Manufacturers should follow religious simplicity

In our parents time cars were simple.You could keep get them going ad infinitum. Now electronics rules you can't tinker. Only the expensive dealer can.Along with expensive repair bills.Why can't manufacturers produce base models without electric windows or boots that shut themselves.So you scrap the car and cause more pollution than keeping the old one a few more years.

My new washing machines has 100's of permutations and combinations of wash cycles that will never be used.I want to press a button like the old machines not trawl through flipping manuals thank you very much.

My shaver is expensive purely because the major brand does not sell non rechargeable ones.The just main ones used to be a fraction of the price,more reliable and last for ever.

Its the last bit manufacturers do not like.Make to last just before the guarantee runs out.

Agree? and what items bug you?

JIMMY12345 said:

In our parents time cars were simple.You could keep get them going ad infinitum. Now electronics rules you can't tinker. Only the expensive dealer can.Along with expensive repair bills.Why can't manufacturers produce base models without electric windows or boots that shut themselves.So you scrap the car and cause more pollution than keeping the old one a few more years.

My new washing machines has 100's of permutations and combinations of wash cycles that will never be used.I want to press a button like the old machines not trawl through flipping manuals thank you very much.

My shaver is expensive purely because the major brand does not sell non rechargeable ones.The just main ones used to be a fraction of the price,more reliable and last for ever.

Its the last bit manufacturers do not like.Make to last just before the guarantee runs out.

Agree? and what items bug you?

Click to expand...

Cars were simple, but they were crap. New exhaust system every five years, transmission replacement by 60k miles, car scrapped at 100k miles.

JIMMY12345 said:

In our parents time cars were simple.You could keep get them going ad infinitum. Now electronics rules you can't tinker. Only the expensive dealer can.Along with expensive repair bills.Why can't manufacturers produce base models without electric windows or boots that shut themselves.So you scrap the car and cause more pollution than keeping the old one a few more years.

My new washing machines has 100's of permutations and combinations of wash cycles that will never be used.I want to press a button like the old machines not trawl through flipping manuals thank you very much.

My shaver is expensive purely because the major brand does not sell non rechargeable ones.The just main ones used to be a fraction of the price,more reliable and last for ever.

Its the last bit manufacturers do not like.Make to last just before the guarantee runs out.

Agree? and what items bug you?

Click to expand...

Totally agree. Any item with a 200 page manual unless actually warranted. And if it is warranted I probably don't want it.
Agree with the washer certainly. It always goes on the same cycle, all the other bells and whistles are just annoying when you buy a new one.
TV zappers. The gold standard. 60 buttons and what for. No idea, never press them. Unless by accident then that probably just ***** the TV up. And you don't know which buttons to press to un**** it. (Pressing the same one again will probably just **** it up some more).
Bought a new (second hand) car, first in 10 years. What the actual? I did spend quite some fruitless time trying to sort out the music system part to no avail. Why would I want to bluetooth my gear change history via my radio station selector so I can have a visual read out of my average fuel consumption per trip, broken down by type of music? I just want to ******* drive from ******* A to ******* B. It's a car, y'know.
New mobile phones. Dread having to get a new one. Takes me weeks to set it all up, settings tweaked, preferences selected and whatever else nonsense has been added. I wouldn't mind so much if it didn't have minor annoying wobbles so frequently.
Apps. Simple, intuitive ones that a 4 year old can use. Maybe they can but I've wasted money buying various art and music creation apps that I've given up on, because I'm not a 4 year old and my intuition is clearly not what the app designer had in mind.
I much preferred it when we lived in caves and got eaten by sabre-toothed tigers. You didn't need a 200 page manual to understand that.

"Creeping featurism"

JIMMY12345 said:

In our parents time cars were simple.You could keep get them going ad infinitum. Now electronics rules you can't tinker. Only the expensive dealer can.Along with expensive repair bills.Why can't manufacturers produce base models without electric windows or boots that shut themselves.So you scrap the car and cause more pollution than keeping the old one a few more years.

My new washing machines has 100's of permutations and combinations of wash cycles that will never be used.I want to press a button like the old machines not trawl through flipping manuals thank you very much.

My shaver is expensive purely because the major brand does not sell non rechargeable ones.The just main ones used to be a fraction of the price,more reliable and last for ever.

Its the last bit manufacturers do not like.Make to last just before the guarantee runs out.

Agree? and what items bug you?

Click to expand...

Innovation I suppose. innovation comes with a price. Folks are going to what all the new stuff. One has to learn to be happy with the simple stuff.

Still working on that. My new car has lots of fancy innovation, like it locks itself when I walk away etc...

Now I have it, it's kind "meh".
Kind of preferred to have saved the money now.
Maybe sometimes you got to experience the innovation before you know you can live without it.

JIMMY12345 said:

In our parents time cars were simple.You could keep get them going ad infinitum. Now electronics rules you can't tinker. Only the expensive dealer can.Along with expensive repair bills.Why can't manufacturers produce base models without electric windows or boots that shut themselves.So you scrap the car and cause more pollution than keeping the old one a few more years.

My new washing machines has 100's of permutations and combinations of wash cycles that will never be used.I want to press a button like the old machines not trawl through flipping manuals thank you very much.

My shaver is expensive purely because the major brand does not sell non rechargeable ones.The just main ones used to be a fraction of the price,more reliable and last for ever.

Its the last bit manufacturers do not like.Make to last just before the guarantee runs out.

Agree? and what items bug you?

Click to expand...

Planned obsolescence and exclusion for profit.

