Of course, but it makes the average repair cost upfront. If two phones sell for $1000 in the US, but one has a 10% failure rate and the other 0%, you can't know

Of course, but it makes the average repair cost upfront. If two phones sell for $1000 in the US, but one has a 10% failure rate and the other 0%, you can't know that buying one of them will on average suddenly cost you a lot more in the future. In Norway the one with a high failure rate would instead be priced around $1100. So manufacturers are incentivized to make more lasting products, which is also good for the environment.