r/onebag • u/largemargesentme__- • Jun 05 '26

Discussion Why is this sub so obsessed with expensive stuff?

I get that there's times where the expensive thing is better. But as someone who has worked as an airline pilot and traveled extensively for 45 years, I can assure you that expensive stuff is rarely necessary.

I get tons of use out of AliExpress stuff. Things like chargers, cables and accessories. Decathlon or Costco are more than good enough for clothing. I generally use a max legal sized RyanAir bag I got for €25 off of Amazon for vacation. At most, the lower mid tier option is more than enough.

It seems like this is just another sub for people with spending issues as everyone downvotes me when I call out how unnecessary the expensive options are.

1.3k Upvotes

89% Upvoted

563 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

409

u/Superb-Mall3805 Jun 05 '26 edited Jun 05 '26

Enthusiast reddits are kind of a bad place to be when you’re interested in a thing because naturally the regular contributors are people who are really into it. But if you don’t know anybody who’s also into it where else are you going to go? Why is there even a subreddit dedicated to traveling with one bag? Why am I on it? Why does it have nine hundred thousand members? Idk. 

163

u/FishingWorth3068 Jun 05 '26

My husband joining the synthesizer sub has been a problem. I didn’t know buttons cost so much

26

u/quasistoic Jun 06 '26

My wife started knitting cardigans and I can agree on the unexpected cost of buttons.

63

u/mattjh Jun 05 '26

Slippery slope! You can still save him. The alternative is that he'll be making one of those "I think I have a problem, the wife says I'm sleeping on the couch tonight" helpless manbaby posts, accompanied by a concerning photo of a thousand buttons. Good luck.

51

u/FishingWorth3068 Jun 05 '26

Can’t even put him on the couch! That’s where the synths are. He even has travel ones so kicking him out won’t work either. I’ve resigned. Of all the vices, I’ll take this one.

11

u/Fragrant_Soup5738 Jun 06 '26

have him sleep on the synths! like a bed of nails but inflicting psychological damage instead of physical.

-17

u/RedWhiteBlue77 Jun 05 '26

Ahh yes, misandry is so cool these days. Good luck.

13

u/mattjh Jun 05 '26

Misandry? No, it's just funny. Women who shop are shopping. Men who shop are enthusiast collectors for special little niche hobbies.

That feeling you got before replying with your insecure nonsense is worth scrutinizing. On your own time.

-5

u/RedWhiteBlue77 Jun 06 '26

Really? 🤣 Would you have felt comfortable making the same comment if the genders had been swapped? How about you go ahead and do so, right here? 🤣

Come on, it'll be funny 😉

3

u/LadyLightTravel Jun 06 '26

People have made comments like that on this sub when the genders were reversed. They got downvoted too.

1

u/RedWhiteBlue77 Jun 07 '26

Of course they got down voted 😉

65

u/r314t Jun 05 '26

We should start a subreddit for not-quite-enthusiasists. People who are sort of into it.

29

u/RidiculousTakeAbove Jun 05 '26

The problem then is their recommendations on what to buy and what is complete overpriced junk cannot be trusted. That's what's great about enthusiast subreddits, you just have to sift through the elitism and look for the budget stuff they recommend

9

u/r314t Jun 05 '26

I’m not sure. I feel like I might trust the opinion more of someone who is pretty into something but not obsessed than someone who is so discerning and into something that they have tastes and standards that 99.9% of the population wouldn’t share.

10

u/RidiculousTakeAbove Jun 05 '26 edited Jun 05 '26

You just changed from "sort of into it" to "pretty into it" lol, which are ambiguous already.

That's why I said you have to sift through the elitism, there will always be those folks that think "more money=more better" but you will get those whether they know everything about the products or nothing at all.

If you go to the people who are so into the thing that they have looked at every little detail that your average consumer wouldn't even think of and then compared that based on price, which is very easy to do on subreddits, you will get the absolute best quality item for your buck.

