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Comment by anhner | Hacker News Reader

I use my toothbrush every day but I wouldn't pay $20 per month for it.

I use my keyboard everyday but I wouldn't pay $20 per month for it. In fact, I paid around $4 total for it, as paying more would bring significantly more diminishing returns.

I use my phone every day and have used it for the past 5 years with no issue, it has brought me so much value and yet, if I draw the line, it didn't even reach $20 per month (price divided by time used), not even mentioning that I expect it to last another 2-3 years, bringing the cost down even further.

What kind of crazy value would you expect something to have in order to be worth $20/mo?

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I even thought $20/month is such a cheap option. You articulated very well that $20 is indeed a lot despite something being useful everyday. It's time to revisit all my monthly $10 subscriptions and see how much they are actually delivering reasonable value.

This guy is a fool and doesn't have a good system for evaluating value.

If he wouldn't pay $20 a month to prevent tooth decay, he clearly is the type who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.

Which toothbrush is so much better than a regular one that it would be the difference between tooth decay or not? It's mostly up to how often you brush and floss, not how many LED's your toothbrush has.

You have misread his comment. Look at the last bit:

> What kind of crazy value would you expect something to have in order to be worth $20/mo?

The implication of that is that of tootnhcare cost more than $20 a month he wouldn't do it. Which is crazy, the expected return from brushing your teeth is well above $20 a month.

I think you have misread my comment. A regular toothbrush + toothpaste costs pennies a day, add floss and mouthwash and it would still not reach $20/month. If I can take care of my teeth by using all of those costing so little, what on Earth would I gain by paying more?

At least you understood my comment.

It could be cheap, or you could be too willing to part with your money.

if it makes you more than $20 or saves you more than $20 then it’s worth it. Simple as that. That’s it. That’s the test. For some, the time they save and spend with family is “worth” $20, for others, productivity increases don’t lead to free time, while others still don’t have $20 to spend.

Fwiw I get my teeth professionally cleaned once a month and spend more than $20 on it. Because it’s worth it to me and because dental care is expensive. Toothbrushes are cheap not because they’re worthless but because they’re undifferentiated. All toothbrushes are the same. ChatGPT… isn’t.

I was under the impression that teeth should only be professionally cleaned every 6 months

Devil's Advocate here...

Brushing your teeth takes time. If you could pay $20 p/m to get the same results from say a stick of gum (i.e., no time)...is that then worth it?

The KB "as is" makes sense. But that's a fairly generic item. Adding value / differentiation is minimal.

Phone? Maybe. Put what's your service p/m? Is one worth considering without the other?

What crazy value? At $1 per work day?? It doesn't have to be crazy. Just 5 minutes per day is breakeven (and that's generous). In many cases, ChatGPT is more helpful than the ever polluted Google SERPs. One buck a day to avoid that? With the weekends free? Perhaps not crazy value but worthy of reasonable consideration.

> Brushing your teeth takes time. If you could pay $20 p/m to get the same results from say a stick of gum (i.e., no time)...is that then worth it?

No, because I start the kettle (or coffeemaker, depending on what I want) before I start brushing. I brush my teeth while waiting for the kettle to boil.

I don't get that time back if I don't brush my teeth; I still have to wait for the coffee anyway.

> I use my keyboard everyday but I wouldn't pay $20 per month for it. In fact, I paid around $4 total for it, as paying more would bring significantly more diminishing returns.

I wouldn't pay $20 per month for a keyboard either, but I doubt that a $4 keyboard is even close to diminishing returns unless you got a really good deal. Even $100 for a decent mechanical keyboard is not much if you use it for many years.

But I don't need a mechanical keyboard when a standard cheap one works just as fine. What would I possibly gain from paying more?

If you really think you won't get anything out of it then no it does not make sense. I can only speak for myself, but I prefer the feel of my current keyboard over any I had previously. If you happen to be fine with the rubber dome response then sure, but mechanical has a much wider range of options. I also find it easier to clean (by taking off the keycaps) and more resistant to liquid splashes (collects under the keycaps and doesn't tend to get into the actual switches unlike my previous rubber dome keyboard where any water getting into the caps meant having to take it apart and drying the rubber layers before you could use it). But those points aren't something a cheaper keyboard couldn't inherently manage as well.

the cost of your phone plus the call/text/data plan is less than $20/month?

No, just the phone. I use the call/text/data plant so little since I'm mostly on wifi anyway, so I left that out.

Yes, why would it be any higher? My phone plan is around a tenner a month and over the lifetime of my phone, the cost per month is definitely less than that.

Yep, easy. I pay 8€/month for 3GB, which is plenty since I'm connected to Wifi most of the time.

And I paid 220 for my phone, which easily lasts 2 years.

That said: As a self-employed programmer, I think 20$/month for increased productivity is a steal!

> I use my toothbrush every day but I wouldn't pay $20 per month for it.

Are you serious? If you had to pay $20 per month to brush your teeth you would stop doing it?

This would be the fast track to dentures by the time you're 45.

I'm guessing they wouldn't stop doing it, they would instead get a 3€ brush

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