Planned obsolescence

[WarHawk-AVG]

A long time ago in this country if something broke "we fixed it"

Now...we get something...it breaks we throw it away and get a new one

Ever wonder why that that old saying "They don't make it like that anymore"

It's called consumerism, and the fact that people want instant gratification...now now now

Plus here in America we are consumers rather than producers...we hardly MAKE anything here anymore

Only reason vaping is exploding is technology finally caught up to the idea of how can people "smoke" and get their nicotine while removing all the dangerous side effects of burning a leafy material and inhaling that combusted byproduct into their lungs

Heck how many of you remember when the only way to use a "phone" was you had to walk up to a wall and pick up this and stretch that long curly cord across the room?

Quick tell me what the link between these two items

Remember when skydiving was dangerous and sex was safe?

 

[BillyRayBob]

For what it's worth, my innokin MVP is from China and honestly does feel pretty solid to me thus far. Considering what I paid for it, and what it's doing for me (painlessly quitting smokes = priceless imho), I'm not going to complain.

Planned obsolescence isn't necessarily dependent on malfunction is it? Intel is an American company. They release chips piece meal to maximize return. Sure, could be time needed for software to catch up but still, why sell the 4.6ghz right away if you can sell the 1.8, then 2.4, then wait! This runs cooler 2.4! Then 3.2 etc.

Apple is an American company. They burn through iterations of a single product very quickly thereby increasing sales. Not sure I believe they didn't have 4S technology when they released the 4.

China's not quite the boogie man they're sometimes made out to be, just like America's not the boogie man we're sometimes made out to be. Just sayin...

EDIT:
@Warhawk... you kidding? I still have two of those phones plugged in, by far my favorite to use
Try watching the first season of Law and Order sometime with an eye out for the tech. Hilarious

 

[peraspera]

Blink your eyes......vaping technology just changed! Paying a premium for products that will last a long time is a somewhat questionable value proposition in that context. There is no shortage of very well-built devices that will quite ikely outlast their technological relevance so I don't understand the fuss.

 

[mjski]

What is "obsolescence protection?"

 

[mjski]

I don't quite understand your post. Reads as double-speak to me. Please clarify.

 

[mjski]

If disposable atomizers are far cheaper than they cost to produce, why would any business produce them, knowing they will do so at a loss?

 

[WarHawk-AVG]

For what it's worth, my Innokin MVP is from China and honestly does feel pretty solid to me thus far. Considering what I paid for it, and what it's doing for me (painlessly quitting smokes = priceless imho), I'm not going to complain.

Planned obsolescence isn't necessarily dependent on malfunction is it? Intel is an American company. They release chips piece meal to maximize return. Sure, could be time needed for software to catch up but still, why sell the 4.6ghz right away if you can sell the 1.8, then 2.4, then wait! This runs cooler 2.4! Then 3.2 etc.

Apple is an American company. They burn through iterations of a single product very quickly thereby increasing sales. Not sure I believe they didn't have 4S technology when they released the 4.

China's not quite the boogie man they're sometimes made out to be, just like America's not the boogie man we're sometimes made out to be. Just sayin...

EDIT:
@Warhawk... you kidding? I still have two of those phones plugged in, by far my favorite to use
Try watching the first season of Law and Order sometime with an eye out for the tech. Hilarious

no..I'm just saying in our country we used to hold "quality" over "quantity"

now that it's VERY rare for something to be actually MADE IN THE USA (not imported from China/Japan/Hong Kong/*insert someplace else* and ASSEMBLED here)

I don't even have a home phone anymore...because I have a cell phone...that's made in China

 

[Zipslack]

WarHawk, one of the reasons we don't "fix" things now is that it's often not economically feasible or physically possible. How many tv/stereo repair shops are in your town now? How many were there 20 years ago? With labor and parts, it's typically cheaper to just buy a new unit. Many devices are built so that it's difficult or impossible to repair. It's cheaper and easier to manufacture a glued or ultrasonic-weld casing than one using screws. Besides, if somebody takes apart their tv and tries to repair it and gets electrocuted, do you think the family will say "Poor, stupid Wilbur!" Or do you think they will lawyer-up and try to sue?