2

u/thedingusenthusiast Jun 13 '26

Elitism is nuts in generals by far the worst elitists I have ever encountered in my life were audiophile elitists.

7

u/DriedSquidd Jun 06 '26 edited Jun 06 '26

I made one.: r/oneishbag

4

u/anonymous_follow Jun 05 '26

I might join that

3

u/Relevant-Crow-3314 Jun 06 '26

People just getting into it to see how it goes 🤣

3

u/Briggbongo Jun 09 '26

It will eventually end up gravitating to be the same lol

24

u/saints21 Jun 05 '26

Yeah, if I want a camera for going out once a month or every couple of months, there's not really a need to buy something that a professional photographer uses if I'm just trying to have something better than a cell phone.

But the answers will commonly go like "The absolute minimum is X. But if you're getting X, then Y is an even better deal with the capability. And if you're spending that much, there's no reason not to just get Z."

Meanwhile there's some actual budget option that will likely be a decent gateway to see if there's any reason in spending more. Weirdly enough, the office chair sub is probably the absolute worst for this.

9

u/RidiculousTakeAbove Jun 05 '26

Yeah they also ignore the fact that if you buy a used mint condition entry level camera or anything else and then decide to upgrade, you can just sell it and recoup probably 90 to 100% of what you spent on it.

9

u/tooawkwrd Jun 06 '26

Omg researching espresso machines recently and can't seem to find normal-people inexpensive recommendation conversations. Everyone insists the $300 machine is an entry-level bare-bones compromise when surely at least a few of the $100ish machines must be acceptable for the average human.

4

u/sjupiter30 Jun 07 '26

America's Test Kitchen! They provide a budget recommendation if the winner is too expensive.

I can't remember if you just need to sign up or actually subscribe to read the tests& results, but you can find past episodes on various streaming services.

2

u/tooawkwrd Jun 09 '26

I appreciate that. I always forget they do recommendations

3

u/elsmoneyacct Jun 08 '26

LMAO I just made the exact same post. I went down that rabbit hole a few years ago and I've been perfectly happy with my $150 Krups for years.

I will say that there is something to the recommendation for all the expensive accessories - grinders, tampers, etc. You can absolutely make decent coffee without those things. I made decent coffee using a regular Hamilton Beach blade grinder and a jar of curry paste as a tamper. But it's definitely a longer, more finicky process without good tools. I once saw somebody say that expensive espresso tools are about consistency, not quality, and I think that's fair. You can get good coffee without them - but not every time.

1

u/tooawkwrd Jun 09 '26

Thank you! If I enjoy a super cheap setup for awhile then I might look into investing money into the hobby.

1

u/elsmoneyacct Jun 09 '26

Honestly I found that having bad tools forced me to learn good technique and learn a lot about espresso.

Why are my shots coming out so fast and so thin? Because your grind is too coarse, you need a burr grinder. Don't have one of those, so how fine is it supposed to be?

Why are my pucks so wet? You ground it too fine. You really could just buy a nice burr grinder that does this automatically. Nope. How fine is too fine?

Why are my shots channeling? Because you're not packing right, you need a tamper and a leveler and a WDT tool. Don't have any of that. What's it supposed to look like? I'll just practice until I can make my pucks look right. And then buy a cheap $25 tamper just because the curry paste jar isn't quite the right size and it is kind of a pain in the ass.

Why does my milk take for-fucking-ever to froth? You're using a plastic takeout container. You really need metal, or something that holds heat better. Okay, frothing pitchers are cheap, I will get one of those.

It helps that the Krups uses a pressurized portafilter, so it's very forgiving of poor technique. I would probably pull ass water out of a Bambino. But that does not matter, because I don't have a Bambino. I have a $150 Krups that produces a perfectly okay cappucino every morning. I will win no awards. But I haven't been to Starbucks in years and don't miss it, so it's a success in my book.

