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Your Stuff Really Is Breaking Faster Than It Used To
superboyac:
This is relevant:
(see attachment in previous post)
-Deozaan (April 26, 2015, 03:02 PM)
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That's totally a joke graphic. The phones at this point are replacing desktop computers for a very large portion of the userbase. So yea it's a "phone", but not really. These phones now are closer to laptops than they are to those robust nokia phones.
wraith808:
Its not hyperbole if people are constantly replacing their phones because they have to have the latest fashionable new model even though their current one is still fully functional.
-SeraphimLabs (April 26, 2015, 06:12 PM)
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The problem with that statement is that it isn't the devices. It's the people. Which isn't what this article was about. So... hyperbole.
-wraith808 (April 26, 2015, 10:01 PM)
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Not if after a generation or two the device was redesigned with a 1-2 year upgrade program in mind. If people aren't going to keep the same device for longer than that, why design the device to last longer? Make it last only as long as the average consumer will use it, and never mind the outliers that keep the same device for years on end they are obviously not the people you should be designing for.
-SeraphimLabs (April 26, 2015, 10:56 PM)
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But there is no proof that they are. As shown by the fact that my iPad 1 is still in excellent condition, and sells for 1/5 the price I bought it for 5 years ago. There is the consumer use case, but the outliers are very much still there, especially with the upgrade policies as they are and breakage/loss.
SeraphimLabs:
Its not hyperbole if people are constantly replacing their phones because they have to have the latest fashionable new model even though their current one is still fully functional.
-SeraphimLabs (April 26, 2015, 06:12 PM)
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The problem with that statement is that it isn't the devices. It's the people. Which isn't what this article was about. So... hyperbole.
-wraith808 (April 26, 2015, 10:01 PM)
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Not if after a generation or two the device was redesigned with a 1-2 year upgrade program in mind. If people aren't going to keep the same device for longer than that, why design the device to last longer? Make it last only as long as the average consumer will use it, and never mind the outliers that keep the same device for years on end they are obviously not the people you should be designing for.
-SeraphimLabs (April 26, 2015, 10:56 PM)
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But there is no proof that they are. As shown by the fact that my iPad 1 is still in excellent condition, and sells for 1/5 the price I bought it for 5 years ago. There is the consumer use case, but the outliers are very much still there, especially with the upgrade policies as they are and breakage/loss.
-wraith808 (April 27, 2015, 09:04 AM)
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That isn't how design life works though. And the first generation of a product line is often overbuilt compared to those that follow because the typical use case has not been as well established. Later generations incorporate wear and failure analysis of previous generations, correcting weak spots while at the same time weakening strong points to cut costs.
According to the equations in my mechanical engineering books, automotive mechanisms should have a wear allowance sufficient for approximately 160,000 miles. This is pretty close to the factory warranty on most vehicles interestingly enough, the warranty expires around the time the vehicle is expected to have used up its designed-in wear tolerance.
Even though my car is currently at 202,000 with no major mechanical problems that I am aware of. It has gone well beyond its design life on most of its components, and other than the components I have replaced is a device which has exceeded its design specifications. On the other hand most cars of the same age have already been crushed for scrap, most of them due to wearing out or being damaged beyond where it is economical to repair.
Design life is not an exact science. You are designing to where the majority of a product will operate for the calculated time period without major issues. It is possible to exceed that lifetime if you take good care of your belongings or it was built with quality, but in the field most of what was produced is expected to be replaced failure or not.
wraith808:
That isn't how design life works though. And the first generation of a product line is often overbuilt compared to those that follow because the typical use case has not been as well established. Later generations incorporate wear and failure analysis of previous generations, correcting weak spots while at the same time weakening strong points to cut costs.
According to the equations in my mechanical engineering books, automotive mechanisms should have a wear allowance sufficient for approximately 160,000 miles. This is pretty close to the factory warranty on most vehicles interestingly enough, the warranty expires around the time the vehicle is expected to have used up its designed-in wear tolerance.
Even though my car is currently at 202,000 with no major mechanical problems that I am aware of. It has gone well beyond its design life on most of its components, and other than the components I have replaced is a device which has exceeded its design specifications. On the other hand most cars of the same age have already been crushed for scrap, most of them due to wearing out or being damaged beyond where it is economical to repair.
Design life is not an exact science. You are designing to where the majority of a product will operate for the calculated time period without major issues. It is possible to exceed that lifetime if you take good care of your belongings or it was built with quality, but in the field most of what was produced is expected to be replaced failure or not.
-SeraphimLabs (April 27, 2015, 11:35 AM)
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I also have an ipad 2. And an ipad 3. And they all still operate within specs, the only mitigating factor being software support. There might be some truth of the matter when it comes to that variable, but the idea in question is that our phones have a designed lesser lifespan because of the fact that people don't keep them. And what I'm positing is that there is no data that the companies are tailoring hardware considerations based upon the fact that first generation consumers are not keeping their devices. And that it is well shown by looking at the secondary market that these devices still have consumers and that market is in fact, thriving.
TaoPhoenix:
That isn't how design life works though. And the first generation of a product line is often overbuilt compared to those that follow because the typical use case has not been as well established. Later generations incorporate wear and failure analysis of previous generations, correcting weak spots while at the same time weakening strong points to cut costs.
...
Design life is not an exact science. You are designing to where the majority of a product will operate for the calculated time period without major issues. It is possible to exceed that lifetime if you take good care of your belongings or it was built with quality, but in the field most of what was produced is expected to be replaced failure or not.
-SeraphimLabs (April 27, 2015, 11:35 AM)
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There might be a few different "design lifes". I tend to stay away from the "first generations" because I'm moving away from being a tester of the cutting edge to valuing "long term". So when I entered the market for a new phone, at that time the market was just beginning to shift. I took a considered look at the "state of the market" and judged correctly that I wanted the iPhone 3GS with the extra memory, (and notably not the 3G), because as has now been proven, the 3GS is the lowest model supported in several use cases (which are escaping me at the moment.)
Point is, I'm quite pleased with the overall build quality of my iPhone 3GS, which is now several generations back, but still works almost perfectly, except for some slight problems with the power button.
Then you get spots where certain newer models try to cynically cut corners on the build quality, but I think I found the sweet spot in my phone.
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