{"id":40567,"date":"2023-09-06T15:35:18","date_gmt":"2023-09-06T19:35:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/?p=40567"},"modified":"2024-11-01T14:49:59","modified_gmt":"2024-11-01T18:49:59","slug":"keen-and-slice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/2023\/09\/06\/keen-and-slice\/","title":{"rendered":"Keen and Slice"},"content":{"rendered":"

John Gruber<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n

Yes, a box cutter\/utility knife that costs about $100. […] A few weeks ago, though, my pals at Studio Neat sent me a pre-production Keen. I prefer it to the Palmer in every single regard. First, it’s thinner and smaller, but in no way too small. Second, it’s easier to change the blade. But most importantly, the Keen offers a completely original design for opening and closing the blade: a spring-loaded slider. It’s so different from any box cutter design I’ve ever seen that I wondered if I’d even like it at all, let alone prefer it, because it does not lock into place.<\/p>\n

[…]<\/p>\n

Given how many packages I receive each and every week of the year, it’s one of my most-used tools.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

There are certainly times when a real utility knife comes in handy. But, 99% of the time, all I want to do is open a package and then break down the box for recycling or to use it for crafts. For these purposes, the $6 Slice Safety Cutter<\/a> (Amazon<\/a>) is fantastic. The ceramic blade is tiny enough that it doesn’t need to be retracted, and you don’t have to worry about cutting too deep (beyond the packaging). Yet it makes quick work of tape on boxes and even thick plastic blister packs that can be awkward with scissors and potentially dangerous with a knife. (Corrugated cardboard usually takes two passes.) The blade is not replaceable, but after more than a decade of use it’s still sharp. It’s tiny but hard to lose in a drawer because it’s bright green. You can also put it on a keyring or stick it as a magnet.<\/p>\n\n

Update (2024-06-20): John Gruber<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n

[A]t least one reader recommended the Canary. For $8 I figured why not. It truly is an amazing product. I do still love my prototype Keen but for opening and breaking down cardboard boxes, the Canary can’t be beat.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

Here it is at Amazon<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

Update (2024-11-01): I got a Canary, and it’s great if you want to carve up cardboard boxes, e.g. for building things, but if you just want to open the boxes and break them down for recycling I prefer the Slice.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

John Gruber: Yes, a box cutter\/utility knife that costs about $100. […] A few weeks ago, though, my pals at Studio Neat sent me a pre-production Keen. I prefer it to the Palmer in every single regard. First, it’s thinner and smaller, but in no way too small. Second, it’s easier to change the blade. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"apple_news_api_created_at":"2023-09-06T19:35:21Z","apple_news_api_id":"a084f964-8ccc-41b6-b31d-9bb44d06c1b0","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2024-11-01T18:50:02Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQ==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/AoIT5ZIzMQbazHZu0TQbBsA","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":"\"\"","apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[452],"class_list":["post-40567","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology","tag-hardware"],"apple_news_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40567","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40567"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40567\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45626,"href":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40567\/revisions\/45626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40567"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40567"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40567"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}