I remember my jeep. You cant even change out a simple burnt headlight without removing the entire freakin grill first to get to it.

Long gone are the days when you could just wind down your windows with a simple hand crank.

Twilight Hue said:

Planned obsolescence and exclusion for profit.

I remember my jeep. You cant even change out a simple burnt headlight without removing the entire freakin grill first to get to it.

Long gone are the days when you could just wind down your windows with a simple hand crank.

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Tell me about it. I had a Volvo with impossible to change lights. I could imagine people being introduced to the man that designed the Volvo's front end. He would be constantly kicked in the groin and then have to admit "Yeah, I deserved that" except in Swedish of course.

Subduction Zone said:

Tell me about it. I had a Volvo with impossible to change lights. I could imagine people being introduced to the man that designed the Volvo's front end. He would be constantly kicked in the groin and then have to admit "Yeah, I deserved that" except in Swedish of course.

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I see it as all profit at all costs now.

Make it hard and frustrating, like you need a college education to do what once was a simple task compulsing people to pay other people money to do it instead, like the dealership where it came from.

Me? I just figured out how to take off the grill and changed the bulb myself. No way are they taking my money anymore other than what I owe, but it's asinine considering what once took a few minutes now takes a half hour.

Since then, I got rid of my jeep for a better deal elsewhere. Not much better, but better.

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Wandering Monk said:

Cars were simple, but they were crap. New exhaust system every five years, transmission replacement by 60k miles, car scrapped at 100k miles.

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Planned obsolescence will eventually fix that oversight.

Twilight Hue said:

I see it as all profit at all costs now.

Make it hard and frustrating, like you need a college education to do what once was a simple task compulsing people to pay other people money to do it instead, like the dealership where it came from.

Me? I just figured out how to take off the grill and changed the bulb myself. No way are they taking my money anymore other than what I owe, but it's asinine considering what once took a few minutes now takes a half hour.

Since then, I got rid of my jeep for a better deal elsewhere. Not much better, but better.

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Or it may be trying to fit too much stuff into too small of a space. I used to have a Ford F300 truck. The F300 was an inline 6 opposed to a V8. You could almost stand on the ground and work on the car from under the hood. There was a ton of empty space in that old 1963 vehicle. Today empty space is simply not allowed. And there are serious consequences for removing all of that space.

Subduction Zone said:

Or it may be trying to fit too much stuff into too small of a space. I used to have a Ford F300 truck. The F300 was an inline 6 opposed to a V8. You could almost stand on the ground and work on the car from under the hood. There was a ton of empty space in that old 1963 vehicle. Today empty space is simply not allowed. And there are serious consequences for removing all of that space.

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I'm thinking of robotics that are precision based and can fit in tight components. It's still designed though, which make me think it's intentionally designed for exclusivity and profiteering.

It's like games as a service now where every aspect is designed to bring in more money at the consumers expense on a recurring basis.

Twilight Hue said:

I'm thinking of robotics that are precision based and can fit in tight components. It's still designed though, which make me think it's intentionally designed for exclusivity and profiteering.

It's like games as a service now where every aspect is designed to bring in more money at the consumers expense on a recurring basis.

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There is no need for a conspiracy when the manufacturer simply disregards the fact that many people would prefer to do much of their own work. Let me restate that. No need for a conspiracy when a manufacturer has excessive arrogance and does not care about the relatively few people that still want to do their own work.

Subduction Zone said:

There is no need for a conspiracy when the manufacturer simply disregards the fact that many people would prefer to do much of their own work. Let me restate that. No need for a conspiracy when a manufacturer has excessive arrogance and does not care about the relatively few people that still want to do their own work.

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Let me maintain that manufacturers can and will milk their customers for all its worth to make as much money as they can on a consistent basis through planned obsolescence and difficulty of repair to discourage DIY'ers.

Nakosis said:

Still working on that. My new car has lots of fancy innovation, like it locks itself when I walk away etc...

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Still working on that. My new car has lots of fancy innovation, like it locks itself when I walk away etc...
Be nice to your car. It may not let you in. If you really annoy it. It won't let you out.
The posting about the sabre tiger reminded me about the one with two guys who suddenly run into a bear. One starts sprinting. The other says what's the use we can't outrun it. Other guy "I do not have to outrun it. I just have to outrun you."

How typical, we want and buy our expensive toys, but heaven forbid we pay for the repairs.

JIMMY12345 said:

In our parents time cars were simple.You could keep get them going ad infinitum. Now electronics rules you can't tinker. Only the expensive dealer can.Along with expensive repair bills.Why can't manufacturers produce base models without electric windows or boots that shut themselves.So you scrap the car and cause more pollution than keeping the old one a few more years.

My new washing machines has 100's of permutations and combinations of wash cycles that will never be used.I want to press a button like the old machines not trawl through flipping manuals thank you very much.

My shaver is expensive purely because the major brand does not sell non rechargeable ones.The just main ones used to be a fraction of the price,more reliable and last for ever.

Its the last bit manufacturers do not like.Make to last just before the guarantee runs out.

Agree? and what items bug you?

Click to expand...

Blame consumers for the ever increasing options &
complexity. Manufacturers deliver what makes money.
But back in the day, cars needed far more often...
- Tune ups
- Engine re-builds
- Tire replacement
- Refueling
- Rust related repairs
- Oil changes

Yeah they were easier to work on. But I
like not having to work on them so often.
And they're much safer these days.
BTW, I prefer keeping things simple cuz of
repair costs inter-related functions, eg, no
rain-sensing automatic wipers