c/fad-or-future

I finally talked to my cousin about those 'smart' plant pots

She said her $50 one killed her fern because it overwatered based on a faulty sensor. That made me realize the whole 'internet of things' for basic home stuff might just be a fad looking for a problem to solve. Has anyone else had a gadget fail at its one job?

Vent: I tried to follow a 'no knead' sourdough recipe for a month and it was a disaster

I saw a trend for these super simple, hands-off sourdough recipes that promised perfect loaves with zero work. My old method involved a solid 15 minutes of kneading and careful folds. After four dense, gummy bricks in a row from the 'no knead' method, I went back to my old way last weekend. The difference was a crust that actually cracked and an open crumb you could see through. Is this whole 'no work' bread thing just a fad for people who don't actually want to bake?

Showerthought: I thought those 'smart' plant pots were just for lazy people

My sister got me one of those self-watering pots with a sensor for my birthday last month, and I rolled my eyes hard. It felt like a solution for a problem that didn't exist. But my fiddle leaf fig, which I've nearly killed three times in two years, is suddenly thriving. The little light tells me when the soil is actually dry, not just when I think it is. I was overwatering it the whole time. It turns out the tech wasn't for lazy people, it was for people like me who are just bad at guessing. Now I'm wondering if this kind of simple home sensor tech is actually the future for keeping other finicky things alive. Has anyone else had a dumb plant saved by a smart gadget?

Cleaned out my old phone and found I had 4,200 unread emails from 2018

My smart fridge's recipe app bricked itself after a firmware update last Tuesday.

I was in the middle of cooking and the screen just froze on a loading icon for 45 minutes. Had to do a full factory reset and lost all my custom settings. Is this kind of planned obsolescence for connected appliances a fad or the future of home tech?

Saw a whole street of 'silent' restaurants in Portland last weekend

I was in the Alberta Arts District and noticed three new spots with signs about 'quiet dining' and no music. One place, The Still Table, even had a note saying talking should be 'library-level'. It felt super peaceful but also a bit weird. Is this quiet food trend just a Portland fad, or is it the future of eating out? Would you try a restaurant like that?

I hit 1000 followers on my 'quiet quitting' advice account and it feels wrong

Everyone says it's a big trend, but I think it's just a fad. I got there by posting about setting clear work limits, but now I see it's just a new name for an old idea. Has anyone else watched a trend blow up and then just fade away?

Shoutout to the guy who told me to try a vertical garden setup

I was sure it was just a pretty fad for influencers, but after my basil and cherry tomatoes thrived all summer on my tiny apartment balcony in Portland, I'm convinced. The specific 'GreenStalk' planter I used made watering so simple, and the yield was way bigger than my old pots. Has anyone else had a small-space garden win that changed their mind?

My brother said 'it's just a bunch of people paying for friends' about those new AI companion apps... and it kind of stuck with me.

PSA: My smart fridge's 'inventory scanner' broke and left me with spoiled milk for a week.

The camera inside my new LG fridge that's supposed to track what I have stopped connecting to the app after a routine software update last Tuesday. I kept thinking I had milk because the app said so, but the real carton had gone bad. Has anyone else had a smart appliance feature fail so completely that it changed your view on the tech?

Vent: The new 'silent disco' walking tour in Nashville felt like a weird gimmick

I was in Nashville last week and saw a group of about 30 people all wearing headphones, following a guide who was silently dancing. It's a 'silent disco history tour' where you listen to music and stories through the headphones. Honestly, it felt isolating. You can't talk to anyone without taking the headphones off, and the whole point of a tour is to share the experience. I think it's a fad that will fade once the novelty wears off. It solves a problem that doesn't really exist. Has anyone else done one of these and actually liked it?

I used to think those 'smart' water bottles were just overpriced junk

About a year ago, my buddy got one that glows when you need to drink. I thought it was dumb, but he kept using it. Fast forward to last month, I saw him again and he actually drinks way more water now, like he fills the thing three times a day. He said the little light reminder just got him into a habit without him thinking about it. It made me look around, and now I see them everywhere at the gym, not just with tech people. The change seems to be that they went from a flashy gadget to something that actually helps build a simple habit. I'm still not sold on paying $80 for a bottle, but the core idea of a gentle nudge might stick around. Has anyone else had a friend who totally changed a habit because of one of these things?

My brother told me to ignore the 'smart' gardening apps and just buy a $12 moisture meter.

He said all the data and watering schedules were just noise, and the simple tool would tell me exactly what my plants needed. I tried the fancy app route for a whole season in Denver and killed two lavender bushes by overwatering. Now I just stick the probe in the dirt. Is this a sign that simple tools are the future, or are the apps just not good enough yet?

