Still dont understand how planned obsolescence is legal
4 years ago by chendao · 239 Likes · 6 comments · Trending
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guest_
· 4 years ago
· FIRST
Planned obsolescence sucks. But.... how would it work for it to be illegal? Would we require companies to support every product they ever made forever? That’s obviously not reasonable. We could mandate a product has to last a certain amount of time... but how’s that work? The thing about planned obsolescence is its often set by consumers. My vacuum cleaner is from the 1950’s. It was VERY expensive in its day- think the equivalent of like $2-3k. It still works. Every part on it can be replaced. I’ve replaced brushes and belts and bearings and wiring over the decades. When I die this vacuum will probably still work- and if it doesn’t- you’ll probably be able to fix it so it works for another 100 years at least.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
But how many people rebuild their vacuum cleaners when something breaks? Dyson vacuums aren’t even that expensive compared to this thing- and they are crap comparatively. Who here would pay $3000 for a vacuum that could be handed down to their grandkids- probably not. Most people don’t keep their cars running last 10 years. The cost of a newer can and the car being- newer, fancier bells and whistles- most people give up on their old car. Scrap it or sell it. The majority of phone users aren’t keeping their phones for 6,10 years.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
So in an environment where consumers generally only keep things for a certain amount of time, where consumers like always having newer better things- why would they make products that last longer than you’re likely to own them?
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guest_
· 4 years ago
Is a consumer who keeps an iPhone or an android for an average of 3 years- who is paying around $1,000 for a top of the line phone that will last for 5-7 years- are they going to pay $2000 for a phone that will last 14 years? Who is even going to want a 2g phone that’s 14 years old?
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guest_
· 4 years ago
And well... planned obsolescence isn’t always a bad thing. Asides cutting costs and often cutting the resources required to make a product, and allowing quicker turn around times on new products- it often is a form of protection from yourself. Most people don’t follow directions. They don’t follow the instructions for upkeep and the schedules and specifications set by engineers. Knowing a component- like a part of a machine- will generally fail at a certain interval can be helpful.
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guest_
· 4 years ago
If I design a component that I know will generally be expected to work for 1,000 duty cycles or so many operator hours or so much time- you know when it will fail. Usually you are told when it will fail, or that information is made available to you. You are generally told- apple offers a rating on how many times their lightening connector can be plugged in and out, BMW or Ford etc. tell you to have a coolant system replacement or inspection at given intervals. Etc etc. So you can generally know when to expect your product to need various types of service or replacement- and generally this is set to coincide with the next product release cycle or a future cycle.
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