replace obsolete technology or bear it?

[nature boy]

tv's, phones, computers, this stuff changes so fast. keep up with the new or just say the old is good enough?

of course there's a time when things just need to be replaced, but a new phone every year? (*ahem).

is it necessary? or wasteful?

[se7entse7en]

I've been using the same phone since 2004.

[nature boy]

cell phone? really? which one do you have? sounds pretty hardcore.

[se7entse7en]

Beats me. It's an LG, that's all I know.

[nature boy]

wow. if you go by how they say your body reproduces itself in 7 years, that phone is older than you.

[geForce]

I say bear with it as long as you can... it's too expensive to get everything new that comes out.

[nature boy]

the funny thing i find is that it was good enough when you bought it, you were entirely happy with it but then the companies come out with something slightly different and you don't know how you lived without it. not really worth it imho.

case in point: siri lol. how many of you nerds actually use it?

[geForce]

I don't use it, but I didn't buy the 4S for siri. I don't know of anyone that did buy the 4S for siri. At least not coming from a 4

[nature boy]

well siri was one of the selling points, i'm just saying people (like my brother) need to get the latest and greatest when really i don't think it makes you any greater (actually more like a loser in my eyes lol).

[geForce]

I thought we already established your brother is a loser, so he doesn't count, haha.
Anyway, did he get the 4S for siri, or just for getting the latest and greatest in general?

[nature boy]

i think just getting the latest apple products because everyone knows having apple stuff makes you the greatest gift to mankind.
he still defends apple tv, which apple admitted to being the biggest fail of the decade lol.

[Duncan]

actually, tyson and gordon are the only ones who have the 4s... and they were the only ones upgrading from a 3g or 3gs... i think they were upgrading not because they wanted the latest and greatest, but because with all the ios updates, their 3g/s phones were becoming laggy bricks... i know the 3g i passed down to lish was one... i think siri was just a bonus for having the 4s

[nature boy]

we're talking about my brother, who had every generation of iphone, on the first day of launch (if not before).

[joel]

different people have different definitions for "obsolete".

but with the majority of technology related consumer products, gets a new revision between 6-12 months.

for me it's different for different products... for computers unless playing the latest games at max settings, my 4 yr old computer still handles pretty well as an htpc. i am hoping it lasts at least another 2 years.
i am hoping my tv lasts at least 10 years.
i hope my phone lasts at least 2 years, or until the point which i can get another free/subsidized one.
i hope the rav4 can last 15 years.
i hope my exercise bike can last 25 years (or more).
i hope my toaster oven lasts 20 years.

if i shell out any significant dollar amount on a product that i deem to be "worthwhile", i try to justify how long I will make use of it, to justify the actual purchase. Otherwise I don't make the purchase to begin with. If I am spending the extra "dollar value" to get a supposedly higher quality product then it had better have more longevity than the cheaper alternative. so i don't really plan on replacing things until the life of the product has expired.

[se7entse7en]

Yeah, I guess for me it also depends on the product and several other factors. I don't really like talking and don't receive many calls anyway, so if I can get 20 years on a phone I'll take it.

I like computers and software but they frustrate the hell out of me. Once I get something working, I don't want to screw with it. I'd rather put up with a 10 year old pc and an os that's been obsolete for 5 years with slightly buggy software than go through the torture of trying to configure a new pc to my liking and fighting with major bugs in the 'latest' software until SP32 comes out.

On the other hand, I'm much more likely to replace (or at least upgrade) my 24 (?) year old bike even if it works perfectly fine. Replace my bass? Maybe.

Other considerations also come into play. Like, what to with the old item? What's the environmental impact?

If something is hobby related, I'm more likely to replace it... eg my GPS watch, but if my camera never dies I'll probably still be happy.

Some things seem like a never ending money suck so I try not to upgrade them.