10 years. I really miss that thing. ---
**Author:** ![NetTrekker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nettrekker/32/2909_2.png) [@NetTrekker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NetTrekker)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/32 "2021-05-28T12:27:33Z")
I picked up a cheapo letter opener back in the day, probably at the office store checkout line. Basic plastic handle and thin serrated blade. It has had so many unexpected and helpful uses beyond opening mail; I wish I could find more like it but can’t. I’ll be very sad over the loss of a letter opener if/when it ever bites the dust. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/33 "2021-05-28T12:40:35Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > I love the heated seat. When I have to use the toidy out in the world, sitting down on an ice cold seat is enough to slam everything shut. Hah - we did not opt for one with a heated seat, and I don’t regret that at all. When I use a public toilet and the seat is still warm from the previous user, it grosses me out for some reason. A heated seat at home might be a different thing entirely, but because of the public toilet squickiness, I wasn’t even tempted. ---
**Author:** ![Tired\_and\_Cranky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a87d85/32.png) [@Tired\_and\_Cranky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tired_and_Cranky)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/34 "2021-05-28T13:12:39Z")
I think you are interpreting “every month of the year” to mean average across all the months in a year, which wouldn’t actually convey any more information than average annual rainfall. However, if Phoenix averages two inches of rain each January and 0.1 inches every other calendar month, it has both a month in which it averages more than an inch of rain and an annual average of less than 10 inches of rain. Las Vegas has no calendar months in which its average rainfall is more than an inch. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/35 "2021-05-28T14:31:41Z")
Battery-operated chainsaws and weedeaters. I am a complete moron with gas-operated yard tools. I prime, pull the cord, tool goes flying out of my grip. I get it back, stand on it, fall over as I try to pull the cord. Position myself better, pull the cord, get a slight roar, try it 15 more times, it doesn’t start. Remember I had to keep a button pressed down or something, try it again, get a few engine coughs, pull the trigger, tool dies. Try priming it again, realize I flooded it. I leave it in disgust, browse the internet for clues, try emptying out the gas and refilling it, etc. Battery-operated tools start right away, and actually have enough power to get the job done and then some. I don’t have to make filling station runs for more electricity. I don’t pollute the neighborhood with gas fumes. Most importantly, I look like I know what I’m doing. ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/36 "2021-05-28T15:12:06Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > On my Alexa, I can say: “Let there be light” and ALL the lights in my home will turn on. Would it work if you said “fiat lux”? Now _that_ would be an ego boost. Sorry, lifetime of Catholic school. ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/37 "2021-05-28T15:20:53Z")
A folding bike. A couple of years back, someone in my apartment building in NYC was moving out. He had a sale to get rid of stuff he didn’t want to ship to wherever he was going. I bought a folding bike for $100. It folds up small enough to fit in a closet at home, and unfolds into a bicycle that is quite comfortable for my 6’2" self. I had no real expectations that I’d use it a lot, just seemed like fun to have around. My oldest daughter was getting just old enough to ride a bike and I thought maybe I’d go for rides with her once in a while. And then the pandemic hit. And I really, really didn’t want to get on the subway. Since then I’ve used it nearly every day. I commute to work on it (Brooklyn to midtown Manhattan, and I’m on the IT team keeping everything working for everyone else to work at home), I put a basket on it and go shopping with it, I travel in the city every week to visit my father in a nursing home, and so on. And I’m in better shape because of it. And it’s actually fun to ride it around the city. I’m not sure I’ll ever go back to regular commuting on the subway, except for days with torrential rain. Cold is a non-issue – I used the bike all winter. ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/38 "2021-05-28T15:43:15Z")
I got Wraptastic (plastic wrap dispenser) on sale at Target using a gift card. It works great! Yes, I did look for a plastic wrap brand with the sliding cutter- none to be found. Don’t suggest Costco or Sam’s as people have done in a similar thread before- the nearest Sam’s is a hundred mile round trip and a round trip to Costco would be hundreds of miles. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/39 "2021-05-28T18:21:45Z")
I bought a 34-year old little import (low miles/low price) for a cheap little all-wheel ski car. Thing makes saltine crackers seem exotic. Most High-Tech feature is intermittent wipers. I love this car! Tiny on the outside (you can slip it in to tiny parking spots), but huge on the inside. Simple, easy, no bullshit, All-Wheel works like a Mountain Goat. Some of the best money I’ve spent in a long, long time. I drive it all the time. ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2021, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007/40 "2021-05-28T18:37:20Z")
Is it a Subaru? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/products-you-had-low-expectations-for-but-then-fell-in-love-with/943007.md?page=3)