What does HL think about Planned Obsolescence?

[daze23]

 

[Serious]

I was listening to something recently on npr, and they were talking about the value of all the old cell phones people have laying around. it was in the billions...

let me know if you remember the name of that show segment or come across an article on this...

 

[NZA]

you can probably only get away with this in uncompetitive industries. if you set the bar too low, a new upstart can knock you out.

 

[daze23]

let me know if you remember the name of that show segment or come across an article on this...

Consumers sitting on $9 billion in old iPhones - MarketWatch

 

[intilectual recipricol]

my nicca is a rocket scientist... literally he designs rocket engines. He told me that all he has to do is make sure it runs and doesnt blow up and his employer is happy.

 

[Serious]

my nicca is a rocket scientist... literally he designs rocket engines. He told me that all he has to do is make sure it runs and doesnt blow up and his employer is happy.

half the posters in HL are rocket scientists ( )

Consumers sitting on $9 billion in old iPhones - MarketWatch

 

[TLR Is Mental Poison]

People say this about cars but I don't think it completely applies.

I bought a 1993 Accord in 2003. That shyt was in good shape, but I have far more confidence in going the distance in a 2003 Accord today. For the big segments people expect longevity and durability.

However the game flipped for luxury cars. European luxury cars are designed to stay solid just during their lease term. From then on you are on your own. This is why you can get an out of warranty S-Class for the same price as a same year Accord. The issues you will have to deal with aren't worth it. This is a complete change from the Benzes of the 70s and 80s that literally outlast their current equivalents. This is largely due to the increase in electronic integration and the shyttiness of the electronic components used.

 

[Brown_Pride]

Crash Test 1959 Chevrolet Bel Air VS. 2009 Chevrolet Malibu (Frontal Offset) IIHS 50th Anniversary - YouTube

oh hell yeah i'd rather be in a new car vs an old one in terms of safety, however what i was talking about was not related to safety and a lot of the safety they build into cars now can be achieved with higher quality materials as well. Having an engine designed to drop on impacts like that go a long way. A damn divit in your hood so that it forms an A on impact when a crash happens can be done in old cars as well.

The overall quality though has gone down, not even talking safety but rather craftsmanship. ...except for say hondas, accords and toyotas. They are built pretty solid. NEW domestic cars are getting MUCH better, but a domestic car between 1990-2008 is basura.

 

[Constantine]

Brazil is suing Apple for this...
Apple may be sued in Brazil for updating the iPad too fast | Apple - CNET News
Apple could be facing a lawsuit in Brazil for updating the third-generation iPad so fast last year.

According to a report from Brazilian newspaper Jornal do Comércio, the Brazilian Institute of Politics and Law Software (IBDI) has targeted the iPad maker for what it says were unfair business practices with the release of the fourth-generation iPad model five months after launching the third-generation model in the country.

In a follow-up, Brazilian news site O Hoje adds that the suit wants Apple to give those who bought third-generation models with the latest versions and/or give buyers half of what they paid. The complaint also seeks to fine Apple a fixed amount for each unit sold.

The Jornal do Comércio report has since come under fire by tech blog Techlinhas, which notes that the IBDI has no knowledge of the complaint in the region.

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Up until the fourth-generation iPad, Apple was on an annual release cycle, debuting a new model near the beginning of the year. That changed last October, when Apple released a new version alongside the debut of the iPad Mini. The fourth-generation is nearly indistinguishable from the second- and third-generation iPads (short of the same Retina Display found in the third-gen), though packs a faster processor, improved cameras, newer wireless networking hardware, and Apple's smaller Lightning port.

Apple last week lost the rights to the iPhone name in Brazil, a move that it's currently fighting. Local technology company Gradiente filed for the iPhone naming rights in the country years before Apple's device came to be. However the company didn't put out its own iPhone-branded product until last December when it began selling a line of touch-screen smartphones running Google's Android.

 

[TLR Is Mental Poison]

oh hell yeah i'd rather be in a new car vs an old one in terms of safety, however what i was talking about was not related to safety and a lot of the safety they build into cars now can be achieved with higher quality materials as well. Having an engine designed to drop on impacts like that go a long way. A damn divit in your hood so that it forms an A on impact when a crash happens can be done in old cars as well.

The overall quality though has gone down, not even talking safety but rather craftsmanship. ...except for say hondas, accords and toyotas. They are built pretty solid. NEW domestic cars are getting MUCH better, but a domestic car between 1990-2008 is basura.

