Speed Queen top loader is supposed to be the best washer that will last forever. I don’t have personal experience but remember a ton of people saying that on the other forum.
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The key to Speed Queen is the lack of electronics. That’s what makes modern washers more expensive to fix than to replace.
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My parents LOVE LOVE LOVE their Speed Queen. I had a Kitchen Aid washer from the early 90’s that died last year. Then I found a 2009 one in a used appliance store and it was EXACTLY the same. I was unreasonably happy.
Those old Kitchen Aid ones are workhorses and I wouldn’t (and didn’t) hesitate to buy used.
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We had an old speed Queen at our last house where the transmission went out, and they don’t make that part anymore 
so that can be one bummer I guess.
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I’m trying to think ahead of what things to keep an eye out for with Black Friday deals. Any recommendations for:
Soft pajama shirts (or just soft oversized tshirts)
Exercise clothes, I especially need more pants with pockets and sports bras that are good for A/B cups
Maybe new running shoes if the price is right
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I’m in the market for a new bed.
I went to Mattress Firm today and picked out the model I really liked. I almost bought it but decided not to.
Summary
Sleepys Hybrid 13" Medium Mattress | Mattress Firm
I managed to read the reviews once and can’t get back to them. But about 1 out of 8 people had a bad experience with what was delivered not matching the bed in showroom, or just bad experiences with deliveries and returns in general.
But I did find that Mattress Firm filed bankruptcy in 2018, and had a deal to be taken over earlier this year by Temper Sealy but I can’t find any indication that the deal actually closed. A 10 year warranty on one of their branded mattresses is worthless if they go out of business. They also got very bad Yelp reviews, and lot of reviews on the similar product
I’m really uncomfortable with the idea of buying a bed online that I haven’t tried. I tried several other beds in the store today I did not like. Of the two businesses in this town that didn’t get terrible reviews, one is closing.
Has anyone here had a good experience buying a bed?
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I have had two good experiences. One was a local chain huge store, 3 locations. The other was a mom and pop. Both had looooong mattress lead times, but were up front about it and I didn’t mind waiting. I laid on approximately one hundred million beds before making my decision. I feel like this is not a helpful post except that I think a local store is the way to go.
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I bought my mattress at a Mattress Firm clearance center and I loveeeeee it so much. I spent like 2 hours in the store laying on the different mattresses for 10-15 min at a time, because it’s so important for me to have a bed that doesn’t give me back pain. I landed on a latex hybrid and 3 years later it’s still my favorite thing on earth. It was $$$$ and totally worth it, I’d spend it again in a heartbeat.
I also had a really good experience ordering a mattress on Amazon for my guest room. I got the Lucid latex hybrid firm mattress, which is very similar to my own bed, just kind of lower end. It was I think $500 and every person who has slept on it has raved about it. I spend a lot of time studying on it and it’s super comfy to me, I’d sleep on it any night if I had to.
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Bought my mattress at IKEA. have been happy with it, especially considering price.
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I took a book and spent an afternoon in Ikea lounging on all the beds. I’m very happy with my choice.
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I got mine from a local futon store that also sells futon style bed mattresses. I agree that you should try them in person. Based on what I read online for their different models, I totally liked a different one than what I would have expected. Are there other local mattress stores that you could check out?
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There is a local mattress store I can go to over the weekend.
The IKEA near me appears to have very few mattresses that are both in stock and available for delivery unfortunately.
I may also revisit the futon store I visited last year when I was shopping for a sofa. That store is also local.
I will keep looking. In the interim I am sleeping on my camping mattress, so I am motivated.
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I may be purchasing a new cell phone very soon. My current one has a broken charging port, and the cost of repair might not be worth it.
I have a Moto G Power, bought for $200 3 years ago. (On Nov 4! Happy anniversary, phone.)
Repair could cost over $100. (Waiting for a quote.)
Environmental reasons would go with repair over new phone. It works fine, aside from its terrible camera at night.
How much longer can I get out of this phone, realistically? Are other parts going to start failing after the 3 year mark?
If I do get a new phone now, is it worth going for something pricier? The main things I would want are longer lifespan and better nighttime photos.
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Yes. Battery issues, predominately. To make little highly energy dense batteries, you have to make thinner bits between all the cells. Fail faster. Newer tech’s batteries last way fewer “duty cycles” than OG cell phones do. Then there’s whether it’ll continue to be supported OS wise, I can’t speak to that.
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Fail better.
Thanks. So is this something that’s pretty constant across price ranges? Or are there some phones that compete on longer battery lifespan?
If I’m buying a new phone every few years no matter what, I’m gonna stick with the cheap shit.
@meowmalade, was it the google pixel you had so many issues with?
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Pixel 1 - replaced twice due to microphone issues that would pop up every time I was trying to have an urgent discussion with a doctor (this was around the time my eye flare-ups started). Google denied there was an issue and eventually I got money in a class action settlement because it was a known issue.
Pixel 3 - not very long after warranty expired, vertical lines intermittently started showing up on the screen. The phone was still usable but I got so mad with flashbacks to the microphone issues so I gave it to someone on the forum.
I will never purchase another Pixel. I’ve had a Samsung Galaxy S10e for over three years and I love it. I think I’m sticking with Samsung.
What cell phone provider do you have? When Marmalade switched over to Xfinity Mobile he got a free Samsung A42 (they give a monthly credit against the phone payment over 24 payments, so if you don’t stay for 2 years or if you lose your phone before then you’re on the hook for the balance). Various providers do free phone promotions when you switch to them, and I bet Black Friday is a good time to look for deals.
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Unlocked refurbished S10e for $125 shipped. It was a high end flagship phone in 2019 and mine still runs like new. I’m actually going to set my mom up with one! If you’re buying used, definitely make sure the network is unlocked. It’s a small phone (which I like) but the S10 is a bigger one.
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Thanks! I have t-mobile and pay $30/mo for unlimited data. I had a Samsung Galaxy ages ago and remember liking it. I’ve also had very cheap cells for ages, and all I wanted when I upgraded was to be able to download more than 3 apps and 5 podcasts at one time. 
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We are currently procrastinating on this decision and managed it by purchasing a mattress topper in late spring 2020 (iirc). this may or may not be helpful info
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Just read your posts and that you want good battery life: the bigger phones will have more battery life since they have room for a bigger battery. Also just occurred to me that if battery health is a concern, probably best to buy a new phone as batteries do degrade over time.
The Samsung A42 advertises a 2 day battery life and apparently can last 12 hours even with heavy usage. Marmalade is a light user but he doesn’t have to charge it every day, which for a modern smartphone is pretty damn amazing. It’s not a top of the line phone but it’s very solid and functional!
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