Over-priced consumer technology?

mammajamma

Following on from the "scared of technology" thread. When you look at the technology companies from a common consumer point of view, are they actually producing much of worth at all, or is it all an emperors new clothes scam?

Email was a fantastic enhancement to everyday life. The general internet, not so much.

Mobile phones were a fantastic enhancement to everyday communication. The apple iPhone 600000000000, not so much. The iterations are practically negligible, but still costing 6/7/800 quid for the "latest"? Nah.

Google/facebook/Instagram/twitter, all companies that, when you strip it to bare economic basics, are gloried advertising companies. Somehow they are "worth" billions and trillions, despite producing sweet FA in reality.

Computers/laptops/operating systems, their utility for the average person peaked like 10 years ago, everything since then has been 1 step forward, 1 step back ad infinitum. A joke to maintain their prices. Now you can load a webpage in 0.001 seconds instead of 0.002 seconds. Wow, let me give you another 600 euro for that life-altering thing! :P An average, capable laptop should be around the hundred euro mark by now, IMO.

Consumer technologies, generally, have to be the most over-hyped products going, to a ridiculous degree. Are there any exceptions were these things are actually justifying their prices over time? Should people start screaming about the emperor being in the pure nip?

Edit: I see the guts of the thread has devolved into my phone versus your phone. Maybe that says it all!

Edit 2: Now with added poll-a-thon technology. To be worthy of such innovation and improvement to life will cost 800 euro. Next year? We're adding sidewards polls for the life-improving price of 800 euro. That's right, bar graphs that go from left to right, not just up and down! Who are you to resist it?

mammajamma

Televisions, generally, have become cheaper over time. You can see companies trying to inject new (useless) angles like 3d, 4k, 8k, etc. But nobody seems to want them, hence the price direction.

How have the other technologies managed to swindle people?

OldMrBrennan83

Want - buy.
Don't want - don't buy.

I feel the same about holidays and numerous other things but the reality is that it doesn't matter when nobody is forcing you to spend your money.

Jasper_

mammajamma wrote: »

Televisions, generally, have become cheaper over time. You can see companies trying to inject new (useless) angles like 3d, 4k, 8k, etc. But nobody seems to want them, hence the price direction.

How have the other technologies managed to swindle people?

Eh... 4k useless? LOL

4K is the only tv people buy these days.

Samuel T. Cogley

Anything Apple TBH. They used to offer a point fo difference, albeit at a cost, now the stuff is poorly designed muck they're rightly getting reamed by the right to repair laws coming into the States.

HTC Vive - over priced for what it does.

nVidia in the PC market being let run riot. Intel up until recently - although they still can't keep up with demand.

As for most other things there's a cheapo alternative available that may or may not be decent value for money.

Samuel T. Cogley

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

Anything Apple TBH. They used to offer a point fo difference, albeit at a cost, now the stuff is poorly designed muck they're rightly getting reamed by the right to repair laws coming into the States.

.

Absolute and utter nonsense. Apple products are expensive but they are superior. I wouldn’t touch an android phone or a windows laptop.

Birneybau

A bit of research will give most people value and quality.

I actually buy Moto Gs (was Motorola, Google and now Lenovo). Cracking phones for the price and do exactly what I need.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/motorola-5-7-Inch-Android-Sim-Free-Smartphone-Deep-Indigo/dp/B079SQF4BD/ref=sr_1_1?s=telephone&ie=UTF8&qid=1541709856&sr=1-1&keywords=moto+g

Samuel T. Cogley

Joey Rapid Numskull wrote: »

Absolute and utter nonsense. Apple products are far superior.

LOL bollocks. At best they're in a nice box, they've had endless issues with design in the last few years. Then they try and make you repair through themselves, that's even if they'll do the repair. They've never been better, just different. Now they're 'different' in all the wrong ways just using off the shelf tech for double the price. And for some reason the fanbois keep trying to defend their anti-consumer nonsense.

SEPT 23 1989

You tube is the one that can stay

For the old records

SteM

Jasper_ wrote: »

Eh... 4k useless? LOL

4K is the only tv people buy these days.

Not sure I'd agree with this "fact", any figures to back it up? 4k TV is useless to the huge amount of people that don't have a 4k source to play on them.

mammajamma

Jasper_ wrote: »

Eh... 4k useless? LOL

4K is the only tv people buy these days.

So, you just bought one, in other words :P

I have the same television for nearly 6 years now. Absolutely perfect. Every now and then I'll have a gander round the shops, have a good look at the tvs on display. Tempted to get a new one, then come back down to reality.

If mine broke today, I would be more than happy to spend the price-adjusted amount to buy the same model, say, probably 200 quid by now. But looking at all this "amazing" difference with the likes of 4K (bearing in mind 4k sources are very few and far between)....at those prices? Nah, people are 1) being robbed of choice, 2) being fooled.

