(I’m trying to adjust my shopping habits for quality, long-lasting goods from reputable brands. This isn’t some hailcorporate thing)
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I will never always trust a brand, there are some brands that have good trust, but I’ve seen too many brands screw people over for money.
I will say currently, Darn Tough Socks, Keen Shoes, EVGA, Milwaukee Tools, if you are in the cinema / live production world Teradek, and Yamaha.
Darn
Why they gotta swear haha
Fuck off
You’re going down 😎
My only complaint about Darn Tough Socks is that they never seem to wear in. I bought a half dozen pairs several years ago, and all of them are like brand new still, which is great, but they are also stiff and tight like I’ve never worn them. I wear them predominately for work, and I’m on my feet all day, so that’s a testament to their staying power, but damn, I wish they would stretch a little.
I use them too, but I guess I never really thought about socks “breaking in,” like shoes would. After 1-2 years of use, they are holding up like new.
Alongside darn tough, I love me some bombas.
Do you have lightweights? I find those to be tighter than midweights, which also seem a bit more plush.
I have the light hikers, so maybe that’s the deal. I’ll look into some mid weight ones.
I went through two defective EVGA cards within the original card’s warranty period. On the second card, EVGA tried to deny my warranty.
They eventually made it right, after I shamed them on Reddit.
I’ll start my own thread with OXO for their kitchen goods. After a decade of dealing with subpar containers and utensils, I’ve slowly started to rebuild my set with OXO stuff and habe yet to be disappointed by anything of theirs.
Seconded with Knipex hand tools. They’re far pricier than the competition you’ll find on the store shelves, but the quality and engineering is better than anything else you can reasonably find (barring boutique toolmakers).
Le Creuset… but there’s a secret… They’re SUPER expensive.
So you find your local outlet store and sign up for their mailing list. You’ll regularly get 30%, 40%, 50% off deals.
Also thrift stores. The only Le Creuset pan I own cost me $7.
That’s a hell of a thrift store find.
2nd trick, they have an outstanding warranty. Bring it in, they swap it out.
I have an outstanding warrant …is that the same?
Not quite, but I encourage you to visit your warrant provider for more details to prevent loss of service.
There’s plenty of knockoffs brands that seem to be as hardy; might but be worth the premium anymore.
Lodge is also quite good and a fraction of the price.
Cuisinart makes a dutch oven that’s just as good but lighter somehow.
Not everything Le Creuset. They seem to be very similar to other kitchen brands (kitchenaid, Cuisinart, etc) in that they make a few excellent products, but the rest of their line is overpriced stuff that isn’t as good as other brands you could buy. Their Dutch ovens are good, for example, but not their French press so much.
IIRC OXO measuring cups have raised lettering 1/2c. That’s so clutch, the painted letters seem to come out in the wash.
The only OXO product I’ve had issues with is their rotating cheese grater, but it’s so nice to use that I just buy a new one every seven years or so.
OXO quality has tanked over the last 15 or 20 years since Helen of Troy bought them who source all of their products from Mexico and China using shady subcontractors. They had a lot of innovative designs when they started out, but don’t really invest in that anymore.
Knipex on the other hand is still pretty solid on quality. They’re still family managed and their manufacturing employees are primarily union workers, so they’re able to keep the skilled workers around.
My OXO kettle’s handle fell off during regular use, it’s just held on by a tiny clip.
Their conical coffee grinder is as expensive as a bur grinder.
I’ve used my Knipex 5” cobra pliers more than anything else in the toolbox, except maybe a torx set. Solid tools.
They’re great. As a line cook, I used to EDC a pair of the 4" minis in my pocket for taking off burner nozzles for cleaning. By the end of my year there, everyone else I worked with had bought a pair because they were so much better than dealing with the garbage Hart brand pliers the restaurant supplied.
A lot of OXO stuff is cheap made in China junk these days.
Why would you trust a brand? The brand that you like wasn’t the same people 20 years ago, and that will change again.
there still are brands that make a good quality product and haven’t tried to scam customers. Leatherman comes to mind.
You can like the quality the brand embodies and sells.
If you know the quality is a good compromise to the amount of money you spend it’s tbh a no-brainer.
Hopefully they haven’t gone downhill lately but I’ve always gotten good quality products from Anker and one time they even sent me an “upgraded” set of headphones for free because I complained about the pair I bought having poor sound.
My history with anchor is varied. At one point they produced the finest of everything at the cheapest possible price.
Then for a couple of years they produced a bunch of garbage that would barely get the job done.
I was buying a lot of anchor products for work. About half the power delivery chargers I purchased over a three or four month period burned out at least one of the ports. I have a bunch of battery banks where the USBC port stopped working.
Now they seem to be back on top again, but I don’t just blindly trust them and buy from them anymore I’ll get one or two and test things out before I buy a bunch.
anchor
is tupperware
Yeah, i can second the power strip thing. I have three right now, one is completely dead, the usba/c ports don’t work on another, third one has been flawless so far.
I might look into the newer options, but I’m a bit skeptical now…
anker has a smart home division called Eufy that has some TERRIBLE software that ruins nice hardware like their doorbells
Indeed. I no longer buy Anker as a result.
We had a Eufy baby monitor that was so bad (replaced three times when trying to update firmware, the fourth time it died it was due to a drop) that it has actually made me think less of Anker as a company. If they stick to that being their low quality bargain brand, maybe I’ll consider Anker again, but for now I’m out.
