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Comment by spraak | Hacker News Reader

From the_gastropod below:

> Cars are not the only solution here. Transporting a single disabled person does not require a 100+ horsepower 2-ton vehicle.

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Rendering a webpage does not require an 800+ watt 50-pound computer setup. A balanced diet does not require flavor. Clothes do not require coloring.

We can't just throw out having nice things because they aren't "required."

Your first analogy (50lb computer) is nonsense because that's exactly the point I'm saying: computers that fit on your pocket and are just a few grams can easily render a webpage. Who thinks that a 50lb computer is nice unless it's sophisticated hardware that can't be condensed? Cars are nice yes but there are plenty of other smaller and more nimble transportation devices. So weren't not throwing away nice things here.

The desktop computer will likely be a lot more responsive, let you do a lot more, have a higher resolution and screen size, let you have more tabs running at once, etc. Using nothing but a smartphone for all my home computer usage would be a major setback.

> Using nothing but a smartphone for all my home computer usage would be a major setback.

But that's not the analogy here. This is for the "last mile". Perhaps a more appropriate analogy is using a lightweight laptop (rather than a phone)

>>> We can't just throw out having nice things because they aren't "required."

I wouldn't assume driving for 30 min in traffic is "nicer" than a 30min train ride.

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