There just isn't a need to do this stuff anymore. Even making your own computer anymore in expensive, confusing, and generally not fun anymore.
Similar for laptops. Replacing batteries, upgrading ram, and upgrading storage are very common.
You really think that if you blow $2 or $3k on a new laptop that somewhere during it's life you might not want a larger SSD or more than 16GB ram?
Sure it might have made it a mm or two thicker, definitely a price I'd pay for something that's easier to fix (or have fixed) or upgrade.
Don't forget cleaning! Until we get to the point where all components are passively cooled in a sealed container, cleaning a laptop's CPU fan is simply one of those maintenance tasks that will keep a laptop running quiet and cool for years.
And yeah, getting a a bit of extra RAM or the next generation of fast hard disk is a great and cheap way to give a performance boost to an ageing laptop.
* Changed the RAM (on both)
* Changed the battery (both)
* Switched a HDD to a SSD
* Replaced the touchpad that died
* Had to do some work on the screen that is slowly dying out
I'm quite happy to do that on computers that are between 6 and 9 years old, it means I can get the most out of them, without paying for a new one each time I need just a little bit more.I would be completely unable to do that with a newer MBP.
Not everyone wants to build there own of course, but saying it's expensive, confusing and not fun isn't really true.
Since you believe that there is some sort of global objective "fun" factor, I believe that this would be useful for you. https://www.superteacherworksheets.com/factopinion.html