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Consumers Expose Brands That Deliberately Design Products To Break And Here Are 35 Of The Worst
Have you ever suspected your perfectly good gadget has a secret self-destruct timer, one that’s conveniently set to go off the moment its warranty expires? You're not just being paranoid. This frustrating feeling prompted one online user to ask a powerful question: "What’s the most obvious case of a company ruining their own product on purpose so you’d have to keep buying replacements?"
The question clearly hit a nerve, as the floodgates opened with a deluge of responses. From fragile phones to appliances engineered to break, people shared their most frustrating stories of “planned obsolescence,” and we've compiled the most infuriating examples.
More info: Reddit
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Volkswagen just released a subscription based car where you can access the car's full performance only by paying a monthly fee (no, not a rental car).
This needs to be boycotted into the ground.
Tabitha 4 months ago
My next car will be a pre-tablet in the dashboard, pre-subscription for everything, well maintained used car. I don’t want to pay a monthly fee to drive my godd a m n e d car, and I want buttons and k n o b s instead of a touch screen I can’t even f*****k I n g see properly and still keep an eye on the road. F*****k that noise.
WubiDubi 4 months ago
I've put a sticker over the road sign reading camera, it's constantly reading speed limits from parallel roads or variable speed limits by schools (only during school start and end) and then beeping as it think I'm speeding.
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Glen Ellyn 4 months ago
There's no way I would ever buy a car that has subscriptions for its features. Thankfully, I'm old enough now that by the time by current car kicks the bucket, I will have decided it's time to quit driving altogether and use public transport. My current car is a 2002 Saturn that still runs like a top because I have regular maintenance done on it.
DennyS (denzoren) 4 months ago
Subscriptions in general is ruining everything. Let me just buy the thing! End of story. Geez. Why would I buy a GTI but have to pay extra for performance? Best I get my old beat up Civic and just mod it.
Sven Horlemann 4 months ago
I am a Volkswagen fan, but if this is the direction every manufacturer will take, I will get a horse and learn how to ride it.
Uncle Panda 4 months ago
Toyota has a lot of subscription shenanigans. You have to pay extra for remote start, even though you already own the hardware and a remote with a dedicated button. Ford had none of this nonsense.
DennyS (denzoren) 4 months ago
What really makes me laugh with these, like with Honda, all the vehicles come with the harness...so instead of a 1.5k add-on, you can buy the fog lights online for example for about 100$ and its just plug and play.
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Mike F 4 months ago
This is a shame. VW used to make a very solid, reliable car that was very affordable. I remember as a kid driving a tow truck, we towed fewer VWs than any other make of car. If it had gas in it and an even mediocre battery charge, that little devil would run like mad. If they try to hop on the subscription bandwagon it will cost them. Their cars are good, but not that good.
RELATED:
#2
Any company that doesn’t let you outright own the product anymore because they moved to a subscription model. Adobe Photoshop immediately comes to mind.
Luke Branwen 4 months ago
Luckily, there's always a viable solution 🏴☠️. In a world where buying isn't owning, piracy isn't stealing.
Laura Slade 4 months ago
My pre subscription bought and registered Creative Suite 4 has stopped working because they have retired the servers, I am furious
DennyS (denzoren) 4 months ago
I miss the days when I could by something and that's mine for as long as I like and as much uses as I like.
shg stewart 4 months ago
Speaking as someone who had to come up with CDN$1500 (USD$1200 at the time) a couple of times to upgrade Adobe RoboHelp for freelance gigs, I am *much* happier paying for it by subscription, especially since I do a lot of contracting, so I can pay for it when I do need it and not when I dont, and I save a ton. I agree it should have the option to let you buy it, but when am I ever going to need a tool like RoboHelp or Adobe FrameMaker if I'm not using it for work?
turk 4 months ago (edited)
I had to buy a full one year subscription to Adobe because the Immigration Department of the US needs documents they send you, that are not in Adobe format, to be converted to that format in order to edit. (My wife immigrated) And because of the "security" they applied on their end, that was the only program I could use. So, still paying the monthly fee for a few documents I had to fill out many months ago. This is what I pay taxes for. I wonder if the US government has some contract with them. Oh. yeah...and Adobe is a garbage program with an antiquated and stupid UI.
iseefractals 4 months ago
Before the subscription model, Photoshop cost $700, while the full suite of adobe software was $3500. If you wanted to upgrade to the next release (of which there is a new one every year) you "might" get a 30% discount. As opposed to spending $20/m for photoshop, or $59 a month for the entire suite of which you always, always, always have access to the newest features. Consumers aren't getting screwed here, consumers have more readily available access without having to resort to piracy (piracy which Adobe, autodesk and other creative app publishers have made clear they do not care about individuals pirating the software) corporations are the ones getting screwed....no more volume licensing, every install needs a subscription....which is why those subscriptions are comparatively cheap. If YOU have hundreds or thousands of dollars to spend on software, good for you. Most don't.
Sven Horlemann 4 months ago
Dropped Adobe years ago, no regrets. Great alternatives like DaVinci Resolve for video, or Affinity for photo or design.
#3
Google/nest thermostats. The thermostat itself will probably last forever. Starting in October the older ones will no longer connect to the internet, no more remote control. Remote control is the reason people bought it in the first d**n place. Google is offering a discount on the new thermostat that will do the same thing the one you already have used to do .Until Google decides that it doesn't. You no longer buy products, you rent them. If there's a more blatant example of planned obsolescence I haven't seen it.
Michael Melfa 4 months ago
Never buy a Google device. It will eventually find its way to the Google Graveyard once they're bored with it.
Katie 4 months ago
I didn't! I bought from Nest! Then Google bought Nest and ruined everything!