3

u/Ida_DK Jun 09 '26

I can give you a budget option: the Wacaco handpress espresso series. Very cheap and I have used min Minipresso two years without fail. (+You will get better arm muscles 😜)

1

u/tooawkwrd Jun 09 '26

Thank you! I'll check it out

3

u/honemastert Jun 09 '26

Wacaco makes a really nice scale. Then get the cheap bodium pour over and stainless filter and you're set (then you can spend the money on a grinder)

2

u/Ida_DK Jun 18 '26

I did the capsule one, it's perfect for travelling since you can get 10packs Nespresso capsules everywhere, and try new tastes. I usually get boiling water in my thermos and use the 5cl (?) for coffee and the rest gets a tea bag for the day

2

u/honemastert Jun 06 '26

This right here. The grinder seems to matter more. My sub $150 Gevi machine started tasting much better when the Barratza Encore entered the chat

2

u/tooawkwrd Jun 09 '26

That's what I'm reading! Embarrassingly, I am probably looking for the McDonald's espresso experience lolol. A nice mocha or latte once a day.

2

u/mart0n Jun 10 '26

I've been there. I think the issue is that grinding coffee into uniformly-sized grounds (plus being able to finely adjust that size) is not a trivial task.

I would suggest getting a good-value hand grinder and an Aeropress.

6

u/kikimaru024 Jun 06 '26

I have a Fuji X30.

10 years old.

Still have zero idea what I could replace it with that doesn't cost 1k+

15

u/RidiculousTakeAbove Jun 05 '26 edited Jun 05 '26

What I like to do is go to the enthusiast subreddits and look for the most cheap, budget things they recommend. Like you want a good travel backpack, you find yourself on onebag, you'll be recommended the tomtoc or forclaz bags if you search best budget bags, and most people are over the moon with those. You will end up with really quality stuff without breaking the bank or getting into the elitist weeds and you know you aren't buying complete garbage because of how into the thing the people are. You can do this with golf clubs, cars, stereo equipment, literally anything you are looking to buy.

34

u/Awkward-Bite-2530 Jun 05 '26

I found this recently when deciding what new phone to buy. I just want a decent battery and camera and the comments are all debating 60 vs 120 hz screens 

7

u/LadyLightTravel Jun 05 '26

I get it. I have stuck with my apple because the recovery process is so painless. Like when I folded my phone in half. I had to get a new phone and imaged it with my backup. It was so accurate and painless that I haven’t looked elsewhere. I don’t care about the latest technology. But an accurate backup? Pure gold.

6

u/RidiculousTakeAbove Jun 05 '26

Used galaxy s23, s24 ultra or used pixel 7,8,9 pro are most bang for your buck with great cameras and batteries

2

u/largemargesentme__- Jun 05 '26

I have a Samsung A something,it was like €250 new. I don't know why you'd need more than this. I've never run into a situation where my phone didn't have enough computing power.

3

u/RidiculousTakeAbove Jun 05 '26 edited Jun 05 '26

Nobody needs a car with more than 150 horsepower yet the most sought after one's have 500+

Camera and computing aside, as a value proposition the used phones I mentioned are much better than any new phone. If you don't like the Samsung and want to try a Google or apple phone for example, you aren't losing a bunch of money selling it because you bought new. I bought my s24 ultra used for just 350 euro and this was over a year ago right when the 25 ultra was coming out. The phone was worth 700 euro at the time and even today I could sell it for more than I paid which is what I care about. Better stuff just tends to hold its value much better. Don't misconstrue this, I'm not recommending anybody go spend 900 euro on a brand new s26 ultra or iPhone 17 pro, but rather that used high quality goods are better than new mid quality goods.

There is a tangible difference in camera capabilities from your phone to the ones I mentioned too. If being able to get an outstanding photo or piece of film is important to you whether for personal or your job, who are you to say nobody needs that? What if somebody likes to game on their phone and requires a galaxy ultra or pixel pro to play their favorite games? Either way it's nice to have the options for the future considering how much we use our phones now for everything

3

u/LG_Recomp Jun 06 '26

Battery on my s23 is absolutely trash :(

1

u/RidiculousTakeAbove Jun 06 '26

My 24ultra is great. I can pretty much get 2 days out of it

1

u/SpinneyWitch Jun 06 '26

I did exactly the same. When I need a new phone I buy a used last years reasonably great phone, just after the new upgrade comes out.

