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Comment by whyenot | Hacker News Reader

A good quality well sharpened knife already works incredibly well, doesn't cost $500, doesn't need to be recharged, and isn't going to be e-waste in 5 years (when the battery fails).

It's a cool idea, and I hope it is commercially successful, but not for me.

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This thing is $399, which is on the expensive side of prestige chef knives, but by no means the extravagant side of it. People who buy knives that cost more than $150 generally buy lots of knives, and this is priced for that market.

But it's not priced for the market of people who buy lots of knives. Because those who buy lots of knives aren't going to be interested in some mediocre knife with a vibration motor attached to it.

Those who are interested in knives would be able to get a more impressive knife for $399. And they are usually the type of people that enjoy sharpening a knife until it cuts better than this ultrasonic knife ever will.

This is a product which is targeted at people who don't really know a lot about knives and prep their meals with a dull blade.

Yeah I mean, the product is either going to work or it isn't going to work. But the only people who are going to be early adopters for this are knife nerds. Obviously, you'll get a knife that r/chefknives admires for cheaper than that!

I'm not hyping the product. I keep a knife set up to easily slice tomatoes, and if I don't want to clean it carefully afterwards I just use a good thin serrated bread knife. I'm still not really sure what this knife is "for". But I'm also not ruling out that it is "for" something interesting.

Why do you think the knife is mediocre?

The knife itself is made out of AUS-10, which is a very mediocre steel. It's not bad per-se, but when you're spending $400 on a knife, you typically expect premium steels to be used. Additionally, most knives in that price range typically have some sort of flair to them to make them visually appealing: Damascus patterning, nice wooden handles, etc.

I know the handle itself is integral to the ultrasonic function, but it reminds me of a cheap kitchen thermometer.

For comparison, 'analog' knives are much nicer looking for sometimes far cheaper.

Here's a $309 knife by Miyabi (which is owned by Zwilling): https://cutleryandmore.com/products/miyabi-birchwood-chefs-k...

You can even find down-market knives by the same company that have the similar steel with different finishing:

https://cutleryandmore.com/products/miyabi-mizu-sg2-chefs-kn...

https://cutleryandmore.com/products/miyabi-kaizen-ii-chefs-k...

https://cutleryandmore.com/products/miyabi-evolution-chefs-k...

AUS-10 is basically 440C, and is an excellent steel for cutlery (and was once considered at the very high end of stainless steels). Very stainless, reasonably tough, and honorable slicing edge retention if heat treated to a relatively high hardness (60-61HRC would be on the mark). It will sharpen OK, but may have a bit of a gummy feel on the stones and not be as easy as carbon/low alloy steels.

Again, it’s not that it’s bad per-se, it’s that it is easily outclassed by numerous other more modern steels. It’s cheap compared to more exotic stuff, and feels almost insulting at the price you’re paying for the knife.

If the knife we’re discussing was sub $100 I’d have no issue with AUS-10/440C, but we’re talking about a $400 knife.

So what steel do you feel is appropriate for a $400 knife?

Some steels might work better with ultrasonics than others.

I would like to see a ceramic version.

Presumably if you want something that resists chipping due to the high forces of the ultrasonic, so you'd pick something with quite high toughness and moderate edge retention. Maybe something like CPM-CruWear? If you prefer something with higher corrosion-resistant properties, MagnaCut?

Those are just two examples of premium steels that would be superior to AUS-10 in every way. Additionally, as I already mentioned, you'd expect a knife that is $400 to be beautiful too. It really feels like the design element was left out of this knife. I'm sure the handle has many practical elements, but there has to be something that could be done to make it look more visually appealing.

This is a $100 knife with a $300 ultrasonic vibrator mounted to it.

It’s $499 with the wireless charger. I see that the charger isn’t required. You can take the battery out of the knife and charge it by USB. I would correct my comment, but it is no longer possible for me to edit it.

That's quite the expensive charger. Makes me wonder what other parts of the knives are overpriced that much.

The battery is comes out for recharging, so replacing a dead battery should be trivial

It's a proprietary form factor, so you're gambling on replacements being available down the line. I don't think it'll be easy to rebuild the battery pack without compromising the casing.

Given the battery specs and the form factor of the products, they could have used a 14500 cell that retails for $5. That's not as much recurring revenue as charging $80 for something proprietary though.

3d printer and couple of cells and I guess a board will get the job done.

You will have to print it from something like polyamide or polycarbonate, definitely not PLA

Or chuck it out as e-waste and buy the shiny new one

The dead battery is still e-waste and recycling isn't a magically neutral activity that brings back one new product out of an old one with no loss or energy spent.

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