Load More Replies... iseefractals 4 months ago
The first nest thermostat released in 2011...software compatibility is not absolute, security standards change.....that's the risk you take when you buy any off the shelf smart device. Maintaining compatibility and security isn't passive, it requires time, money and man hours....and after a certain point, the hardware sitting in the device is simply no longer compatible with modern software. For instance....the encryption protocol standard in 2011 was WPA2....which was certified in 2004. WPA2 is being phased out in favor of the more secure WPA3, with all wifi enabled devices being required to support WPA3 since 2020. That's a hardware limitation, there's no software fix. Nest thermostats can be jailbroken OR you can use one of the growing number of open protocols to build your own smart devices....see how simple it is.
As the examples roll on, a clear pattern emerges: no industry seems to be immune. The frustration extends far beyond the tech world, creeping into our kitchens with short-lived appliances and even our closets with fast-fashion clothing designed to fall apart. It's a universal tale of declining quality for the sake of repeat business, and the online community had receipts for all of it.
#4
Any appliance advertised as "smart".
Lee Gilliland 4 months ago
Your refrigerator should not know the state of your pantry better than you do.
Geoffrey Scott 4 months ago
Like wise, I have NO desire to know what my washer is doing in Michigan when I'm in North Carolina.
Load More Replies... Forrest Hobbs 4 months ago
Never mind "smart" - having an app for every appliance is mad. I can get an app to control my washing machine. You know, the thing that washes clothes that you have to actually go to in person to put the clothes in and has a perfectly good control panel built in to it.
Michael Largey 4 months ago (edited)
"Smart: verb intransitive - to inflict pain. Usage example: "Boy, does that smart!"
Danger Muppet 4 months ago
Any smart appliance is going to be an energy vampire. I am one of those weird people who unplug most appliances when not using because monies.
Glen Ellyn 4 months ago
I do the same with my TV/sound bar/DVD player. Actually, they're all on a surge protector and I turn it off when they're not being used. I don't care one whit about "stand-by mode" nonsense. Come to think of it, the only smart appliance I own is the TV, but I stream through a Roku device so the "smart" function isn't even connected to the internet.
Load More Replies... Zig Zag Wanderer 4 months ago
Everything I have is quite deliberately as dumb as a box of rocks
#5
Any product that magically malfunctions the month after the warranty ends. It's uncanny.
DennyS (denzoren) 4 months ago
Dell, looking at you. I've always had Dell laptops and like clockwork, as soon as the three year warranty is up...something goes bad.
NEMESIS 4 months ago
The I don't understand why you keep buying them!!!!!!!!!
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Anne Roberts 4 months ago
I've stop installing updates for my Epson printer. Now it will only recognize Epson brand ink when I can get other cartridges on Amazon for half the price and that work fine
#6
American cars from the 60s and 70s most drive trains would fail after 100,000 miles. It wasn’t until the Japanese came in showing that drive trains could easily go 200,000 to 300,000 miles. It really changed the industry.
WubiDubi 4 months ago
The image picker AI need a little human hand holding.
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Rachel Reynolds 4 months ago
As a mechanic, I can 100% confirm that this image is indeed a drive train /s
Tim Gearing 4 months ago
5 years ago i sold my car because I no longer needed one. Finally a got rid of the albatross around my neck.
keyboardtek 4 months ago
From what I have read, the poor quality or US cars was not deliberately designed not to last. They had a policy of never stopping the assembly line if at some stage the part could not be installed in time. So completed cars would reach the end of the assembly line and not even start! Locating and fixing the problems was too hard. In Japan, the workers could stop the line and get help to install the stubborn part. They ended up with a higher percentage of reliable working cars when they reached the end of the line.
Geoffrey Scott 4 months ago
Yes, the Detroit 3 were idiots to dismiss W. Edwards Deming. They had to have their as**s handed to them by losing market share to wake up. They STILL have the self destructive habit of renaming a poorly engineered car rather than refining it, as Japan has proven can be done. When was the last time they renamed the Camry, Corolla, Accord, Civic?
Game Guy 4 months ago (edited)
They rename cars all the time. Legend became RL, Vigor became TL, the Accord (Euro version) became the TSX, the Integra became the RSX, the CRX became the Del Sol, the Miata became the MX5, Datsun became Nissan, etc, etc.
Load More Replies... Zig Zag Wanderer 4 months ago
Actually, we have had much better lasting cars in Europe pretty much forever.
Jay Cee 3 months ago
And now the big four Japanese car manufacturers Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mazda and even Subaru are pulling out of the US market because of TACO tariffs. So it's back to buying American or second hand Japanese vehicles. Ford and GM had better step up their game plan - I suppose Ford could always bring back the Edsel?
Smeghead Tribble Down Under 4 months ago
I have a 1981 Datsun. 100% made in Japan, down to the smallest component. Still going strong!
Wondering if your phone suddenly got dumber overnight? According to industrial design expert Dr. Miles Park, it’s not just in your head. He confirms there's "a little bit of truth" to the idea that companies are making things not to last. So go ahead and give yourself a pat on the back because your paranoia is officially expert-approved.
#7
I bought a pair of plant lights and both of them died at the exact same time in the exact same way after exactly six months of use. After going to the product page and reading all the one star reviews, there's dozens of people reporting the same thing, that their lights died at exactly six months. When I cut off the timer controls replaced it with a simple on-off switch, they magically worked just fine. Then it happened again with another pair of plant lights (different brand, style, and power adapter) I had purchased sometime after the first set. Then I noticed they used the same timer control as the first set.
nm 4 months ago
I hope OP revealed his discovery in the same page of the products' review for the other clients to see.
K Barnes 4 months ago
I wonder which site OP used. I tried to put a not-glowing, but honest, review on the manufacturer's website of our furnace (it's a total lemon) and they deleted it every time. They only post the 5 start reviews and delete all the lower ones... super shady. I did post on a few other sites but am still bitter.
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Meowzers! 4 months ago
Remove the timer switch (cut it off the cable) and replace it with a standard on/off switch (attach to cable).
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SheHulk 4 months ago
Buy your lights from recommendations from weed growers. They know all best sources! 😉🤣
#8
Printers and ink/toner.
