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Then perhaps companies should price these devices accordingly to correspond with flawless performance during a pre-specified time period. Right now, if we spend

Then perhaps companies should price these devices accordingly to correspond with flawless performance during a pre-specified time period. Right now, if we spend $1,000 on a new XXXYZ Phone, there is no commitment to flawless and essential updates from the company. As they release new devices each year pretty much, it would be in a company's (shareholder-driven) best interests to encourage their user base to upgrade each time a new device is released. This tends to drive the need to intentionally degrade older devices via updates for industry leading companies, by driving annual revenue upwards on a more predictable schedule.

beloch 7y ago
If a company raises their prices and commits to spending more on software updates, users are going to buy a similarly spec'd phone that's cheaper. Their perceived value of software updates is "free". It's arguable that many manufacturers already have wide enough profit margins on their devices that they could easily spend more on software, but choose not to specifically for the reasons you mention. Artificially accelerated obsolescence is a key part of many manufacturers' business models. What needs to happen is for consumers to start looking at devices in terms of cost/lifetime rather than just the up-front cost. This would necessarily involve placing value on repairability and software updates that don't degrade performance. Phone designs are practically runway fashion now though, and seem deliberately designed to frustrate such a shift in consumer sensibilities.