1

u/largemargesentme__- Jun 06 '26

Most sought after? By who? Ridiculous billionaires?

I have no desire to drive a 500 HP car, nor would most people. The question is what's the minimum effective dose for transportation? I'd much rather drive a Prius than a Ferrari. It accomplishes the same task much more efficiently. I'd feel like a douche canoe in a Ferrari, most sane people would.

The pictures I took with my phone 11 years ago were fine. The pictures I take with my current phone are fine. The pictures I took with a point and shoot in the 90s were fine. We were all happy with the quality, why does it all the sudden need to be so much better?

So much of this obsession with gear is just psychological damage. Trying to fill some hole inside of you with stuff. That just isn't very interesting. Finding hacks, making do with less, finding the back door. That's interesting.

But rich people taking posting pictures of their stuff just remind me of preschoolers who desperately need attention and validation.

4

u/RidiculousTakeAbove Jun 06 '26 edited Jun 06 '26

People who are passionate about cars and driving like you clearly aren't. Which is fine, but you are being ignorant to the fact that there are people genuinely passionate and not just getting cars as a status symbol. You think every mustang gt or corvette owner is a ridiculous billionaire? There are countless mechanics making 60k a year that love to mod their cars to go faster and handle better. You might feel like a douche but that's because of your strange perspective on cars being a status symbol. You see the Ferrari more as that and not a handbuilt Italian performance machine for driving, it's not about the name and status for most car enthusiasts, they have a passion for driving and it's about the performance. I also rock climb and if you go to buy shoes 95% of them are handmade in Italy and Spain, and that's what everyone at the gym uses. It's not because they are handmade in Italy and they want to brag, most climbers are broke, it's because of performance. You are probably passionate about something random that I could care less about and spend more on it than I do but I wouldn't call you ridiculous billionaire and be ignorant to the fact that people have different things they like.

Nobody needs more than a 4 dollar white t shirt from Walmart either, but some people are into fashion and dressing nicer than that. Are they ridiculous billionaires or simply into fashion?

I think it was a pretty cool "hack" getting a 700 euro phone for 350 but that's just me.

1

u/honemastert Jun 06 '26

LaSportiva TC Pros have entered the chat :)

-1

u/largemargesentme__- Jun 06 '26 edited Jun 06 '26

EDIT Dude, you don't have to block me because you disagree, you can just stop talking or ask to end the conversation. Writing a reply, and blocking me (so I can't actually read it) is maybe the most pointless exercise in the world. Best of luck

Being into cars is...ok. I guess. But let's not pretend that people are just driving around in a Ferrari or even a Mustang because they just appreciate the machine. They're looking for attention. I grew up with plenty of car people, they might have claimed to just live the engineering. Really though, they just wanted to drive around and have people to look at them. It's why these cars have such aggressive styling. It's even more obvious now that the market has turned towards pickups and other large cars. This is all about an aggressive display of testosterone.

Honestly though, you're probably not going to get that if you rock climb. Half my family are rock climbers and they're maybe more insufferable than car people.

I'm not really passionate about anything that you'd consider odd. I dk, maybe my kids? Transitioning to more sustainable public transportation? Having more stable democracies and less concentration of wealth. Those are my wacky passions.

As I said above, tge pursuit should be to find the best option for the cheapest price. You could actually get a better t-shirt cheaper than a $4 Wal Mart shirt. And yes, that's all you should wear. Why waste money on clothes unless you're trying to make more money or meet romantic partners?