Yrral Spavit 4 months ago
Bought a Canon printer with ink tanks rather than cartridges. Printer lasted 6 years and went from spending $120ish/year in cartridges for the previous printer to nothing. Initial ink that came with it lasted years, still have a bottle of black.
keyboardtek 4 months ago
I gave up on color inkjet printers as they are the most expensive and unreliable printers I have ever owned. A monochrome laserjet HP has lasted us years. Any color printing needs I take to a printshop or office supply store.
Daniel Atkins 4 months ago
Hp laserjets of the past were great the 4250 is tank fairly easy to repair but the new version of windows sent larger files than they used to do that when the print job was larger than the memory that came standard then it deleted the job. So people replaced them the crookedness isnt just HP.
Load More Replies... Little Bit 4 months ago
I can remember the good old days back in the late 90s/early 00s when you could just buy ink and refill the cartridges yourself. It was far less wasteful and much more economical. These days a new ink/toner cartridge is more expensive than buying a printer itself. And then you have to prat about installing the dammed thing before it will work. I try not to use my printer if I can help it.
iseefractals 4 months ago
Refillable tank printers have been around since 2015. These printers cost $300 and up....those $50 PoS that take ink carts...are sold at a loss, and that loss is made up by selling those overpriced ink carts. How are people still talking about this? A 500ml bottle of ink for these tank printers costs $15-$20, we print literally thousands of full color sheets per month and those bottles last more than a year. Refillable toner carts are also a thing, 250g bottle of toner is good for around 10 refills, with each fill being good for thousands of pages. You get what you pay for.
Zig Zag Wanderer 4 months ago
Long story, but I once bought 5 colour laser printers as a cheap deal with laptops for work, thinking friends might want the other 4. Nobody did, but I realised in time that the printer itself, with toner, cost about half the price of the toners!
#9
Singer Sewing Machines.
They were THE standard up through the 70's. Even their machines from the 80's can still be going strong today (except when the plastic gears break you can't buy parts anymore, so they're solid till they aren't...)
But the Singer machines you can buy for $150-500 at Walmart (used to be Joann's) today can't be fixed at all. They are all cheap, brittle plastic. You can barely pull the covers off to regrease them without them breaking in a way that they'll never go back together right.
They aren't meant to be maintained or repaired (and why would you when they cost $150 and a standard machine service costs $100-150 from a reputable sewing machine tech?). Which means they have a lifespan of 2-4 years depending on how much you use them. If they last longer than that, you got lucky!
Even a $200 Brother machine can be serviced and repaired (you can buy parts for it). Low end Singers are essentially disposable.
David 4 months ago
my family has a foot pedal one well over 100 years old, been though many generations in the family. Still works
Load More Replies... DennyS (denzoren) 4 months ago
I've got a Singer my mom had from back in the 90s...heavier than an elephant but works like a charm.
Tabitha 4 months ago
I have one almost exactly like the ones that were in my 7th grade Home Ec class. That was back in 1972, and the machines weren’t new then. But they were the basic Singer sewing machines that do everything you need to sew most things, and are extremely user-friendly, so very easy to use. The only extra I wanted was a buttonholes, so I got an upgraded model with that. Solid metal parts, thick plastic cover, solid metal gears, nothing brittle or cheap or so specialized you’ll never find it anywhere. That sewing machine is a beast that will never die, and I love it.
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Heffalump 4 months ago
If you can't get the plastic gears for the 80's Singers, perhaps you know someone with a 3d printer: perfect for the job. BTW, if you see plastic gears in something older like that, they were not made of plastic to save cost of manufacture, but to provide a low-cost point of failure (mechanical fuse): easier to replace a plastic gear when something jams than to replace a burned out motor.
shg stewart 4 months ago
The thing that made me realize that the brand new low-end Singer sewing machine my parents bought me was a piece of junk was when I realized that you literally can't thread the needle on it without using an aiguillette because the needle guard is in the way. I have never used another sewing machine like that.
Lady Eowyn 4 months ago
My Singer Featherweight is 71 years old. It needs repair to the foot pedal which I can't afford at the moment. The first thing that's ever gone wrong.
iseefractals 4 months ago
Ok....first of all https://www.singermachines.co.uk/sewingmachineparts/?p=3. Second of all, my wife's $120 singer, purchased in 2002 from a lidl just as of a couple weeks ago started having a problem with aligning the needle. She's put thousands, upon thousands of hours on that thing and the only maintenance was applying machine oil once a year. Cheap machines are for people who are doing occasional repairs, you want something that's going to last a lifetime, they are priced accordingly.
This whole scheme isn't new, by the way. For a truly vintage example, look no further than the lightbulb. Back in 1924, the world's leading bulb manufacturers formed the "Phoebus Cartel" with one shady goal: to intentionally shorten the lifespan of their lightbulbs from a robust 2,500 hours to a measly 1,000. They literally engineered a worse product just to sell more.
#10
I had bought a water purifier which had a timer, it shuts off after every two months and the service guy has to be called who replaces the filters and resets the timer.(And charges money for replacement filters)
Needless to say I threw out that purifier and bought another one.
Uncle Panda 4 months ago (edited)
AKA a razor blade business model - "The handle is FREE!" It's the effectively the same business model of a drugg dealer who says, "That's ok kid, you can keep the syringe. See you tomorrow."
Ange Marsden 4 months ago
Out ventilation system is like that but my partner googled how to turn it back on again. You're supposed to pay $600 for new filters. The filters are machine washable and don't need replacing until worn out.
Maartje 4 months ago
Had this issue with Culligan. Their water softener kept on breaking down, always the same thing, always right out of repair warranty, always $300,- repai.r to replace a proprietary part. Their excuse was" you have hard water." Well, considering that this is their business, I wrote a nasty Yelp, and replaced their water softener with another $700 one- ten years later, no issues, which I also posted on that Yelp. They did not like me.
keyboardtek 4 months ago
We finally had a whole house carbon water filter installed. I wished we had done this all our lives. It removes all chlorine taste and odor, all chemicals, most particulates. It makes a world of difference not only for drinking water, but for taking showers, baths, laundry, washing dishes. The initial expense is high, but the rebedding of the filter material every three years is not unreasonable.
