Cling wrap, the store brand is absolute garbage. The cutting edge sucks and the wrap just tangles up in itself so easily.

Leatherman plier-based multitools. They invented the category and they continue to be the top choice. You can get cheaper tools that are adequate, but Leatherman always has some of the best designs, reliably high quality, and outstanding support. I'm constantly trying new tools from all over, but I always end up carrying one Leatherman or another.

I think it's hard to fit software into this question because typically when a product is made, there isn't as large of a need to make a cheaper / more accessible product on account of larger teams typically meaning faster features, and cracked versions existing. They exist, but they're almost always less feature-complete, and there's a different type of user that seeks out an open-source alternative.

That said, I think FFmpeg is a good entry here.

Lego is the best of the blocks/bricks. Nothing else is close in quality.

In terms of why some of the "goto" brands aren't the best, it's generally because they were the best, got popular on merit, and then business folk come along to suck the life out of it, spending brand goodwill while gouging customers and cutting costs.

Some food product recipe changes to cheap, more shelf stable crap for mass production and easy logistics. Some device gets locked into a paid subscription. All the helpful service people get fired and replaced with chat bots and offshored/outsourced staff. Metal components replaced with cheap plastic that degrades. Shipping times increased so they can make everything an ocean away and give the boat time to travel. Also run big marketing pushes so it's really hard to find the quality offerings.

There's just so many ways you can have big margins on big revenue by screwing customers while going they haven't noticed the decline in quality. Very hard for investor class to leave good product alone.

Amazon's delivery time is insane. I use other services like eBay for the most part, but when I need something fast idk who else to use besides Amazon.

Cars.

The more boring, mass produced, commonly available, mass-purchased, bare bones bitch of a second-hand car will probably last the longest because of more spare parts available, cheaper labor and more reliable maintenance due to very common repair processes, and a crazy amount of information available online.

Cpu architecture. X86 is just a lot easier to deal with compared to risc-v arm, or Apple.

I’m hopeful it will change though, and I’m rooting for risc-v.

I'm genuinely having trouble thinking of a consumer product where the most widely sold brand or version is the "best" (highest quality, most durable, most features, best flavor, or whatever meteoric would be used).

I can think of a number of products where getting the "best" is a case of steep diminishing returns compared to the increasing price, and for the purposes of the "average" person the "best" product isn't any better for them than the mainstream one. The "best" versions of some products are only better for those with the skills to make use of them or the need for the "best" quality or features.

Cadburys was before the it was bought out. Now its Lindt, for me.

Other than fizzy pop i wouldnt consider anything else to have a brand with superiority.

Camping supplies, especially backpacking gear (and especially ultralite gear).

But most of the top equipment brands have legitimate, no questions asked, lifetime warranties.

Also, camping stores. I'll pay a bit extra to get my gear from REI because the employees will spend hours making sure you get a backpack or boots that fit you perfectly.

You can get similar stuff from no-name brands on Amazon, but it's not going to be the same quality.

Bourbon - The little indy distillers just don't have the ability to wait the 4 to 10 years for the bourbon to age.

Hershey's chocolate has a vomit aftertaste. Lindt chocolate is so much better.

Probably soda. I think most people enjoy Coke/Pepsi and the other mainstream choices are usually considered superior to the small batch artisan stuff

Xerox.

Velcro.

And up until a few years ago, Google.

Case and Point: We call the non-brand versions of the products by the mainstream product name and not the object's name. We ended up calling all copies "Xeroxes," all hook & loops "Velcro," and when we tell someone to search for it on the internet, we say "Google it." Becsuse, for a time, these were the best versions of their class.

I feel like Hersheys is an odd example I’d argue Hersheys is tat I can consider it mainstream , but elite no, not when you can either Swiss or a real chocolate elsewhere. But then that’s a different argument of quality over marketing.

I'm thinking about things where the brand name has become "the name" of the thing. Kleenex & Google come to mind. Here in the SE corner of the USA, we say "Coke" instead of soda or pop.

Apparently, there's a name for this. "Generic Trademark". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generic_trademark

Also, I really like Hershey's. Family grew up not far from their site, was always the chocolate we had as kids. So I like your bizarro universe. :D

Hershey in a sentence with "chocolate" without a negation? This is weird.

When someone offered me a piece of Hersheys "chocolate" ages ago I spit it out and asked if this is perhaps spoiled. No, it wasn't spoiled, this stuff actually tastes vile. I don't know how Americans can stand this stuff...

imagined a world where Hershey's...as the best chocolate

Damn, that would be a sad world, I guess 75% of the chocolate companies must have got destroyed or something, cause Hershey's taste like corn and it's disgusting

Photoshop.