Teenage Engineering APC-2
Lathe cutter in Tools & making
Recommended for its beautiful, crafted design and for bringing record-cutting equipment back to market after decades. Critics say it is priced for the wealthy and is impractical for personal use.
Recommended for its beautiful, crafted design and for bringing record-cutting equipment back to market after decades. Critics say it is priced for the wealthy and is impractical for personal use.
23 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 12
- criticize it
- 11
- approval share
- 52%
Recommended in 2 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 12 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 1 recommender for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 2 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Beautiful design blending craft and innovation
“engineered for the sake of being beautiful and cool”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2” “Love the blend of craftsmanship and innovation”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2” Brings record cutting back to market
“A record cutter has way more potential audience than any of those. They will sell every one they can even manage to make.”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2” “This is kind of a big deal because this sort of fundamental equipment hasn't been available new for decades.”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Impractical for personal use
“Looks good for light-duty uses. Scared for my fingers for anything heavy.”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2” “Surely it's impractical for personal use, as marketed.”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2” Priced out of reach for individuals
“I don't see this device being priced for individuals outside of the 1% demographic.”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2” “Cool project but the opposite of democratization.”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2” Seen as stunt or rebrand
“TE here again does a great amount of art-washing and Supreme-isation of previously "niche" things”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2” “It appears they'll just rebrand a few record cutters and call it a product.”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2” “most of Teenage Engineering is more stunt than practical”
Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2” - Comment from 8 Jun 2026 in “Teenage Engineering: Introducing APC-2”
What people said
21 of the 23 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Snake oil worked about 30% of the time, so the comparison is more than apt.”
“Teenage Engineering has zero product support.”
“I don't see this device being priced for individuals outside of the 1% demographic.”
“it can be "read" non intrusively with a laser-pickup, like a CD, without wearing the medium down.”
“TE here again does a great amount of art-washing and Supreme-isation of previously "niche" things”
“Cool project but the opposite of democratization.”
“missing basic features, unremarkable in those provided”
“This is kind of a big deal because this sort of fundamental equipment hasn't been available new for decades.”
“most of Teenage Engineering is more stunt than practical”
“engineered for the sake of being beautiful and cool”
“Love the blend of craftsmanship and innovation”
“Maybe a party novelty for hipsters.”
“that spring-loaded mechanism is going to cause repetitive stress injuries”
“a non-locking blade is a plus for some people”
“Looks good for light-duty uses. Scared for my fingers for anything heavy.”
“It's not made to fit in the hand. There's no way to lock the blade forward.”
“It appears they'll just rebrand a few record cutters and call it a product.”
“A record cutter has way more potential audience than any of those. They will sell every one they can even manage to make.”
“a fascinating outcome of what happens when you have a bunch of creative people who like - and can - do things that are new to them”
“Surely it's impractical for personal use, as marketed.”
“design the absurd and analog”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.