#11
Nylon stockings (panty hose) lasted forever in the 1940's Then they began making them so thin that they were only good for about 6 uses. There's a ton of articles about it.
Jenni Howard 4 months ago
Snag Tights, the brand, last FOR AGGGGGES!!! & don't get me started on their patterned ones, care bears tights anyone??
Lee Gilliland 4 months ago
If you put them in the freezer before wearing they don't run as much.
Janet Sparrow 4 months ago
Yes and annoying but the hose in the ‘40 were heavy and not sheer. It’s because today’s pantyhose are sheer that they wear out so fast.
Jay Cee 3 months ago
My adult daughters both do. They say they are better than tights - ladder one leg and you keep the other as a spare - but I DO wish they'd find a better place to dry them than down in the basement where the furnace (and my buddy bar) is.
Load More Replies... Ace 4 months ago (edited)
Not. They started making them thinner and thinner because that's what people wanted and technology allowed it. You can still get them in 40 or 60 denier which are much more resistant to laddering. If you knowingly buy the fragile thin ones when you could have got the more robust thicker ones you can hardly complain about it.
Load More Replies... #12
Google Pixel 4a
One of the most popular phones of all time. They nuked the battery life with an update, just straight up destroyed the entire phone. It lasts about 90 minutes now. Will never buy another Google phone again, and neither should you.
Disgruntled Pelican 4 months ago
I've had Google Pixels for the last 8 years and will honestly never go back to a Samsung. I've never had a problem with battery life and the camera is amazing. To each their own I guess.
ॐBoyGanesh 4 months ago
Let me know what your ToS of the OS says about your intellectual property & how Google is allowed to use it as they see fit, in perpetuity. You may own your copyright, but that doesn’t mean you haven’t agreed to them using your creations. This is unique to Google, as opposed to Apple & Samsung (tho Google products & Gmail on androids have similar terms),
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nut nibbler 4 months ago (edited)
On a similar note, had a Moto phone that got an update and suddenly the NFC failed to work, this happened with so many other who suddenly found they were without payment functions etc, Moto attitude was to send the phone back for repairs, many did and in the next update it happened again, not once did they say "sorry" and many left the brand. https://forums.lenovo.com/t5/moto-g-stylus-moto-g-pro/NFC-stopped-working-in-moto-g-pro/m-p/5033177
DennyS (denzoren) 4 months ago
If this is true, now I'm also on the no google phone bandwagon.
Ace 4 months ago (edited)
A little web-searching shows a few people that complained in 2022 about reduced battery capacity but unlike the iPhone "batterygate" scandal a few years earlier it doesn't seem to have been shown to be a deliberate thing. Batteries do degrade over time, the fact that some heavy users noticed it immediately following an update could just be coincidental. And none of them I could find were suggesting such a short lifespan as this. Oh, and "one of the most popular phones"? Nah, not really.
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It all feels like a toxic relationship, doesn't it? We love our gadgets, but they seem determined to break our hearts (and our bank accounts). As Dr. Park points out, manufacturers often blame us, saying "it’s people who just want new stuff." But as this thread proves, most of us just want things that work. The frustration is certainly a shared one, and this thread continues to gather more furious responses daily.
#13
The company that makes McDonald's ice cream machines.
Anne Roberts 4 months ago
The company that makes the machines says their maintenance is proprietary and only they are allowed to fix them.
#14
Scrub daddy. I am 99% sure the first I bought was thicker denser sponge and lasted far longer. I've stopped buying them because they get to a point where they just shed nonstop now.
YakFactory 4 months ago
I have some Selleys dish cloths that I purchased about 40 years ago. They're still going strong. Wash them regularly, soak on Vanish occasionally, and they're almost as good as new. Of course I can't buy them any more, because they have no built in obsolescence. I should have bought more when they were available.
Child of the Stars 4 months ago
I bought one and didn't like it at all. I went back to the old Scotch-Brite.
Wolfgang Bonow 4 months ago
I tried them and found them completely useless. The rough side of a sponge is doing a better job than these.
#15
My label maker at work prints like 5 inches of blank space with every label, and there's no way to edit that. Such an obvious intentional waste of tape.
Uncle Panda 4 months ago
I have a simple label maker* and I found a way to turn that down to just the amount needed for the label. *I'm slowly turning into my father. It's inevitable and mostly sadly poignant.
Jay Cee 3 months ago
I found a hand written note on the floor and read it to see if it was important. It said: "I was so busy trying not to turn into my mother that I never noticed I'd turned into my father instead" It had fallen out of my daughter's notebook. I like to think that it was a compliment.
Load More Replies... Alex Ruddies 4 months ago
Well, one way to solve that issue, if you can do this and assuming this is a electronic label maker, select the option for continuous print. It managed to cut down on wasted tape because now it's only an inch between labels.
iseefractals 4 months ago
We bought a Nieko bluetooth thermal printer for shipping labels, stickers up to 100x150mm, but the size selection is extensive, and most of the time just print multiple things on one of those large stickers and cut it to size, zero wasted space.
The most sinister sabotage is often invisible. It’s not a snap, crackle, or pop, but the slow, agonizing demise of your device via a "mandatory update." Your once-zippy laptop is suddenly chugging along like it’s running on Windows 95, and your phone’s battery life mysteriously halves overnight. This digital decay is the modern manufacturer's way of turning your hardware into a paperweight.
#16
Appliances! Most of the companies except the ones that charge huge amounts! If you want old time quality with home appliances, you have to be somewhat wealthy today!
Geoffrey Scott 4 months ago
As told to me from an appliance repair tech. "You want dependability? Get the most stripped down unit you can find. WAY too many circuit boards in newer stuff".
Rachel Reynolds 4 months ago
My crock pot and my coffee maker are from the 1980's and still going strong. My dad's refrigerator is from the 1970s and I replaced the condenser for him about 5 years ago. It looks like I stand to inherit that beast.
