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Comment by desdenova | Hacker News Reader

Obsolescence doesn't exist because a comically evil mastermind designs things to break. It exists because capitalism favors profits over anything else.

A lower quality component is cheaper than a higher quality one that would last longer, so that's what ends up being mass produced, and that's what you, as a product designer with no power over the entirety of the production pipeline, has to work with.

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Well, also it turns out that most people won't pay that much extra for something to last longer.

Also paying extra does not in any way mean you will get any better quality these days. It is indeed a market for lemons.

It might if there was an actual reliable correlation between the price of a product and its longevity. But many times the shittiest products will slap on some marketing materials about it being extra heavy duty or something, or design it to appear like a more reliable competing product, but charge more for it. I buy the cheapest parts not because I want the cheapest parts, but because spending an extra 20% on the price often results in the exact same part with zero extra value.

And part of this is because it's very difficult for consumers to measure this, especially as even the best brands experience enshitification. Sears' Craftsman tools famously had a lifetime warranty, but capitalism eventually did its thing and outsourced their manufacture and removed the lifetime warranty, hoping to leverage years of good will for a short term gain.

They also started putting plastic gears in their gas powered stuff. No bearings, just bushings in the shaft. Crap like that.

All these companies some of us remember are all now owned by the same company. This is how capitalism goes. Eventually, a company makes a mistake, and a competitor will absorb them.

This is dramatically simplified, but the big joke is that capitalism breeds competition and that is good for the consumer.

The illusion of choice via mergers and acquisitions.

That reminds me of what happened with Kitchenaid, where now only the pro line and better has metal gears, which is why folks seek out the old models at garage sales.

People have typical shelled out significant more money for Miele washing machines because they were known to last typically up to somewhere between 1 and 2 decades and be repairable.

People pay a lot extra for Toyota.

I don't want to pay extra for my pants to last at least a full year (think 100 days use, 30 wash cycles), or for my electronics to last at least five years since I am old enough to remember that this used to be absolutely normal and the way things used to be.

You are assuming that a product designer needs the product to last as long as possible given our current knowledge of physics, chemistry, engineering, and manufacturing at the moment. Most of the time, that's just not necessary. Things break, and if you can make some money off of them before they break then we can keep the cycle going. Customers would happily spend the same amount of money again after some time if they expect an improved product (for proof, see every subscription service).

> capitalism favors profits over anything else.

At what rate of return does "profits" turn into unbridled greed and capitalism turns into parasitic exploitation?

> It exists because capitalism favors profits over anything else.

…and that’s where the regulator needs to step in and establish a set of requirements which must be met to allow profiting.

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