Weekly discussion: edge cases on a tight budget [v4]

Looking for honest feedback, not validation. Posting this here because the relevant subreddit has gotten too noisy lately. Quick context: I am relatively new to this and trying to find my footing.

The trade-offs here are not obvious to me and I keep flip-flopping. This came up at a meetup recently and the room was split, so curious what the broader community thinks.

Posting this here because the relevant subreddit has gotten too noisy lately.