Zig Zag Wanderer 4 months ago
Now there's lots 9f cheap stuff people keep buying. It's their fault. My mother taught me to buy Miele, and it's always better. German engineering!
Little Bit 4 months ago
I learnt my lesson a long time ago with this. Brands that used to be decent quality about 25 years ago are c**p now. When I first moved into my house I didn't have much and I inherited a Hotpoint washing machine that used to belong to my grandmother. It worked brilliantly for years then unfortunately it broke down and because it was such an old model we couldn't get the part to repair it. I bought another Hotpoint machine thinking it would be just as good. It broke down beyond economical repair as soon as the warranty ran out two years later. Silly me bought another Hotpoint. Same thing happened again. I decided never again. I would now rather pay more money for a better quality machine and have it last a good few years than have to keep replacing cheaper models every couple of years.
K Barnes 4 months ago
The previous owners of our home renovated the kitchen right before we bought it, so all the appliances were in warranty. However, the warranty only applies to the original purchaser (not sure if that's just a LG thing or other companies). Our fridge and dishwasher both died in the first 5 years and we were SOL on warranty. It was really frustrating and expensive and we learned a lesson.
marianne eliza 4 months ago
My mom's Osterizer blender she got as a wedding present in 1954 still works great. Blasts through ice cubes like a pro. My brother has it now cuz they like blended margaritas.
ॐBoyGanesh 4 months ago
Breville for the win. My Smart Oven was bought in 2017 with not a single issue. My immersion blender, juicer and table blender are all a decade old & have yet to have a single issue. Meanwhile, my newer Breville appliances mostly replace janky KitchenAid & Cuisenart c**p, with all their cheap plastic parts.
#17
Car batteries aren’t made like they used to be. I just had to buy one yesterday ($255!). 3 year warranty, lasted 3 years and 3 months.
DennyS (denzoren) 4 months ago
Yep, sounds about right. However, I've had luck with one specific local brand that has given me around 6 years last time, so I got another one lol
Eileen Ryan 4 months ago
What specific brand? No much point posting if you're going to keep the info to yourself
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Hiram's Friend 4 months ago
Depends on where you live. In Arizona, the make doesn't matter. they're all good for about 3 years (4 if you are lucky, 5 if you sacrifice your oldest child).
S Bow 4 months ago
You're right, I live near Phoenix and this climate wrecks batteries. I'm very curious how long all the teslas will last, all the electric cars actually 🤔.
Load More Replies... Zig Zag Wanderer 4 months ago
Mine have always lasted 10 years. I have a Toyota and a Volvo, though.
#18
Apple products.
reimaginealec replied:
iPhones don’t last long enough for their price, I’ll give you that, but a Mac? I think my MacBook might outlive me. Get the batteries replaced once a decade and you’re golden.
keyboardtek 4 months ago
I still use a Powermac 8500 desktop that is 30 years old! Works as fast as any modern Windows machine.
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Trillian 4 months ago
My iMac is from 2011, my Macbook from 2015 and my iPhone from 2020. All running fine.
ॐBoyGanesh 4 months ago (edited)
Similar. My older Mac Pro from 2007 (!!!!) work great for my kid. My Intel MBPs all work great and almost as well as my M chip devices.
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Kirk Helfrich 4 months ago
Apple also does not observe 'right to repair' you'll pay 3x the price for a computer that you have to pay Apple out the rear if you ever have problems with it since you can't service it yourself and neither can any mom and pop computer repair shop. Heck, there are instances where Apple requires you to purchase an replacement cpu WITH the motherboard instead of just the cpu alone because they can get more money from you by making the cpu and motherboard a 'combined part' that cannot be separated.
Mike F 4 months ago
My sister loves her MacBook. I have a Lenovo that I've had for 9 years, the battery is my only issue with it.
Jay Cee 3 months ago
Bet you could buy a new battery if you tried REALLY hard.
Load More Replies... Zig Zag Wanderer 4 months ago
My alienware laptop is 12 years old now, and still runs rings around modern ones. 3rd battery and 2nd motherboard, though.
K Barnes 4 months ago (edited)
I switched over to Mac almost 20 years ago because they use them at work and my macs have FAR FAR outlived my prior Windows laptops. I only bought the second one because we wanted a second laptop, not because the first died. Both are still going, although I had to put a new battery in the first one.
#19
Jeep, I doubt they are so unreliable on purpose.
Philly Bob 4 months ago
90% of Jeeps are still on the road. The other 10% actually made it back home.
YakFactory 4 months ago
We have a 1942 W***y's Jeep. That's a REAL Jeep. Considering that their expected life span in the war was 3 months, almost 80 years and still going is pretty good.
Geoffrey Scott 4 months ago
Used to be (I know, boomers memories) if you got ANY model with the 4.0 powertrain, it was bullet-proof for 100k miles, and far beyond if you maintained it. and easy to replace parts on.
Rachel Reynolds 4 months ago
I swear to god Jeeps come with pre-clogged fuel injectors. That and their transfer cases are designed by by someone with no engineering or automotive knowledge.
David 4 months ago
When Jeep was part of the Daimler Chrysler, the Germans gutted the brand of many of their patents so when Chrysler was sold off, the quality was bad for all brands, bc the Germans gutted it. Under the investment bank years they spent their money on the Dodge brand, and Fiat's years had no clue how to deal with SUV's and put their money into Ram branding. Now under Stellantis, there have been great improvements in Jeep, with magazines like Car and Driver giving some of their cars top marks for quality and performance. Jeep's have been improving in quality, and are getting more reliable, the 2025 versions have a good reputation overall, and a lot has been put into fixing the issues with the brands.
#20
I think majority of home appliances are like that nowadays. I remember buying a TV last year and it broke just this year. Went to the store and mentioned that with the salesperson there and he literally said that they don't make appliances to last longer anymore.
Zig Zag Wanderer 4 months ago
25 months later... (unless proper German made)
Load More Replies... Little Bit 4 months ago
I've had my TV for at least 5 years now. I live in daily fear of it breaking down. Long gone are the days when a TV would still be working after 20 years.
