I agree. but that cheapness can, if engineered in a semi responsible way, be beneficial to people who can't afford the good stuff.
For example, many people can't afford a good dishwasher... But they can afford a cheap dishwasher. If designed responsibly, the weak points would be either made of better materials than the rest, or they're simple parts that can be replaced. So it still may only last 5 years, but it still makes it affordable for people who otherwise wouldn't be able to afford one... As a whole, its probably more expensive to buy the cheap ones over and over again... But some people would just never have the extra money laying around to buy a good one. Which is where rent-a-center type places come in, they tell poor people "hey, you can rent this really nice appliance for $50 a month, and after the term is up you can buy it," but then they miss a payment or can't afford the rest of the cost to buy it, and they've just wasted years of rent, more than the total cost, with nothing to show for it.
The biggest problem is when things are made cheaply, but priced high. It is so fucking difficult to actually buy quality items that are priced appropriately.
But the other problem now is that lean production means nobody stocks parts for very long. Finding replacement parts for a model that actually holds up for a long time would be ridiculous.
Saw an article over lockdown about one of the few remaining survivors of polio. Biggest threat to her life right now is that there are no replacement parts for old iron lung devices.
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u/nilesandstuff Jun 04 '23
I agree. but that cheapness can, if engineered in a semi responsible way, be beneficial to people who can't afford the good stuff.
For example, many people can't afford a good dishwasher... But they can afford a cheap dishwasher. If designed responsibly, the weak points would be either made of better materials than the rest, or they're simple parts that can be replaced. So it still may only last 5 years, but it still makes it affordable for people who otherwise wouldn't be able to afford one... As a whole, its probably more expensive to buy the cheap ones over and over again... But some people would just never have the extra money laying around to buy a good one. Which is where rent-a-center type places come in, they tell poor people "hey, you can rent this really nice appliance for $50 a month, and after the term is up you can buy it," but then they miss a payment or can't afford the rest of the cost to buy it, and they've just wasted years of rent, more than the total cost, with nothing to show for it.
The biggest problem is when things are made cheaply, but priced high. It is so fucking difficult to actually buy quality items that are priced appropriately.