BUILD QUALITY

[chudleighpaul]

In 1988 I bought a 27" Sony TV. It was stereo but had no on board nicam decoder as these were only just appearing. The only way to enjoy stereo through it was to feed it with a stereo source, from dare I say it, a VCR. I had it for about 18 months when my other half accidently spilt water in the back. She never said a word and when I switched it on all I had was a faint green picture. Once I knew what the problem was I disconnected it from the mains, removed the back and then had a fan blowing on the works for 24 hours. I then used a fan heater set on low for another 24 hours to complete the drying process.

I then replaced the back, and apprehenisively switched on the TV. The picture still had a greenish tinge to it but after about 30 minutes it was back to its former glory. I continued to use this until about 2001 when a bought a Sony 32" digital TV. Although the TV itself was fine the digital tuner was rubbish, needing to be replaced no fewer than 3 times, once only lasting 24 hours. I replaced this 3 years ago with a 40" full HD Sony which is great.

I gave the original 27" Sony to my neighbour who used it until last year, until it finally died on her.

I wonder if modern TVs are as robust as the 27" Sony, and if they will last as long.

 

[The_Lhc]

You're not really comparing like with like however, the amount of additional processing and decoding that a modern TV has to do is considerable. Most modern TVs are more like computers than TVs of olden times. It's not big old circuit boards with discrete capacitors, transistors and resistors any more, it's all ICs.

People also seem to forget that old TVs did used to go wrong as well, I can distinctly remember several occasions when I was a kid where we had to call the TV repair man in and I'd have a proper strop on because I couldn't watch Tom and Jerry after school...

 

[Big Aura]

noting the complexity of devices these days, there is an argument to say - "they used to be better".

My first mobile (a Nokia 5110 was bullet-proof; it even survived a swim in a pint of Guinness), it was superseded by another phone, equally as good. The past 4-5 phones have all (conveniently) died at the 2-year mark. The same goes for things like irons, toasters, kettles etc. Despite buying reputable brands, they last 3-4 years, whereas my grandmother's stuff all works well, 30 years later.

I'm firmly of the view that, in addition to product-cycle obsolescence, manufacturers actively design products to last for "just long enough". In the old days, they just built them to last....

 

[Anonymous]

Yes, I agree with your views, BA. All modern equipment that are manufactured now have a pre-determined life span - they contain everything you want from modern technology but they will in no way last as long as the old days. Those days, they were built to last.

 

[laserman16]

Agree with all the views above, plus I also think that consumers are demanding cheaper and cheaper prices all the time and one way manufacturers can achieve this is by putting cheaper components in the product.

Its probably true to say a lot of mass market products are made for a particular price point.

 

[chudleighpaul]

My mother (aged97) has a 58 year old electric cooker that she still uses every day. She has a hair drier of about the same age that still works ok and an iron thats about 40 years old!

 

[dangalf]

i'm on my second xbox 360 but still on my first SNES

 

[Anonymous]

chudleighpaul:My mother (aged97) has a 58 year old electric cooker that she still uses every day. She has a hair drier of about the same age that still works ok and an iron thats about 40 years old!

As they say.....''nothing beats the good old days''!!

 

[chudleighpaul]

My HP laptop is about 5 years old. Still has the original battery which lasts for about 4 hours.

Contrast this with Mac batteries which are finished in little more than a year. I reckon they have a programmed life so Apple makes money out of selling replacements at £95 each

 

[laserman16]

We still have a working clock radio that must be 16 years old, plus two "ghetto blasters" the kids had that are about 12 year old, both of which are working perfectly.

Better not say what make they are or else some peoples opinions of the reliabilty of a certain brand may take a hit.

 

[Anonymous]

bought a Philips Discoverer 'space' tv with remote from a carboot 4 years ago for £15 .... think they were made in the 70's .... daughter uses it everyday and picture is still perfect

 

[laserman16]

dim_span:

bought a Philips Discoverer 'space' tv with remote from a carboot 4 years ago for £15 .... think they were made in the 70's .... daughter uses it everyday and picture is still perfect

 

[Big Aura]

dim_span:
bought a Philips Discoverer 'space' tv with remote from a carboot 4 years ago for £15 .... think they were made in the 70's .... daughter uses it everyday and picture is still perfect

that is exceptionally cool.

 

[jc.com]

laserman16:

We still have a working clock radio that must be 16 years old, plus two "ghetto blasters" the kids had that are about 12 year old, both of which are working perfectly.

Better not say what make they are or else some peoples opinions of the reliabilty of a certain brand may take a hit.

We have a toshiba clock radio approaching its 30th birthday and showing no signs of mortality, and recently parted with a CRT-TV - same brand same age, and was still working fine until forced into retirement by the digital switchover.

When aahh were a lad....