It all feels like a toxic relationship, doesn't it? We love our gadgets, but they seem determined to break our hearts (and our bank accounts). As Dr. Park points out, manufacturers often blame us, saying "it’s people who just want new stuff." But as this thread proves, most of us just want things that work. The frustration is certainly a shared one, and this thread continues to gather more furious responses daily.
#21
Keurig. They used to last a long time, now you’re lucky to get 1-2 years before it fizzles out. Cheap junk.
iseefractals 4 months ago
Good. Billions, upon billions of those non-biodegradable pods, containing stale coffee, brewed at improper temps for people too lazy to spend 30 seconds prepping literally, any other coffee device deserve to have their money wasted.
Anne Roberts 4 months ago (edited)
I'm one of those lazy people who loves my Keurig. I've had it for more than 3 years and it's still great
#22
A majority of digital downloaded games are not owned by the end user, you merely purchase a license that lets you use the game.
Even though it has been sorta known in gaming circles for years, it is only in the recent couple of years that it has become widely known. The thing that broke it through to the mainstream was Ubisoft closing down *"The Crew"*. A game that could be played just fine in singleplayer. So they could have opted to just remove the multiplayer elements if they didn't want to pay for servers anymore.
This lead to the "Stop Killing Games" movement that have gotten the attention of EU legislators to make some changes.
Sven Horlemann 4 months ago
I totally get the licencing, but if they close something down, you should be able to keep a local version and play at least single player games. Everything else is theft. And I write this as a 58 year old product manager.
Anne Roberts 4 months ago
The same is true of any streaming service like Prime Video. You can "buy" videos but only keep them as long as you have a subscription.
iseefractals 4 months ago
The crew, was designed and marketed as an ALWAYS ONLINE, MULTIPLAYER GAME. For the 3 years leading up to the announcement that they would no longer support the multiplayer game, the daily user base was somewhere between 70-150 players. This was the dumbest possible foundation for this argument. Games that have always online requirements for 100% single player games? 100% on board with that. Single player games that do server calls to verify licenses? 100% on board with that. Single player games that use copy protection that require downloading from verified servers....where some company decides to pull availability from that server? Yes, they should provide a fixed EXE. The wording of this "movement" demands that ALL games remain in a playable state forever. That means MMO's and online only games are going to be more trouble (and money) than they're worth to devs.
#23
Philips electric shavers. Can't be used when plugged in (plugged = charging mode). So when the internal battery eventually dies, you can't use them at all. Pure electric waste. Never again.
David 4 months ago (edited)
they used to work for years when plugged in, and my older shaver does, but about 10 years ago they put in a safety feature that doesnt allow it be plugged in and used. This was after a lawsuit when someone used it plugged in while in the shower (Bc many models can be used while showing due to their water resistance) so they put in a cut off. Blame the lawsuit
ॐBoyGanesh 4 months ago
I think this has changed. Just replaced a wet/dry shaver bought on 2015 because the battery was dead. It worked fine plugged in. It didn’t have the proprietary plug, so that may have had something to do with it.
Uncle Panda 4 months ago
I think this was a technical issue largely solved by high capacity chargers. There was a brief period of having enough capacity to operate or charge the item but not both and they were routinely roasted for it.
#24
Gillette Fusion razor blades. They used to make them so strong, I would use them way past recommended expiration. Then they added blue stripes. They don't do anything other than turning white after a while and then getting worn out. So you end changing the blade, not because of the razor but the padding is worn out.
Ange Marsden 4 months ago
A real, old school, metal razor is the best value. The blades cost pennies, they don't clog up, theyre easy to clean, and you get a good shave.
#25
Any car with "lifetime" transmission fluid.
keyboardtek 4 months ago (edited)
And when buying a used vehicle you may not have transmission fluid changed noted in the carfact info. Most mechanics do not recommend changing t****y fluid after 100K miles if it has never been changed before. Apparently fresh fluid can dislodge micro metal particles that mess up the transmission. Fortunately my Camry lasted 22 years and 250K miles without a t****y fluid change. P.S. It is funny how the short word for transmission got censored.
Geoffrey Scott 4 months ago
One of the first things I did on my 'new' 2019 Ram (90k miles) was have the trans service (by my local mechanic), Which now involves REPLACING the pan as the filter is integral. Cheap insurance IMO.
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Rachel Reynolds 4 months ago
"lifetime" transmission fluid is a conspiracy by Big Transmission to sell you more transmissions.
Zig Zag Wanderer 4 months ago
Yeah, nah. Mine is replaced every 50k miles by design. Nothing lasts forever.
#26
Insulin manufacturers having the use by date a full year and a half short of real time while being 4000 times the price.
Forrest Hobbs 4 months ago
The insulin makers are the exact companies that set the selling price and the use by date. Outside the USA, they're not allowed to be so greedy. Inside the USA, they've paid off the lawmakers...
Load More Replies... Anne Roberts 4 months ago
Insulin should not be only for people who can afford it. It is inexpensive to make but pharma companies are greedy.
Forrest Hobbs 4 months ago
Anne Roberts: insulin is indeed cheap, and drúg firms do sell it at obscenly inflated prices in the USA. It's hugely cheaper everywhere else in the world - the US price for insulin is 4.5 times higher than the next most expensive country. In the UK, diabetics get all prescriptions at no charge - the joys of socialised medicine ("socialised medicine" is a US trigger phrase designed to get people to vote against their own best interests). https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/cost-of-insulin-by-country
Load More Replies... #27
Most car manufacturers are now doing this, and if you live in Australia new houses and units have been 'discard-able' for the last 20 years, clothing no longer lasts, most electronics and appliances, it's all very obvious... hell, is there anything that isn't suffering from Planned Obsolescence.
Uncle Panda 4 months ago (edited)
Quality still exists but, as has always been the case, it comes at a premium. The trade off is that you have to take care of quality goods if you want them to last and that practice is treated with contempt by the disposable Me-Me-Me! world of today.