Yeah those things are nice. But not nearly worth it.

Samuel T. Cogley

Decent 4K HDR TV's - given the right source - are far superior. It's like anything though to most a €25 bottle of Moet will taste just as good as a €500 bottle of Dom Pérignon.

mfceiling

Joey Rapid Numskull wrote: »

I wouldn’t touch an android phone or a windows laptop.

Galaxy s9 and the new Google pixel phone are deemed to be better than the latest iPhone.

I find the iPhone to be behind Android tbh. User ease isn't as good. Remember apple making a big fuss that you could slide right on someone's contact to call them or swipe left to text....eh you could do that on Android for ages!!

Samsung looking at introducing a foldable screen next year....Apple will probably make a big song and dance out of this technology when they release it in 2026.

Samuel T. Cogley

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

LOL bollocks. At best they're in a nice box, they've had endless issues with design in the last few years. Then they try and make you repair through themselves, that's even if they'll do the repair. They've never been better, just different. Now they're 'different' in all the wrong ways just using off the shelf tech for double the price. And for some reason the fanbois keep trying to defend their anti-consumer nonsense.

You haven’t a clue, a MacBook is miles ahead of any windows laptop that are uslesless after a no time macs last for years more same for iPhones far far better designed, better made and much better software as the software and hardware integration is vastly better than android and the million phone makes that use it.

The resale value of a few years old Mac or iPhone just shows they last.

Doctor Jimbob wrote: »

That might be true if you're comparing the Apple products to cheaper windows/android alternatives. If you get an android/windows product for the same price as an apple one, you'll get a far better product.

You won’t.

fonecrusher1

I read somewhere that 80% of the components inside Apple products are not actually made by Apple. Its basically generic parts from various companies but nicely packaged externally.

McMurphy

Joey Rapid Numskull wrote: »

Absolute and utter nonsense. Apple products are expensive but they are superior. I wouldn’t touch an android phone or a windows laptop.

They're expensive because of the billions of dollars ploughed into the marketing behind their products.

Which seemingly has worked a treat on you.:p

mfceiling

Joey Rapid Numskull wrote: »

same for iPhones far far better designed, better made and much better software as the software and hardware integration is vastly better than android and the million phone makes that use it.

Is this the same iPhones that deliberately slow themselves after a couple of years to get you to upgrade?

Samuel T. Cogley

Joey Rapid Numskull wrote: »

You haven’t a clue, a MacBook is miles ahead of any windows laptop that are uslesless after a no time macs last for years more same for iPhones far far better designed, better made and much better software as the software and hardware integration is vastly better than android and the million phone makes that use it.

The resale value of a few years old Mac or iPhone just shows they last.

As said above, spend the same on a Windows device as you do on a macbook and you'll get all the benefits of a Macbook and more besides. You're trying to compare the likes of a €699 device from Argos to a €2199 mac. Furthermore macs don't last - that's been an issue for years.

lawred2

mammajamma wrote: »

Following on from the "scared of technology" thread. When you look at the technology companies from a common consumer point of view, are they actually producing much of worth at all, or is it all an emperors new clothes scam?

Email was a fantastic enhancement to everyday life. The general internet, not so much.

Mobile phones were a fantastic enhancement to everyday communication. The apple iPhone 600000000000, not so much. The iterations are practically negligible, but still costing 6/7/800 quid for the "latest"? Nah.

Google/facebook/Instagram/twitter, all companies that, when you strip it to bare economic basics, are gloried advertising companies. Somehow they are "worth" billions and trillions, despite producing sweet FA in reality.

Computers/laptops/operating systems, their utility for the average person peaked like 10 years ago, everything since then has been 1 step forward, 1 step back ad infinitum. A joke to maintain their prices. Now you can load a webpage in 0.001 seconds instead of 0.002 seconds. Wow, let me give you another 600 euro for that life-altering thing! :P An average, capable laptop should be around the hundred euro mark by now, IMO.

Consumer technologies, generally, have to be the most over-hyped products going, to a ridiculous degree. Are there any exceptions were these things are actually justifying their prices over time? Should people start screaming about the emperor being in the pure nip?

The general internet not so much!?

What do you actually think the internet is?

sbs2010

Not all but many consumer electronics seem to have a fixed average price point for a high range model.

A couple of years ago I found an old newspaper from 1995 or so with a full page ad for phones. They were £200.

An €800 iPhone is similar money today taking inflation and disposable income into account.

The manufacturers keep innovating to keep justifying the high price which would fall otherwise due to competition, market saturation, etc.

But for a given item the "high price " remains remarkably static in real terms over the years.

lawred2

fonecrusher1 wrote: »

I read somewhere that 80% of the components inside Apple products are not actually made by Apple. Its basically generic parts from various companies but nicely packaged externally.