 

[JulesXsmokr]

My little rant -
We are about 2 generations into this culture of selfish, demanding, instant gratification of work and pleasure, and internet dominance of the mind.
Planned obsolescence is part of this new culture with multiple contributors of what was posted here in responses.
I think the older and somewhat educated American wants to value their money as if it were well spent. "meaning-- save a little to get something that will last and hopefully see it used again by someone else or handed down." Technology improvements are generally reserved to, I believe, in the electronics gizmo's, and certainly, everything does not have to integrate electronics for the product to work as we would need them to, and in a lot of cases the cheap electronics and programming are the problems bringing disposability..
The younger folks, well I hope they will see though this all. -- just my opinion --

 

[Zipslack]

BTW, yes, I do remember using a pencil to wind cassettes or to roll past a sticky spot that the player wouldn't play.

 

[90quattrocoupe]

BTW, yes, I do remember using a pencil to wind cassettes or to roll past a sticky spot that the player wouldn't play.

I still have the original cassette player in my 1990 Audi Coupe. I still pick up the odd cassette at garage sales. A lot cheaper now than they were back when. In fact, I have a brand new in the box, cassette player for my coupe. Just in case the old one fails.

One of the reason I like older german cars. I took them longer to get around to "Planned obsolescence", than the USA. If you look around, you can still find some USA stuff that is not planned for replacement. I have been rebuilding my house for the last couple of years. 90% of the stuff I have bought is made in USA. I am not just talking about building materials. If you look, you can still find stuff that will last. You have to pay more, but it will last.

Yesterday, I fixed my 18 year old Whirlpool washer. Made in USA, and they still had the parts available. Cost me $21, in parts. Works just fine.

Greg W.

 

[MrSelf Destruct]

I wouldn't doubt it. If they ever made a cure for the common cold do you think that would be released to the public? Pharmaceutical companies would go out of business.

 

[samcal]

Name an item, be it an appliance, mode of transportation or product of electronic devices, and it is likely to have some amount of planned obsolescence. Producers love it, because it means a person has to frequently purchase brand new stuff from them and it's great for their important thing.

 

[SirSteve]

Not so sure if it is planned obsolescence, or just plan hasty development and poor quality control. There are some devices you can buy that are intended to last, but they come at a premium. Some of the better mid priced stuff seems to have a reasonable amount of durability, Sigelei Zmax, Innokin MVP2 and SVD are three mid price devices that have a reputation of being good devices in the mid price range. I am sure there are others.

 

[Ohms Lawbreaker]

This is an interesting topic and I didn't realize the first part was as old as it was.

Power adapters, power cords, and their connectors -- that is a scam. One of the most profitable divisions of consumer electronics companies is their plug division. They change them, or used to, all the time so you always needed to buy some kind of new cord for your new camera or whatever. Forgot which company it was, but a rep from one basically admitted to all this once on camera.

 

[Completely Average]

Some of the better mid priced stuff seems to have a reasonable amount of durability, Sigelei Zmax, Innokin MVP2 and SVD are three mid price devices that have a reputation of being good devices in the mid price range. I am sure there are others.

I cannot think of a better example of planned obsolescence than the Innokin MPV. MPVs are designed to be thrown away and replaced when the battery dies.

 

[Completely Average]

This is an interesting topic and I didn't realize the first part was as old as it was.

Power adapters, power cords, and their connectors -- that is a scam. One of the most profitable divisions of consumer electronics companies is their plug division. They change them, or used to, all the time so you always needed to buy some kind of new cord for your new camera or whatever. Forgot which company it was, but a rep from one basically admitted to all this once on camera.

Apple thrives on their cord and adapter sales. They sell the little USB cable for the iPad for $40, and it can't cost more than $2 to manufacture. They can get away with it because it's a proprietary connection and if they had chosen a standard USB or Mini USB connection then people could use $5 cables instead of their $40 cables.