Korea is way ahead: improvements to everyday objects
Intro
I'm currently in Korea for my first country in my year-long (maybe 2 year?) trip around the world. Almost immediately I've noticed there are some quality-of-life improvements to everyday things that seem dead-simple in retrospect, but are absent (or rarely seen) in the US.
Door locks
Pretty much every door to a home has an electronic key-code entry mechanism. Punch in your code, and the door opens. Close the door and it automatically locks.
I've needed to use keys for my entire life to lock the door behind me, so to just close the door and walk away feels...insecure? But after a quick adjustment to these new locks, I've concluded that they are simply better. Plus, the little jingle when you (un)lock the door is a reassuring piece of feedback that it was closed properly.
Lights
Similarly, the lights at the entrance are connected to motion detectors. So, as soon as you enter, or are heading for the door, the lights activate so you can take off, or put on, your shoes. Much better than either having the light on all the time or having to find the switch when you enter the apartment at night.
Floors
The US primarily uses heated air to warm the room, leaving you with maybe warm air, but definitely cold floors. Coming out of the warm shower can be a true test of your character some mornings.
However, here in Korea heated floors are the norm and what an absolute delight they are. The heat propagates up through the air and makes the room feel cozy. Sitting & sleeping on the floor is a daily occurrence, so making it more comfortable to do so, rather than the cold floors, makes a ton of sense.
Stools
When you go to a barbecue restaurant, the short stools are hollow inside and have a plastic bag. You open the top of the stool, place your coat into the bag, then close the stool.
This is brilliant for two main reasons:
- You do not have to sit on your coat or have it touch the ground
- The coat will not soak up any of the BBQ smell or oils while grilling, keeping it clean
Utensil drawers
Speaking of restaurants, a lot of them have tables with drawers that contain utensils and napkins. The result of this is two-fold:
- Able to have smaller tables because less area is taken up by utensil and napkin holders
- No waiting for a server to bring you a new utensil if you drop it
These tables tend to be at more fast-served restaurants, so it makes more sense for them to bring you the food and you can just take out the silverware you need.
Showers and bathrooms are part of the same space
The shower head is connected to the sink faucet, letting you switch between the sink and the shower head. An immediate effect of having them in the same room is that the entire bathroom is, for all intents and purposes, water-proof. Cleaning the bathroom is as simple as spraying water in the area, and it goes down the drain. Easy.
Also, similar to the tables with drawers, this is an excellent way to make use of space within the bathroom instead of taking up half for the shower and half for the bathroom.
Conclusion
These have been my main observations here within the first week and I'm sure I'll discover more. But suffice it to say, I'm loving having these improvements around me.
Update Feb 2 2024
Compressed air stations
At the start/end of hiking trails and beaches are compressed air stations that allow you to blast off any dirt or sand.
Just this morning I decided to run barefoot into the East Sea and so I had a whole bunch of sand all over my feet and shoes. A quick blast later and it’s all clean. Marvelous.
Update Feb 2 2024 part 2
Elevators
Elevator buttons are cancellable. I repeat: elevator buttons are cancellable. You press the wrong floor — no worries, just press the button again and it’s cancelled.