They’ve been my go to for headphones & speakers for a while, but my last few purchases of different models all ended up getting returned due to the same connectivity issues. Sitting at home, the headphones are fine, but when I’m out for a walk, they experience some sort of interference that causes the music to skip/stutter. I still have an old, long discontinued, pair of Anker earbuds, and when I go for the same walk with those, there’s zero connectivity issues.
Merrell hiking boots.
I’ll second Merrell’s. I’ve worn the shit out of every pair I’ve had and they’ve lasted longer than any other shoe/boot I’ve owned.
Until they replaced gortex with a plastic grocery bag for water proofing. Now it feels like I’m walking in wet dog shit while making a constant crinkly noise.
My keen boots fit me better than Merrill.
Yeah. All my shoes are Merrels =)
I have a pair of Oboz that have held up for quite a while
Regarding online services, Proton.
I love Proton’s mission just like all Lemmy users but I wouldn’t say you can trust them in terms of quality. Apart from Proton Mail and Proton VPN, most of their other products unfortunately have a deep lack of features.
I use Mail, Pass and VPN with no issues.
What lack of quality and features do you refer to?
I’m mainly talking about Drive and Pass. I don’t really remember as it’s been a while since I’ve tested them, but the situation doesn’t seem to have changed. Here’s a good thread for Drive. I remember Pass having problems with auto-fill which made it unusable for me.
I have Proton Unlimited but only use two of their services because of this, it’s pretty frustrating.
Darn Tough Socks, made in Vermont USA and guaranteed for life. If you get a hole in one, send it back and they give you a credit to pick any pair you want on their website.
That’s amazing. I’m going to look into this. I suppose they make this work because most customers actually find it inconvenient to send their destroyed socks back or the terms to do so make it difficult.
The socks are $20-27 pair, but they’re the most comfortable sock I’ve worn. I’m switching my whole wardrobe or socks over as I can afford.
Thanks for the recommendation. I’m definitely going to take a look.
Kirkland anything (nearly anyway)
Similarly, nearly everything made by H-E-B / Central Market. Save for maybe one or two things where I’ve been disappointed, I like and even prefer their store brand for many things.
Arm and Hammer, solid products that aren’t overpriced. I use their laundry soap, deodorant, toothpaste, and previously, the cat litter. Seems they’re focused on doing a few things very well.
Church & Dwight is the conglomerate that owns Arm & Hammer, and they own some other cleaning product brands like OxiClean and OrangeGlo. They also own Trojan condoms and First Response pregnancy tests.
Are you promoting throwing those used condoms in the wash with a little oxy clean?
I know you’re joking, but no don’t do that.
has 21 babies from the same condom
NOW you tell me!
I use oxiclean to help clean gunky beer kegs. It actually works really well to put a scoop in, fill with hot water and let it sit overnight. By morning it’s like a new keg. I then finish sanitizing with StarSan
Man, oxiclean really is a life saver for me. No store brand has really been as good.
I really like Arm and Hammer’s scentless laundry soap and their baking soda/peroxide toothpaste.
I’ve been using both for years and feel no need to change.
Brother printers. I have 78k pages printed on my 15 year old color laser printer from them, and it’s still going strong. They still sell OEM toner and even replacement parts for it, although the only part that ever needed to be replaced so far was the drum.
A brother laser printer was the best decision of my college career. I only wish I’d have bought it sooner
This needs more upvotes. 6k pages from a single cartridge.
Victorinox has never disappointed me. I own a few kitchen knives, their cutlery and an extensive collection of pocket knives. Everything is solid, dependable, arrives sharp and stays sharp. Plus they have good company ethics, as far as those things go. I like their products so much, I frequently give them as gifts.
I second this recommendation. They’re certainly not the best at anything, but they’re a good value for the money and good quality.
So far, Gorilla brand stuff has been good.
Have yet to wear out a Honda.
Madewell jeans are actually made well.
Smartwool socks. I replaced mine this year because they were getting holes, the ones I was replacing were purchased in 2014 and I wore them daily, had enough pairs to last a week, washed them weekly, they lasted ten years.
Not a brand but cast iron skillets. Some of mine are over 30, they will last essentially forever. And get a big knife you can sharpen, mine wasn’t even a good brand and lasted almost 30 years.
If you think smartwool is good, you should check out darn tough socks. Those things are amazing, and come with a lifetime warranty
Smartwool enshitified by dropping their warranty to two years. Used to be able to take an old pair to my outfitter and pick out a new set, no questions.
Like the other user said, check out DT. EZPZ replacement.
Chrome Industries backpacks. They’re marketed to bicyclists, of which I’m not one – but damn they’re perfect.
I’ve been using one for 6 or 7 years now, and it’s amazing. I got one made with Dickies Khaki material and I love the way it looks, and it’s super easy to clean.
I think the pack I have is the same fabric. You’re right, it reminds me of Dickies – indestructible.
…are they marketed by Jake from Statefarm?
“Always”? None.
Any time I have found a brand like this, they start enshitifying right after I decide to be loyal to them. If you stop shopping around, they have less incentive to make a good product to create loyal customers.
The problem is capitalism, not the individual companies. Enshitification comes for them all eventually.
The only brands I trust are owned and operated by individuals. I do woodworking and I use Japanese tools (their quality is incredible) and good blades are individually forged by masters.
Unfortunately the greatest smiths are always poor, or at least never rich. They all have an extreme devotion to integrity and quality that I highly admire. I wish to make a storefront to support these dedicated craftsmen.