Geoffrey Scott 4 months ago
Consistent motor oil changes are STILL the cheapest insurance against engine failure. And with the new Synth oils, it even extends the oil life by 2 or 3k miles.
Load More Replies... Zig Zag Wanderer 4 months ago
Most houses in Australia seem to be scantily made. 'Knock down / rebuild' is a big thing here. The ultimate disposable society. The house I grew up in is now 400 years old...
#28
Xbox controllers. Those things used to be able to take an absolute beating. Stepped on, sat on, thrown, etc. Now I have to replace mine after just playing it normally for a year or two, and I play way less now.
Laughing Orc 4 months ago
Also see: Playstation controllers and Switch Joy Cons. All are prone to stick drift thanks to the crappy, cheap analogue sticks they use in them.
Michael Melfa 4 months ago
I've never had to do maintenance on PS controllers until the PS5. I've had to completely open them up and give a deep cleaning a few times, and replaced the rechargeable battery once.
Load More Replies... #29
Microsoft with windows 11 and ending support for 10, but having the threshold for compatibility very high for an upgrade. A perfectly solid operating system, like 10. However the threshold for 11 I so high that many perfectly usable and fast computers cannot be upgraded. The cut off is 8th generation intel I series. The odd thing is there are many many substantially faster cpus in earlier generations that don’t have the instruction set/on board encryption device required for windows 11 than what comes with the low end cheap cpus.
Windows 11 can happily bumble along on a third gen intel and can be overridden with the know how to do so.
Uncle Panda 4 months ago
This is such an old post the author should be receiving aerial attack tomatoes.
Ace 4 months ago (edited)
I know they've pushed back the 'no more support' date a couple of times, but how long will you be able to carry on using it? My W10 machine died in other ways (combination of dead wifi adaptor, broken ethernet port and mouse pad failing made it not worth repairing) otherwise I wouldn't have upgraded to W11. . . . But my 'new' (now nearly 2 years old) machine also has a lot more better features, (inc. rotating/flip touch screen, faster and bigger SSD, better battery management USB-C...) so I'm happy enough with it.
Load More Replies... ॐBoyGanesh 4 months ago
This has to do with Co-pilot. I’m sure of it. It’s always Co-Pilot’s fault.
iseefractals 4 months ago
OMFG i'm so sick of listening to people whine about this. When windows 10 launched, in 2015.....they stated very clearly when support would end. 8th gen intel released in 2017. We're 4 months from 2026. I built my mother in law a win 11 capable PC a year ago for $300. The hardware requirements are there to ensure security features are supported.....security features that do things like combat Ransome ware, which in 2024 alone caused $16 billion in damages. Aside from that....you are not entitled to have software supported for all of time. Drivers, security, applications....absolutely everything that you use on your pc requires constant support....to prevent YOU from having your data, banking info and identity stolen and sold to the highest bidder....but somehow you expect anyone to pour countless millions of dollars to maintain support for a piece of software, one which you got FOR FREE...all so you can continue using hardware that's 10+ years old, to avoid spending less than $200?
WubiDubi 4 months ago
I have a PC that could work but they decided a whole processor series that were I believe Dell exclusives shouldn't get it. Sounds like Dell wanting to sell more Dells.
Maartje 4 months ago
It would not run on my two-year-old or Lenovo Legion, I mean, what the Fu*C*k
Load More Replies... Geoffrey Scott 4 months ago
HATE 11, no more Wordpad, must subscribe to Word if I want to write a letter to mail.
#30
Disposable razors in general.
I bought a proper straight razor 13 years ago, and spent maybe a half hour learning how to use it without slicing myself up.
The only downside is it takes me a few more minutes to shave in the mornings, which is perfectly fine with me, given the money I’ve saved buying Gillette’s overpriced c**p.
If you regularly shave, and you’re paying to replace razor blades, you’re just wasting money. Buy a straight razor, learn how to use and maintain it, and stop shelling out your hard-earned bucks for a sub-par shave.
Ace 4 months ago
Trendy to say this, but actually BS, they're _much_ more difficult to use and _much_ easier to cut yourself with. Cheaper in the long run, I grant you. Oh, and try using it for parts of your body other than your face.... actually, don't, you may regret it; use your imagination.
Tabitha 4 months ago
OP said they spent time learning how to use it without slicing themself up.
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Jeremy James 4 months ago
I keep a jar of acetone by the sink to swish my razor in after use. It dries all the water off the blades and they last much longer. I've had roommates who stored their razors in the shower, which is the worst place for them to stay clean and dry.
Mike F 4 months ago
But, does that really work? I've switched to a "safety" razor and while the blades aren't cheap, it's cheaper than the disposables. If I can get more mileage with something simple, I'm all for it.
Load More Replies... Uncle Panda 4 months ago
Since I retired, I shave every 2 weeks or so. That's 26 shaves a year. I think I can float that expense.
Hiram's Friend 4 months ago
Since I retired, I grew a beard. Trim it when it annoys me.
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Philly Bob 4 months ago
I have the Dollar Shave Club ones but Harry's is good as well.
Load More Replies... #31
Ant baits sold in stores like Terro.
The ingrediants make the ants die so fast that the queen will never die and the ants will always come back.
JL 4 months ago
Not the experience I had. I tried Raid and Black Flag, they did nothing. Tried Terro, the ants disappeared quick and never came back.
Geoffrey Scott 4 months ago
It DOES work, so long as you use Amdro ant granules around the exterior too. Water it in immediately, or do it just prior to a rain.
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#32
Bounce dryer bars were discontinued because they worked so well and lasted so long between replacements that the company wasn’t selling enough of them. They eventually went back to selling regular dryer sheets to keep consumers spending money to replenish once the box of sheets ran out.
ॐBoyGanesh 4 months ago (edited)
This! What kind of fabrics are people buying that a little vinegar can’t soften? Also, they coat fabric with a film. Not great for towels & the like. I suppose they add really bothersome generic scent to clothes of stinky people, but I’ve no idea why folks effectively use them otherwise.