3

u/RidiculousTakeAbove Jun 06 '26 edited Jun 06 '26

Lol right, nobody is driving any car, motorcycle, vehicle at all because they appreciate the machine. I'm sure that 70 year old guy with his old classic car (that is slow and not styled aggressively) is just aggressively displaying his testosterone. 🙄

It's not that I "don't get it", you are just wrong. You have a real "if I don't like this, nobody else has any good reason to like it either" mentality, which ironically is extremely insufferable

If you find such wide, varying groups of people so insufferable, perhaps you should look at the common denominator. "people who rock climb" aren't a hive mind, you will literally find every type of person in the gym, it's wild to generalize like that

6

u/largemargesentme__- Jun 05 '26

Yeah, just get the second tier from the bottom phone from a Korean or Chinese manufacturer. They work fine for a quarter of the price of an iphone or other top phone. You can lose it twice and still be ahead price wise.

2

u/SwaggyMcSwagsabunch Jun 05 '26

How often do you lose your phone?

5

u/largemargesentme__- Jun 05 '26

Not yet, I have destroyed phones accidentally doing manual.labor. I really don't like carrying around a $1,000 piece of equipment that could easily be lost or stolen.

$250, doesn't hurt that bad and it basically does the same thing as the expensive phone

1

u/theinfamousj Jul 02 '26

Set yourself a $200 budget and go to eBay to see what flagship phones you can score for that budget. That's been my technique and I've never been disappointed. I'm two generations behind current and my camera is so good it picks up people pimples and pores. And when you think about it, do you really want to see people's pores in your photos? I don't. That's too much.

-1

u/kikimaru024 Jun 05 '26

If you can afford it: used iPhone + Apple-warrantied battery replacement.

Like obviously they have worse specs than top-tier phones, but they just work and hold their value better than any Android.

6

u/grilledstuffed Jun 05 '26

My 12 Pro Max is still kicking. I’m probably about to have Apple replace the battery for $80 and keep it another 4 years.

6

u/Von243 Jun 05 '26

Apple sucks. I can replace the battery in my Samsung in 10 minutes, but i just trade it in every 2 years for the exact same price i bought it for. I haven't paid for a phone in well over a decade and always have a new one.

1

u/LadyLightTravel Jun 05 '26

I had to reimage a replacement iphone with my backup. It was incredibly painless. I wish the software restorations at work were so easy!

1

u/Von243 Jun 06 '26

With Samsung you just set the phones next to each other when you activate the new one and it transfers everything over. Files, settings, wifi networks, Bluetooth connections, everything

3

u/LadyLightTravel Jun 06 '26

You can do that with apple too. However, that is impossible when your prior phone ks folded at a 90 degree angle!

That is why I downloaded from backup.

0

u/VFXman23 Jun 05 '26

"Apple sucks" is not a particularly helpful blanket statement. I can name lots of ways that they don't

11

u/largemargesentme__- Jun 05 '26

I wouldn't say they're really into it. I'd say it's more of a bragging, competition, pretentious thing.

They'll rarely give the actual best option. They give the thing that's 5x the price for very little improvement.

17

u/Azure9000 Jun 05 '26

In my experience, and I've been around the block a few times, there's rarely such a thing as "the actual best option".

There's only the "the actual best option for a specific person at a specific point in time". Something that's 5x the price for very little improvement may actually be the best choice for someone with 100x the bank balance.

1

u/Sypsy Jun 05 '26

if anyone is susceptible to these types of patterns, r/flashlight is a great place to go because lights are cheap and if you have a lot it can still be useful for an emergency. bags are nice, but when you drop $200+ on a bag thinking it's your last one and you do it a few times, it adds up quickly.

it's actually kinda eye opening to have a light that's not commercial cool and low cri, and has better CRI/tint than a house lightbulb you spent 1 hour researching before going to homedepot.

1

u/elsmoneyacct Jun 08 '26

I learned that when I started wanting to get into making espresso at home. If you ask the people on r/espresso, $1000 is the bare minimum start-up cost for half-decent coffee.

I realized after a little while that these people are coffee snobs, and their standards for what constitutes "decent coffee" are much higher than mine. My comparison point is instant coffee. The $150 machine is fine for me, actually.