My client's 'smart' fridge kept ordering the wrong milk and I had to fix it

I was cleaning a house in the new development off Elm Street last month, and the owner was freaking out because her fancy internet fridge had ordered six gallons of almond milk instead of whole. She told me, "It's supposed to learn my habits, but it's just wasting money." I had to unplug the thing from the wall for a full minute to reset it, which felt stupid for a $4,000 appliance. Is all this connected kitchen stuff just a dumb fad that makes things harder, or will it actually get good?

I used to think 'quiet luxury' was just for rich people, but a comment on my video changed my mind

I made a short video about my new $15 plain t-shirt from a basic store, calling it my 'quiet luxury' piece as a joke. Someone commented, 'You're missing the point. It's not about the price tag, it's about buying one good thing you'll wear for five years instead of five cheap things you'll toss in one.' I realized I was treating the trend like a costume. I went through my closet and found a sweater I bought in 2018 for $60. I've worn it probably 200 times. That's the real trend - buying less, but better. Is 'quiet luxury' just a fancy name for what used to be called 'being practical'?

I thought those 'smart' water bottles were just overpriced junk until my sister got one.

She bought a HidrateSpark last year and I laughed at the idea of a bottle telling you to drink. But after seeing her actually finish 3 liters a day for 6 months straight, my own cheap bottle felt pretty dumb. The app reminders and the light actually worked for her, which made me think it's more than a fad for forgetful people. Anyone else have a gadget they mocked that turned out to be useful?

Update: I gave the 'digital detox weekend' thing a shot last month

I turned off all my notifications and left my phone in a drawer from Friday night to Sunday morning. Honestly, I thought I'd be bored, but I ended up reading a whole book and going for a long walk without checking my location once. It felt weirdly freeing, but by Sunday afternoon I was stressed about all the messages I'd missed. It made me wonder if completely unplugging is realistic long-term or just a nice idea that fades. Do you think these tech breaks are a real habit people will keep, or just a passing trend?

Vent: I tried the 'no phone for the first hour of the day' trend for a month.

I saw people talking about it online and decided to test it against my old habit of checking email right away. For 30 days, I left my phone in the kitchen and just had coffee, made breakfast, and planned my day without it. Honestly, the first week was rough, I kept reaching for it. But after that, my mornings felt calmer and I was less rushed getting to the office. I'm sticking with it because the quiet start makes a real difference. Has anyone else tried a morning routine change that actually stuck?

Warning: I chose to ignore the whole 'AI video' trend for my small business, and it's costing me.

I picked focusing on my old blog content over making those quick AI clips, and now my traffic is down 40% from last quarter. Has anyone else been forced to switch tools to keep up?

Can we talk about when everyone started putting QR codes on restaurant tables?

I was at a diner in Cleveland back in 2021 and they had a laminated paper on the table with a big QR code. The server said they weren't handing out menus anymore. It felt weird at first, but now I see them everywhere. Do you think this is just a leftover from the pandemic or is the physical menu really gone for good?

Remember when everyone thought QR codes on menus were just a 2020 thing?

I was at a diner in Austin last month, and they still had the paper menus with QR stickers on them. The waitress said they keep them because people like to look at the menu on their phone before they even sit down. It made me think, maybe this isn't a weird leftover from the pandemic, but just how we do things now. Has anyone else noticed places that have fully stuck with the digital menu?

Vent: My friend in Denver swore by using a 3-second rule for Instagram Reels

Honestly, I tried it for a week and my views jumped by 40%. Is this just a lucky hack or a real shift in the algorithm?

Unpopular opinion: I think those 'smart' water bottles that track your intake are a total fad, but my wife swears they're the future.

Can we talk about those AI recipe generators?

I tried one last week for a dinner party in Austin and it told me to add a full cup of salt to a chicken marinade. I had to throw everything out and order pizza, which cost me about $40. Are these tools just a weird fad or will they actually get good enough to trust?

Got roasted for my 'smart home' setup being too complicated. Changed my whole approach.

A buddy who's an electrician came over and saw my place. He said, 'Dude, you have 12 different apps to turn on a light. My grandma could hack this.' He was right. I had a different brand for lights, thermostat, locks, and speakers, all on separate hubs. I spent more time troubleshooting than using it. I ripped it all out 3 months ago and went with one ecosystem that uses a single app. Now everything just works on a schedule or with one voice command. Has anyone else simplified their setup after getting similar feedback?