Their focus on slim and fashionable devices fits in with their whole product architecture. Fashions change, so Apple devices get replaced with newer ones ofte

Their focus on slim and fashionable devices fits in with their whole product architecture. Fashions change, so Apple devices get replaced with newer ones often. So, why bother to make them last long? They shave every possible millimeter off the dimensions of phones and computers. This means that the devices have thin, easily cracked surfaces and more heat problems inside, leading to short lives. With the computers, they mitigate the customer outrage that would result from the heat-related breakdowns after a few years by getting the customers to anticipate the planned obsolescence. The warranty business is also a huge pot of gold for the company: with the marginal cost of a device so far below the average cost (which includes product development and promotion), the value of the warranty to many customers is so far above the cost of replacement products to Apple, any extension in the average product lifetime would drop the value of Apple by hundreds of billions.