
Ask HN: Do you subscribe to print magazines anymore? - dvanwag
Do you subscribe to print magazines anymore?  What is your favorite&#x2F;Best one if so?
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jugg1es
I subscribe to Fine Woodworking. It is hands-down the best publication on the
topic and does a great job with its content. I could use the website to get
the information, but it is far faster to read a magazine than navigating the
website and nothing really beats full-page color diagrams above trying to fit
it on my phone's screen.

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un_montagnard
I'm considering subscribing to The Economist.

I was a Time subscriber, but I stopped a year ago as I felt it was too focused
on the US. I've been reading newspapers online since then and feel like I
don't remember anything I've read online whereas I still remember some
articles from the printed Time edition.

~~~
r3bl
I'm not in a first-world country, so I don't subscribe to any magazines (nor
have I ever) because I think that the physical delivery would be a pain in the
ass and that I will always be one issue behind, but the last sentence is the
reason I like to pick up a copy of Wired at the airport (their website is not
even close quality-wise).

At this point I should probably just subscribe to the digital edition, but it
seems like I can't do that on my Kindle without having them waste paper on me
specifically every month or so.

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sgillen
The economomist continues to be high quality. It is an expensive way to get
your news but I think it’s worth it.

~~~
johncla99
Ditto. The Economist covers topics in depth that I don't see covered at all
elsewhere. I also subscribe to 'The New Yorker'. I disagree vehemently with
their politics but respect them as a source of good writing on diverse and
sometimes tweaky topics.

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inDigiNeous
Not counting the engineers union magazines I get, the only one I subscribe is
Skrolli, which is a Finnish hobbyist computer magazine. They have
international numbers if you are interested, highly recommended for anyone
interested in specialized topics and retro computers.

Check out the international edition here:
[https://skrolli.fi/en/international/](https://skrolli.fi/en/international/)

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brent_noorda
Scientific American and Atlantic Monthly. Gotta have something next to the
toilet that won’t set me back hundreds of dollars should it fall in while I’m
reading.

~~~
madez
Get a waterproof phone or tablet?

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jrgaston
The New Yorker is my only print subscription. Literature, art, science, and
current events, every issue has articles I find worth while.

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usrme
National Geographic and I'd like to get Nautilus' prints as well, but I've
heard that they have (or had) a tough time getting orders fulfilled in a
timely manner. I'd really dislike getting a certain month's magazine a month
or more later; for me, in such cases, consistency is key.

~~~
piecu
I am also a happy NG subscriber.

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Kagerjay
I do prefer a hard copy print of things, but the issue I have with print
magazines is its loaded with advertisements everywhere normally.

Its like browsing a web article without running uBlock origin. Once you have
an adblock its hard to go back

The only ones I remember enjoying are national geographic though.

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gallerdude
No, but it's not for a lack of trying. I like tangible things. All magazines
I've seen just recycle existing information, or are just full of text.

Maybe I have too high expectations, but I want a magazine that's both
brainpower & beauty.

~~~
jccalhoun
Interesting. I want text. I figure that I can get pretty pictures online. I
want it to be full of text. I guess that would depend on the subject matter
though.

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closeparen
For some reason it’s much easier for The Economist to hold my attention in
print vs. on my phone. It’s perfect for a public transit commute (when there’s
room to hold reading material).

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cimmanom
I've worked for a well established print magazine publisher in the recent
past, and can attest that in a period when online subscription increased by
100x, print subscription shrank by a factor of 10.

My understanding is that they continue to produce a print edition mostly
because of certain advantages it confers in terms of positioning, and that
it's now a loss leader.

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bdwalter
I have a hobby that I read 3-4 print magazines for (fishing in the northwest,
not that it matters) and after numerous times talking to the publishers, I
still, in 2018, cannot get them to distribute an electronic version. I would
pay big money for a digital archive of one of them all the way back to the
60's. They all fear piracy so strongly they won't innovate. Boggles my mind.

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throwawat870809
Fitness magazine. Usually the information is rehashed stuff from last month
but I subscribe for two reasons.

1\. Monthly renewal of motivation to workout. 2\. I limit screen time at home.
So magazines are fun to read/look at.

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danielblazevski
MIT Tech Review, which keeps me up to date with a whole spectrum of advances
and trends in tech, and The Atlantic for politics — most if not all The
Atlantic is free online, but it’s dirt cheap to get the physical copy and I’m
more likely to read the longer articles with the physical copy.

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jongold
Other than the usual suspects that have already been mentioned, I'm really
enjoy New Philosopher recently
[http://www.newphilosopher.com/](http://www.newphilosopher.com/)

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a_cactus
Sunset Magazine. They have high quality content about living, eating, and
traveling in the West (western US).

Almost all of my other content digest is tech focused, so it’s nice to have
something a little different once a month.

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themodelplumber
I get the AAII journal and Ad Astra because of my memberships in those orgs.
Rarely have time to read them but they are sometimes really interesting. Have
been considering getting one of the ham radio mags.

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jccalhoun
No. I sometimes miss it but reading on a tablet has taken over that. I will
semi-regularly see what electronic mags I can get through the public library
or what is available on Amazon's prime reading.

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brennankreiman
I subscribed to Wire because I remember how awesome the articles were at my
tech-industry family member's house. It has definitely gone downhill from what
I had remembered, all ad selling articles.

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mrep
I bought a year subscription to wired and popular science for 5$ each on
amazon prime during black friday. Don't know if I will continue it after a
year but for the price of a coffee, why not?

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mcintyre1994
I've come across texture.com, it's US+Canada only so I can't subscribe but I'm
pretty sure I would if I could - unlimited mobile access to lots of magazines
for $9.99/mo.

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BenjiWiebe
Yes. Popular Science, Popular Mechanics, QST, Nuts 'n' Volts. And my parents
subscribe to Nat Geo, Readers Digest, and I think a few dairy farm/cheese
industry magazines as well.

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mrks_
I only subscribe to print magazines when it's literature (The Paris Review).
News/science/technology is easier to filter and read through online, in my
opinion.

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rgacote
Bi-weekly Science News is a must have for me in print.
[https://www.sciencenews.org/](https://www.sciencenews.org/)

~~~
bharrison
Likewise, but Nature shows up weekly. I react to most of the research papers
like a dog who's been shown a card trick, but the front half of the book is
always interesting and up to the minute.

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m_ransing
Yes. I have subscribed to Digit Magazine in India. I especially like their
FastTrack supplememt, which is kind of short course for the subject it covers.

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bhickey
I previously subscribed to Clarkesworld in paper. Last year I switched to
digital only so that Neil would get more money.

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ggregoire
No, the same way as I avoid to buy anything available in a digital version
(books, movies, video games, etc).

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julian55
Current Archaeology (which covers the UK) and Current World Archaeology (the
rest of the world).

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Meltdown
I buy a subscripton to a Home Interiors mag for my sister every year at
Christmas.

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jvagner
The Wire (music magazine)

Trail Runner magazine

That's it.

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Finnucane
I think the last magazine I had a subscription to was actually Print.

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dev1n
Bloomberg Businessweek

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guan
I subscribe to Logic, A Public Space and The New Yorker.

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hprotagonist
i just began my first print edition subscription to the new yorker.

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danso
Yes, the New Yorker

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markfer
The Economist for arguably the last good journalism

Esquire for entertainment and fashion

GQ for fashion