Domestics were always trash though. Likewise Japanese cars have always been quality and are only getting better. The only people to really flip the script are the Europeans. VW is trying to be Japanese. BMW, MB, Audi and Jaguar are making their cars w/a 3 yr expiration date, which is a big switch from the old days of MBs being bombproof.

Plus a lot of it comes down to what people will pay for. People would rather buy a new tablet for $200 every 2 years than 1 $1000 tablet forever. You look at shyt from 2-3 years ago, low key, it is kind of out of date, at least in the electronic realm. I can't imagine keeping a computer for 10 years

 

[Melt_Man]

Is this obsolescence largely a product of consumer demand for cheaper and cheaper products?

I can choose to go to Ikea to buy furniture but I don't expect it to last much longer than 2-3 years of use or I can choose to spend much more on hardwood furniture that will last the rest of my life.

I can go to Walmart or Best Buy and buy a stereo for for $100-200 that will be junk in a year or two or I can spend 3-4x as much on quality individual components and that stereo will last for the next twenty years.

This argument for buying quality doesn't hold up to something like cell phones where all phones seem to turn into paper weights after around 2 years of use or cars which the vast majority do not seem to be designed to last longer than 150,000 miles if that.

 

[daze23]

oh hell yeah i'd rather be in a new car vs an old one in terms of safety, however what i was talking about was not related to safety and a lot of the safety they build into cars now can be achieved with higher quality materials as well. Having an engine designed to drop on impacts like that go a long way. A damn divit in your hood so that it forms an A on impact when a crash happens can be done in old cars as well.

The overall quality though has gone down, not even talking safety but rather craftsmanship. ...except for say hondas, accords and toyotas. They are built pretty solid. NEW domestic cars are getting MUCH better, but a domestic car between 1990-2008 is basura.

I'm just playing the devil's advocate. but I do think a lot of people assume those old cars were 'safer'

 

[Orbital-Fetus]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WPrTk90VZM#t=31m40s


why can't i embed the vid?

anyway, this is a great documentary if you are interested in this subject.
i saw it on a while ago.

the time i linked to is a great example but the whole documentary is well worth the watch.

 

[Brown_Pride]

Domestics were always trash though. Likewise Japanese cars have always been quality and are only getting better. The only people to really flip the script are the Europeans. VW is trying to be Japanese. BMW, MB, Audi and Jaguar are making their cars w/a 3 yr expiration date, which is a big switch from the old days of MBs being bombproof.

Plus a lot of it comes down to what people will pay for. People would rather buy a new tablet for $200 every 2 years than 1 $1000 tablet forever. You look at shyt from 2-3 years ago, low key, it is kind of out of date, at least in the electronic realm. I can't imagine keeping a computer for 10 years

2 things....
1. FOR THE TIME, American cars were ok like back in 60-early 70's, in terms of reliability...and quite honestly i think that has a lot to do with the simplicity of the product. When I was 16 i bought a 1964 Ford Custom and was able to restore the thing (minus a paint job) pretty much all by myself, that included striping the engine down, rebuilding it and to be honest it was simple as fuk. So IMHO you were able to better manage your own car back then.

Jap cars have more or less always been on point because of their roots in racing. Precision will always lean towards stability.

2. Old computers...Unless you're running hi end games you don't need one. I have an old AM2 Dual Core in my kids room with 2gb ram from like..i don't know 2002? Thing does EVERYTHING they need it to.
I think a lot of the purchasing of "tables" every two years has more to do with "Keeping up with the Joneses" than anything else. Like I said, I have a 2000 Maximum I use for getting two and from work when I don't take the train, I could really give two fuks about how it looks. It runs solid, I don't have a monthly payment and it allows me to make a payment on my other vehicle. This whole trend of replacing your car ever couple of years is fukin ridiculous. My sister does this shyt and now she's paying for a Denali and is at like 900 bucks a month on that POS.



Turns out flossing is detrimental to your finances and plays right into the hands of these companies.

Fight the Power...

 

[Brown_Pride]

I'm just playing the devil's advocate. but I do think a lot of people assume those old cars were 'safer'

I think ti's the weight. It's almost illogical to think that a steel car would be more dangerous than a fiberglass car. Honestly I assumed new cars were safer (i mean why continue to build them that way right?) but that video pretty much just puts that all in perspective.