For those who like to shop, any recommended products from online shops (Amazon, Rakuten, etc) that are absolutely good finds? Or ones that you wpuld probably recommend to to anyone you meet?
I’m talking about those that improve QoL on a daily basis, whether it be for kitchen use or office use. I often see videos of ‘Amazon finds’ on Instagram where they show nifty products that looks useful (e.g. organizer trays).
I’m moving to a new house soon so I’m thinking if there are any useful/QoL/cool stuff you’d find here in Japan that you didn’t know you’d need.
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Is it limited to Amazon/Rakuten type markets?
In terms of general QoL improvements, the following have vastly improved my WFH life/life in general.
1. 2 Laptop docks (1 for personal, 1 for work laptop) (Lenovo. dock and Caldigit TS4). Everything is connected to the docks, and I just plug one usb-c thunderbolt cable into each laptop to charge/connect. Preferably thunderbolt 4 for better wakeup support.
2. 1 KVM (Keyboard Video Mouse) Switch: This combined with my docks allows me to switch between my work laptop, my personal laptop, and my personal desktop with the flip of a button. (No name chinese brand, they’re all the same as long as they are better than bargain bin trash. You should be able to define your own needs/specs, however.)
3. Goodnotes 5 for taking notes
4. ANKI SRS for memorizing stuff
5. Keyboard with QMK firmware support (Quantum Mechanical Keyboard): You can program your own macros into your keyboard’s firmware. If you’re familiar with AutoHotKey. (AHK), this is similar, except the macros are all on the keyboard itself, which allows you to use your macros across computers, even on locked down work computers. I use Keychron v6 since it has as physical switch for switching layouts between Windows and Mac (I use windows, linux, and mac all in the same day).
6. False battery (direct power) + HDMI to USB input converter for my mirrorless camera. This basically transforms my old mirrorless Sony a6000 into a webcam. I didn’t want to pay for a low quality 1080p webcam when WFH became a thing, so I decided to recycle an old camera into a high quality webcam.
7. Ergotron monitor arms. Great monitor arms.
8. Herman Miller Aeron chair. My ass and back thank me. I bought it relatively cheap used through office busters.
9. Robo vacuum with an auto dust collector + mopping. My kitchen floor is always clean the next morning no matter how sloppy I am in the kitchen or whether my toddler has been drooling over the floor.
10. A good scanner. Japan is a paper dominated world. I don’t like paper. I scan them and throw them away, unless I really need the paper. I am also considering a shredder.
11. A NAS (network attached storage). All of my scanned paper things are in my personal cloud accessible from my smartphone/tablet/anywhere, and they’re all protected by Raid 5 redundancy. (I also backup especially important documents to a separate external drive. Remember 123 backup principles, people) I use an old synology DS415 play with 16TB of storage.
I’ll try to add more if I remember anything.
1. Diatomaceous bath mats for after showers
2. Smart home assistant (google home, alexa, siri) and automation accessories to add too (smart lock, curtain openers, IR remote for the TV/AC, smartplugs, smart lights are just some that immediately come to mind). Imagine with a smartplug or smart switch if you set it up the night before, waking to the smell of freshly brewed coffee
3. Ditto previous poster on robot vacuum+mop
4. Electric adjustable standing desk
5. Shoe/boot dryer
6. Magnetic phone case – take a look at MagBak for example (most kitchens, fridges, and gym equipment are metal so you can easily slap your phone onto that when doing something else)
7. A food processor if you like cooking. Making chopped garlic in batches is a godsend (either an airtight container with salt and olive oil in the fridge, or freeze into small cubes in a ziplock bag)
Will update if I think of anything else, also subscribing for more visibility on ideas!
One of the best thing I have is a **high-pressure cooker**. In the morning I just toss a chicken breast (or two), a bag of bean sprouts (it’s 19 yens per beg at Trial), some random veggies (mostly half an onion and a quarter cabbage), some sauce (usually Worcester + garlic mix) and brown rice. Takes two minutes to prepare.
Set the timer, and when I’m back from work I have a healthy dinner ready. So convenient!
I could talk about my **blender/mixer/juicer** for breakfast as well. Makes easy and healthy breakfast.
Having just these two kitchen appliances makes my life so easy.
You can get them from almost every shop but å±±å´Žå®Ÿæ¥ has a good selection of handy household items. They’re mostly known for their tower series but they have other handy house items too.
gas canister torch and air fryer to grill my cheese