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Heather Menard 4 months ago
Yeah this happened right before I got my own washer and dryer so I never got to try them
#33
Xbox controllers. I've gone through a few now that all end up getting stick drift and become unusable. Hall effect joysticks help to solve that but they will never add them because they just want you to buy more. Shout out to the Vader 4 Pro for being a much better alternative.
#34
Basically any electronic device at this point, either through hardware or software planned obsolescence.
Yrral Spavit 4 months ago
Look for surplus think-pads etc, the ones used by the zillions in offices. They are build better because if you supply 5000 pieces of c**p to a company you aren't getting the next contract.
iseefractals 4 months ago
CPU's add and remove instruction sets, a given piece of software is built around those instruction sets....which means eventually, incompatibility will exist. Smart devices, and really anything wifi enabled, requires hardware level encryption. WPA2 standard was added in 2004....a marked upgrade from the previous standard, but cracks have formed with age. WPA3, which was finalized in 2018...is much better, All wifi enabled devices sold from 2020 on are required to support WPA3....and WPA2 is being phased out. There is no software patch , and it does not make sense to continue supporting less secure standards. It's like the government agencies that continue to demand a "backdoor" for encrypted communications....the existence of that door negates the entire foundation of the security.
iseefractals 4 months ago
Look at gaming. Everyone has spent years complaining about the fact that game visuals and performance have stagnated, with many viewing the peak hitting between 2015-2018. Why would that be when hardware has increased performance many times over? Why...because most games are developed for consoles first, and ported to PC later....and in 2025, developers are still being forced to support the PS4....which launched in 2013. People might think this is a good thing at first glance....they can still play "modern" games on 12 year old hardware! Yay....except no....those 12 year old consoles are getting a product with lower quality and worse performance.....and everyone else that has invested in newer hardware is likewise being limited...because adding that support is added complexity, and added complexity means more overhead, which means worse performance and lower quality regardless of how new and powerful your hardware is. Slowing progress to validate your possessions.
Load More Replies... #35
Bic. They were the best at making disposable stuff that you will just continue to buy. Razors. Pens. Lighters.
nut nibbler 4 months ago
The Bic Biro started to feel scratchy on paper during usage as if the ball wasn't working, so we switched to Zebra pen and they feel silky smooth.
What do you think ?
nut nibbler 4 months ago
My partner is convinced some weed eradicators are in reality plant food.
Alex Ruddies 4 months ago
Well, there is weed & feed lawn fertilizer. I'm curious, what brand are you folks using?
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walkabout 4 months ago
Cycliq bicycle (dash) cameras. I’ll try to be brief. I purchased a set, front and rear light/camera combo set January ‘24. With accessories and SIM cards about $650. I bench tested both immediately. It suffered inconsistent connection to phone by BT as well with supplied data wire to computer. They worked sporadicly throughout the summer. Customer service offered hoops to jump through and I worked the connectivity problems out myself. The following spring I find that the rear light was no longer supported by the Cycliq and the front light was no longer connecting to my Mac. All customer service offered was a new round of b.s. proof of purchase requests. In the end they closed my ticket because I didn’t respond to them quick enough. This product is available for purchase through Facebook. I cut my loses. System and accessories for sale. Cheap.
Kelly Scott 4 months ago (edited)
Butter. Ever notice how the sticks are short and fat now instead of long and skinny like they used to be? That's because you can only cut a pat of butter so thin and with the short fat sticks, you are always using more butter than you used to with the thin short sticks, so you go through it quicker and have to buy more sooner. Select-a-size paper toweling. How often do you really only use half a sheet? Chances are you still tear a whole sheet off but if you look carefully, two half sheets are now larger than a regular full sheet used to be. That means you tear off a larger full sheet now than you used to use and as with the butter, you use more faster and have to replace the roll oftener. Unbelievable how greedy companies and their CEOs can get.
CP 4 months ago (edited)
The first 5 were just complaints about capitalism. I assume the whole list is just companies trying to make a profit and people being upset about it. What do people expect with how we set up society?
AuspiciousTree283 4 months ago
The problem is that companies no longer make the products as qualitative and durable as they used used to.
Load More Replies... nut nibbler 4 months ago
My partner is convinced some weed eradicators are in reality plant food.
Alex Ruddies 4 months ago
Well, there is weed & feed lawn fertilizer. I'm curious, what brand are you folks using?
Load More Replies... walkabout 4 months ago
Cycliq bicycle (dash) cameras. I’ll try to be brief. I purchased a set, front and rear light/camera combo set January ‘24. With accessories and SIM cards about $650. I bench tested both immediately. It suffered inconsistent connection to phone by BT as well with supplied data wire to computer. They worked sporadicly throughout the summer. Customer service offered hoops to jump through and I worked the connectivity problems out myself. The following spring I find that the rear light was no longer supported by the Cycliq and the front light was no longer connecting to my Mac. All customer service offered was a new round of b.s. proof of purchase requests. In the end they closed my ticket because I didn’t respond to them quick enough. This product is available for purchase through Facebook. I cut my loses. System and accessories for sale. Cheap.
Kelly Scott 4 months ago (edited)
Butter. Ever notice how the sticks are short and fat now instead of long and skinny like they used to be? That's because you can only cut a pat of butter so thin and with the short fat sticks, you are always using more butter than you used to with the thin short sticks, so you go through it quicker and have to buy more sooner. Select-a-size paper toweling. How often do you really only use half a sheet? Chances are you still tear a whole sheet off but if you look carefully, two half sheets are now larger than a regular full sheet used to be. That means you tear off a larger full sheet now than you used to use and as with the butter, you use more faster and have to replace the roll oftener. Unbelievable how greedy companies and their CEOs can get.
CP 4 months ago (edited)
The first 5 were just complaints about capitalism. I assume the whole list is just companies trying to make a profit and people being upset about it. What do people expect with how we set up society?
AuspiciousTree283 4 months ago
The problem is that companies no longer make the products as qualitative and durable as they used used to.
Load More Replies...
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