Popular Mechanics?? I Expected Better

It's a very oddly written piece. Why would he choose to include a $400 single blade razor and not the Bic single blade disposable? Why even mention straight razors at all if you're going to tout the 2-4 blade systems? He tried way to hard with the 1-2-3-4-5 concept. Perhaps this is really what goes on in the minds of shavers that have not been exposed to traditional wet shaving. Maybe he's right in the middle of the bell curve? If so, then Gillette and Schick have done their jobs well.

I suspect its an ad masquerading as an article underwritten by Big Shaving to promote the benefits of cartridge and can shaving - the only alternative is a very expensive Oneblade razor that seems to heavy to hold on to.

Freddy I read an article recently that described how the internet was causing humans to essentially lose the ability to read - or at least read in the way that we had been doing since the invention of the printing press, i.e., sitting and focussing for extended periods of time to process information dense text. Apparently the internet with its short bursts and hyperlinks actually rewires our brains. I'm resisting

Here is the article

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arch...id/306868/

I thought that it was an ad, but the article has lots of negative things to say about 5-blade carts. It also favors both Gillette and Schick. So that's why I'm scratching my head here.

I've noticed attention spans getting shorter and shorter. I write instruction manuals for a living (you wouldn't have guessed it with all of my mistakes in my grand opening thread). The trend over the past few years has been to get away from large instruction manuals and rely on short 3-5 minute videos to convey the same information as 100-page documents. Part of it has a lot to do with better software design, but another part of it has to do with younger workers not having the ability to sit down with a manual and follow instructions. The field of Instructional Design has grown tremendously, while the field of Technical Writing has shrunk. Unfortunately for businesses, it takes way more time and resources to produce these short videos than it does to write longer manuals.

Hmmm...perhaps including the Bic disposable would have skewed the value proposition of the other razors. At $3 for 12, they are way cheaper. I haven't shaved with one in quite a while, so I don't know how they compare to the others. Perhaps the author intentionally excluded Bic. Does the rest of the magazine contain ads by Gillette and/or Schick?

Clearly, he is writing about something he really doesn't understand.

It wouldn't surprise me if there is paid content by the razor companies.

I've noticed attention spans getting shorter and shorter.

I have been a elementary teacher for 20+ years so I have an inside insight to this. I was around before the instant information age. It HAS had a big impact on attention span for sure.

He didn't even list one dislike for the others? Not even the expensive cartridges?

Before I DE shaved, I already hated the prices of cartridges, and at the time I thought it was the norm. Didn't know DE shaving was a thing until I saw one ad from a local seller.

And ruin your face? Who are these barbers.. I admit I never shaved with a Straight Edge, but I don't think it's that hard. I'm actually interested to learn.

I agree, Mark. The article seems hail corporate to me.

Hmmm...perhaps including the Bic disposable would have skewed the value proposition of the other razors. At $3 for 12, they are way cheaper. I haven't shaved with one in quite a while, so I don't know how they compare to the others. Perhaps the author intentionally excluded Bic. Does the rest of the magazine contain ads by Gillette and/or Schick?

I scanned the magazine and did not find any shaving ads - booze and quads mainly Its possible they're smart enough to forego ads in this issue - I'll look at some previous issues because I seem to recall the gillette ads in some of them.

EFDan I know what you mean about attention spans - my son is in his third year engineering at university and I raised him and my daughter to be big readers. He got a smartphone for his birthday in grade 12 and thats pretty much when he stopped reading books. Its not so bad with my daughter, maybe a gender thing. I've also noticed a tendency to read fewer books in myself and I'm 57 and have always been a huge reader. It takes me longer to get through books and I have to work hard at reading one at a time through to completion. I think any young person who manages to retain their ability to read, focus and process information dense text will be at a significant advantage. Not everything can be reduced to videos and info-graphics.

I've noticed attention spans getting shorter and shorter.

I have been a elementary teacher for 20+ years so I have an inside insight to this.  I was around before the instant information age.  It HAS had a big impact on attention span for sure.

Hmmm...perhaps including the Bic disposable would have skewed the value proposition of the other razors. At $3 for 12, they are way cheaper. I haven't shaved with one in quite a while, so I don't know how they compare to the others. Perhaps the author intentionally excluded Bic. Does the rest of the magazine contain ads by Gillette and/or Schick?

I scanned the magazine and did not find any shaving ads - booze and quads mainly  Its possible they're smart enough to forego ads in this issue - I'll look at some previous issues because I seem to recall the gillette ads in some of them.

EFDan I know what you mean about attention spans - my son is in his third year engineering at university and I raised him and my daughter to be big readers.  He got a smartphone for his birthday in grade 12 and thats pretty much when he stopped reading books.  Its not so bad with my daughter, maybe a gender thing.  I've also noticed a tendency to read fewer books in myself and I'm 57 and have always been a huge reader.  It takes me longer to get through books and I have to work hard at reading one at a time through to completion.  I think any young person who manages to retain their ability to read, focus and process information dense text will be at a significant advantage.  Not everything can be reduced to videos and info-graphics.

I agree with both of you.  Like EFDan, I was an elementary school teacher for 35+ years before retiring in 2003.  Fortunately for me, I retired before there was too much technology in the classroom.  However, high schools in the San Diego district were beginning to take attendance electronically and elementary schools followed soon after I left.  A few years after I retired a friend of mine, who was still teaching at the time, asked me why I didn't substitute a few days a week.  When I explained about how far technology had come into schools and that I'd probably need retraining, she thought about it and then agreed with me.  I didn't even understand half of what she was explaining to me.

As for reading, Marko, I always have a book that I'm reading, usually just before going to sleep but also on plane trips, on the bus here in town, etc.  I don't even like electronic books.  To get lost in another world through my mind while reading a good book is a treasure I don't ever want to give up.

That razor article, Mark, is ultimately sad and while not exactly the current rage, fake news, it is darn close and, unfortunately, very much accepted.

Someone should forward the "author" or Popular Mechanics olschoolsteel 's article. Maybe it will enlighten them

Now I'd never go out and buy a power tool based on a thumb's up in a Popular Mechanics review but I did expect a little more effort than obviously went into this razor review.

Why? How many Razor reviews has Popular Mechanics done in its history? Why would anyone trust it now. Do you go to hmm, Sharpologist to get reviews of Socket Wrenches?

What's the difference. Go to a steak house to order steak. Go to a Fish house to order Fish. ...