undefined | Better HN

0 pointskeiferski1y ago0 comments

I think you’re probably buying higher quality items, yes? Because there’s no way a $50-100 coffee machine or printer is lasting a decade.

This can probably be explained by the fact that an iPhone is a “cheaper” (comparatively) high end item. In other words, it’s one of the few high end items that many middle and low income people own. And thus compared to the coffee machines, printers, and other cheap electronics that break after a couple years, the iPhone seems rather durable.

0 comments

Cheezmeister1y ago

> Because there’s no way a $50-100 coffee machine or printer is lasting a decade.

There absolutely is.

Viz. the no-name drip machine I picked up at Goodwill for $10 and is probably older than me. The heating element makes the water boil, and it trickles over the grounds and becomes my morning salvation.

Viz. the Brother laser printer ca. 2013 for $99 (in, admittedly, 2013 dollars). I had to replace the toner once, it was slightly annoying.

Neither of these items has an app.

Longevity ≈ Quality / Complexity where Quality ≠ Price

keiferskiOP1y ago

Your experience is different than mine, then. At least 50% of the cheap electronic devices I've purchased end up breaking in a year or two.

lsaferite1y ago

I'm using the same $9 (yes, 9) drip coffee machine to make my daily coffee for more than 10 years currently. It has an on/off switch and no 'smarts'. It works fine, why should I change it? It's plugged into a smart outlet that I use to make sure it's turned off after an hour. That plug is getting close to 10 years old as well.

Suppafly1y ago

You must not have hard water. We get a >$20 mr. coffee every year or so. They'd likely last longer if we cleaned them more often because if you wait too long, it doesn't seem to help.

vel0city1y ago

> every year or so

Every year? Good lord what do you do to those things. I've lived in hard water areas my whole life and have never experienced people churning through coffee machines that fast.

> They'd likely last longer if we cleaned them more often

So yeah, just put some vinegar through them every now and then and they'll be fine and last a decade. Take care of it and it'll last you a long time. If they're burning out and not incredibly scaled up, there's potentially something wrong with your home's wiring.

1 more reply

singleshot_1y ago

The idea that an iPhone (any computer, really) is a high end item is pretty ridiculous.

I would like a good phone that was not made out of glass to require future replacement purchases, and I’d be thrilled to pay for it. Up front, in cash.

This rental economy’s final destination is the same in all categories: cheap junk.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse