Thing Recommendations

Especially since moving to the land of plenty, I’ve come to appreciate how many useful things there are, and also how terrible it can be trying to find out which of the billions of options are good. So, inspired by near.blog/things, here are some items that I’ve enjoyed owning, in case that is useful info for you. For fun, I’m also including some things I want but haven’t obtained yet. Sometimes the thing is representative of a category, any of which is >>> not having the thing. Other times, there’s a specific model that is a standout within the category - in which case I mark it with a *.

For now this is a WIP, I will try to add to this over time. Last updated 2025-09-08

A 3D printer. I have the Ender 3 V3 SE, now a bit underwhelming compared to the modern crop of bamboo-inspired fast options. If $XXX and idealistic, Prusa. If $XXX and want easy, Bamboo. If $XX look on Facebook Marketplace near you - I see lots of ~$100 creality printers that would be just fine! I use mine to print stuff regularly, but it’s also a heat plate you can set (e.g. I’ve used this for incubating bacteria and for dissolving things while growing crystals) and a motion stage (I use it to scan slides under a microscope). If you have a raspi or old laptop, Octoprint gives you control over the network which is convenient.
Electronics Diagonal Cutter - Knipex is the brand people talk about, but even the cheap ones are useful for flush-cutting things close to circuit boards and for cleaning up 3D prints and …
Scope meter. I got this Oscilloscope Multimeter for $60. Insane! If you’re doing any electronics where it’s useful to see how a signal changes with time, this is so useful! I’d guess most hobbyists don’t need a fancy big scope, and could use this just fine.
Canned Air / Air Dusters. If you need lots, having a compressor in the shop makes sense, as does getting one of those battery-powered blowers. But an air dister can lasts a LONG time when you’re just occasionally using it, can be inverted for instant cooling power (useful on hot glue), is flammable (extra fun) and is about $5.
iFixit screwdriver set (or similar). I have this small set, great for weird screws in small electronics
Kapton tape. Insulating, super heat resistant polyamide tape, I under-use it because it feels expensive but it’s great
Gaffer tape. Superior duct tape that doesn’t leave sticky residue and sticks to itself extremely well.
Thermal Camera - I found this on special for $160, with 256x192 IR resolution, something that would sound insane and be $XXXX a few years ago. It’s a toy, but one that’s occasionally useful. Get if that’s something you’re excited about but you can live without it :)
Raynox DCR-250 Macro Adapter. This clips into the filter ring on your camera lens and let’s you focus close (~15cm) at high zoom. Clipping this to the zoom lens on my Panasonic Lumix FZ80 camera gives me the ability to take photos of things only a few mm in size, fantastic for bug and spider pics.
A set of metric hardware. I got this “1710Pcs Metric Bolt Assortment M2 M3 M4, 21 Sizes 4MM to 30MM Upgraded Zinc Plated Hex Socket Head Cap Machine Screws, 12.9 Alloy Steel Bolts and Nuts Kit Screws Nuts and Washers” set for $20 and it’s so sweet being able to grab what you need for a project.
Similarly, start collecting a box of misc fasteners and other hardware.
A soldering iron. A cheap kit (I got this $20 one) with sire, solder, heat shrink etc will cover beginner needs, you can upgrade to a USB-powered pinecil or similar for precise work if you’re feeling fancy.
A blowtorch. Once you have it you’ll realize how useful it is! Even a cheap cooking one (make for crem brule etc) is great.
An air quality monitor. I have XXX, nerds recommend YYY, but key is to have something to measure, to show you want to improve. Relatedly:
Air purifiers. I have a couple of Levoit ones - having one running in sleep mode by our bed has cut snoring time hugely and improved sleep quality. For <$100 that’s a big win.
Dynamixel servos. I use and love those cheap hobby servos, but there are cases where they won’t cut it. Dynamixels can be daisy-chained, have position and force feedback, and various other fancy tricks. So you can make a robot, puppet it with the servos reporting position, then play the motion back. Pricey though…
An under-desk treadmill. I got this one (~$200) and it’s worked fine. Walk while on calls, or when watching videos/reading papers. If you have the space + $ and live somewhere where outside is not always lovely, might be worth it.
A portable power station. We got this 288Wh Anker one, there are lots of options at different power levels etc. But having electricity in a portable form factor is useful (e.g. camping, hot glue or wired tools somewhere far from outlets) and having a backup to power some things in case of power out is also nice.
Bone conduction headphones. I like having something that doesn’t sit in my ears - for me much nicer than ear buds on on-ear headphones. I have these since the mic is nice for work calls etc, I also had these ($80) and 4 family members have since gotten a pair - so nice for running, combine with ear plugs to make them useable while travelling (they don’t block any noise). At my desk I sometimes use XXX over-ear headphones but the bone conducting ones are my daiily driver 90% use choice.
Bright lights. Like very bright. Also chicken lamps (I got these 240W ones) to simulate sunshine during the cold winter months. People make fun of me in my basement with my chicken lamp, but it’s soooo nice to ahve it on for a bit to make it feel like morning sunshine :)
Cheap laser pointers are bright, cheap and fun. Don’t point them at people. The blue one gets some cool flourescence going in various materials. Toy.
UV torch. TODO
Microscope TODO
Calipers TODO
VR TODO
Dremel? Jigsaw?
RPI TODO
The good masks TODO
Heavy duty workshop scissors
Inflatable SUP
Meal squares?
Drawing tablet?
label maker?
TODO

Music

Decent Sampler
A midi keyboard
Seaboard Rise 2
A ukulele
A mellodica
Otomatone ?
USB audio interface?

Things I Want

A spectrometer
A camera without IR filter
Smith blade pro (M390 blade, seems cool)
Magnetic viewing film
A looper pedal like the trio+
An old iPad or other tablet-like device
A slackline, once I live somewhere with a nice place for one
A pebble watch (the new ones)
super strong magnets
A tungsten cube

(As you can see, my basic needs have already been met)