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What is the life expectancy of the modern gadget?
I didn't occur to me till this morning that the life expectancy of a gadget is important., especially for those devices that cost hundreds or thousands of dollars. While the average person replaces their cell phones at least every other year the majority of other gadgets are purchased at a much slower rate. If you're anything like me extensive research goes into reading reviews and comparing specs before the decision to buy is made. This is complicated further by the speed that technology moves at. Every year faster processors are released, memory capacity is doubled, and resolutions are improved upon. How are we supposed to pick a gadget that will last the test of time? Are we expected to change are rate of replacing and upgrading expensive systems? Has the modern gadget life expectancy become so low that a thousand dollar laptop is only expected to last 2 years? This can't be. While there will always be those users who prefer to be at the bleeding edge of speed, I believe that the average user prefers to buy quality and invest in the long term. This being said I would like to see long term reviews on products. Have they lasted longer then expected? Is the quality that first caught your eye standing the test of time? Are parts burning up quicker then you thought they might?
This is potentially one of the benefits of this site. There are reviews of older devices, and some users do update their reviews. That being said, it would be nice to see something done more systematically about this - good idea!
The closest thing to your idea that I have seen is CNET's long-term (one year typically) evaluations of television sets. Well, that and some of the stuff Consumer Reports does . . . don't know why I am so quick to forget about them.
The closest thing to your idea that I have seen is CNET's long-term (one year typically) evaluations of television sets. Well, that and some of the stuff Consumer Reports does . . . don't know why I am so quick to forget about them.
I realize that with the speed of technology it is very hard to test this sort of thing because models come out so often. What I would like to see is those users who ARE on the bleeding edge update the rest of us about how their new gadget is holding up. This would allow those of us to be better informed months later when we're looking at the product (which is still available). Food for thought.
Ahhh. I see where you were going, and I do see how it would be nice if gdgt did a better job of calling out user reviews that get updates in the first 30/60/90 days (or whatever time interval makes sense) for new devices. Particularly if the updates results in a score change. That would be very useful.
There will always be newer gadgets that come out with faster processors, more memory, higher megapixels, more MPGs, etc. I think manufactures know this, but they have revenue to make and targets to hit. Can't blame them, that's just how the system works. Consumers need to realize this when purchasing gadgets.
If you're buying the higher end product (a phone for example) know that a phone will come out to replace the one you have. A phone may even come out in a few weeks to be the new top of the line phone, but that doesn't mean you have to put yours out to pasture. The specs on your phone are fine and can last well over 2 years. People just need to understand how the market works.
If you're buying the higher end product (a phone for example) know that a phone will come out to replace the one you have. A phone may even come out in a few weeks to be the new top of the line phone, but that doesn't mean you have to put yours out to pasture. The specs on your phone are fine and can last well over 2 years. People just need to understand how the market works.
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