I watched a show on BBC "The Men who made us Buy" and it confirmed my long term belief that many products are built not to last, the electric toothbrush that you have to throw away as it will no longer charge,you have to damage the brush to get to the battery,which would cost around a pound,but no you have to go out and buy a new one.
I think we have been suckered into a cordless age,where often you cannot replace the battery,any apple i-product is built that way, a chap on the show explained how he paid $400 for a i-pod,after 16 months the battery died,Apple wanted $250 to fit a new one and advised him he might as well buy the new i-pod,on the later i-phone 5 apple developed a new screw,just 2 were fitted on the case purely to stop you getting into it to replace the battery,this chap developed a screwdriver to fit these screws and now sells them with a replacement battery and instructions and it cost far less than sending it back to apple.
Cordless drills are another of these items,buy the drill with battery for around £40, the battery dies 1 year later,replacement battery cost £60.
Another interesting subject covered was soap,these days it is all antibacterial,we will all die if we don't wash with it, in the show test showed that ordinary soap cleans the hands just as well,but of course cost less,but the show pointed out that companies now use fear to sell their products
I think we have been suckered into a cordless age,where often you cannot replace the battery,any apple i-product is built that way, a chap on the show explained how he paid $400 for a i-pod,after 16 months the battery died,Apple wanted $250 to fit a new one and advised him he might as well buy the new i-pod,on the later i-phone 5 apple developed a new screw,just 2 were fitted on the case purely to stop you getting into it to replace the battery,this chap developed a screwdriver to fit these screws and now sells them with a replacement battery and instructions and it cost far less than sending it back to apple.
Cordless drills are another of these items,buy the drill with battery for around £40, the battery dies 1 year later,replacement battery cost £60.
Another interesting subject covered was soap,these days it is all antibacterial,we will all die if we don't wash with it, in the show test showed that ordinary soap cleans the hands just as well,but of course cost less,but the show pointed out that companies now use fear to sell their products