Forget $200 sleepbuds. Buy this pillow instead

Tech companies love to sell us expensive gadgets for life's little problems. Sleepbuds from Anker and Ozlo are a good example. They sit flush in the ear. Side-sleepers listen to podcasts, audiobooks, music, or white noise without annoying their partner.

But why pay over $200 for a second pair of highly specialized buds? You can spend a fraction of that on a piercing pillow. It works with earbuds you already own. It never needs charging. It never loses its Bluetooth connection. And it won't need replacing in a few years after the battery wears out.

The name says it all: these pillows promise pain relief for side-sleepers. The idea is simple. You put your earbuds on the pillow. You sleep. The pillow cushions your ear so the buds don't dig in. No app. No firmware update. No charging cable.

The Verge calls this a piercing pillow. It's not magic. It's just a different way to solve the same problem. The sleepbuds are small marvels of engineering. The pillow is just foam and fabric. But it does the job without the tech overhead.

We don't need another gadget. We need something that works. Something that doesn't require a subscription. Something that doesn't die in six months when the battery gives out.

If you already have earbuds, you already have the sound. You just need the comfort. The pillow gives you that. No extra purchase. No complicated setup. Just put them in, lay down, and sleep.

Why this matters for us: la gente works hard and deserves a good night's sleep without buying another gadget from Silicon Valley that dies in a year.