3 ms·
What about reliability? Battery aside, the components in a smartphone could all be built to last 10 years. Regulations on component lifetimes might have a much
by foldr 6y ago
What about reliability? Battery aside, the components in a smartphone could all be built to last 10 years. Regulations on component lifetimes might have a much more beneficial effect than repairability requirements. A well engineered smartphone or laptop shouldn’t need repairs within the reasonable expected lifetime of the device. But at the moment, manufacturers aren’t incentivized or required to target 10 year lifetimes.
I see it as a bit like ETOPS. You can fly across the Atlantic on two engines as long as those engines are super reliable. Similarly, you should be allowed to build unrepairable devices if you can show, say, an expected lifetime of 10 years for 99% of units.
- Google234 6y agoA 10 year old device can barely render a webpage now and has a shitty screen and is generally inferior and every way to a new one. No one wants to use a flip phone now.
- foldr 6y agoYes, that’s my point. If devices reliably lasted 10 years, repairability would be moot. (Your timeline is off, though. Flip phones were already well on the way out in 2011. An iPhone 4S from 2011 would still be usable, just about.)