Same goes for pretty much all electronic devices and components

Samuel T. Cogley

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

As said above, spend the same on a Windows device as you do on a macbook and you'll get all the benefits of a Macbook and more besides. You're trying to compare the likes of a €699 device from Argos to a €2199 mac. Furthermore macs don't last - that's been an issue for years.

I’m doing no such thing, my work laptop in my last job was more expensive, higher spec on paper and newer than my MacBook Pro and it couldn’t even get close to it. Ended up in the drawer and I used my personal MacBook for work. Windows is awful and the hardware like touch pads etc are like trying to move an mouse with an oven glove when you get used to the Mac.

Thankfully my new job provides macs by default and only give a windows machine if you specifically request it.

Ursus Horribilis

lawred2 wrote: »

Same goes for pretty much all electronic devices and components

Ah but when they're Apple generics they're special </sarcasm>

wexie

lawred2 wrote: »

The general internet not so much!?

What do you actually think the internet is?

Probably depends on who you ask, seems to be plenty of people* that don't use it for much beyond social media, porn, music and Youtube (giving that it's own classification as it seems to have developed a whole new generation of ****e)

Of course for others it's more akin to the greatest repository of knowledge that the world has ever seen, all right there at your finger tips.

(*the kind of people that don't know the difference between repository and suppository)

lawred2

Joey Rapid Numskull wrote: »

I’m doing no such thing, my work laptop in my last job was more expensive, higher spec on paper and newer than my MacBook Pro and it couldn’t even get close to it. Ended up in the drawer and I used my personal MacBook for work. Windows is awful and the hardware like touch pads etc are like trying to move an mouse with an oven glove when you get used to the Mac.

Everyone gets all hetted up about widows and Mac OS

I work with both. Find them both perfectly usable. They both have their individual strengths.

Windows 10 is in the main an OS gets out of your way. That's pretty much all I expect from it.

Mookie Blaylock

One Plus 6... Sweet as a nut

wexie

lawred2 wrote: »

Same goes for pretty much all electronic devices and components

Yup, once you start looking a bit deeper there's only really a handful of manufacturers that make components. That goes for pretty much any kind of electronic hardware.

Beasty

No-one is forced to buy any of this stuff. Of course if people wish to pay over the top for things, someone else will in all likelihood step into the breech to sell it to them....

OldMrBrennan83

Joey Rapid Numskull wrote: »

I’m doing no such thing, my work laptop in my last job was more expensive, higher spec on paper and newer than my MacBook Pro and it couldn’t even get close to it. Ended up in the drawer and I used my personal MacBook for work. Windows is awful and the hardware like touch pads etc are like trying to move an mouse with an oven glove when you get used to the Mac.

You like Macs, great. Apple isn't a football team though so you can put the scarf and flag away.

Both are equally useful to those that want to use either.

Samuel T. Cogley

Joey Rapid Numskull wrote: »

I’m doing no such thing, my work laptop in my last job was more expensive, higher spec on paper and newer than my MacBook Pro and it couldn’t even get close to it. Ended up in the drawer and I used my personal MacBook for work. Windows is awful and the hardware like touch pads etc are like trying to move an mouse with an oven glove when you get used to the Mac.

I'll give you the touch pad. Apple have managed to perfect that. To get that you have to take a device that's basically made to go wrong as soon as the warranty is up. This has been shown over and over again by people like Louis Rossmann and even Linus Tech Tips did a piece on how anti-consumer apple were with him over his work station.


I'll just plug in a mouse thanks.

Feisar

On the TV thing. Recently in a shop and seen an LG OLED tv. The image was as crisp as anything, couldn’t believe it.

How’s it going to look at home though hooked up to the sky box and herself watching corrie?

Ursus Horribilis

Whatever about Macbooks, I'll never ever own an iPhone. Even if someone gave me one for free I'd sell it and make myself a nice few €. They're phones for people who are crap at technology.

lawred2

wexie wrote: »

Yup, once you start looking a bit deeper there's only really a handful of manufacturers that make components. That goes for pretty much any kind of electronic hardware.

One place to rule them all.

Foxconn.

wexie

Feisar wrote: »

How’s it going to look at home though hooked up to the sky box and herself watching corrie?

If ever there was something you don't need to be watching in HD

Beasty

Patww79 wrote: »

Apple isn't a football team though so you can put the scarf and flag away.

Are you talking the Big Apple or the Little Apple?

The latter certainly is....

Hurrache

Pretty much most mobile phones. There's very little advantage of your €800 phone over my sub €200 one, and I'm a big techy.

Feisar

wexie wrote: »

If ever there was something you don't need to be watching in HD

Just meant as in generic tv

QuintusFabius

mammajamma wrote: »

Televisions, generally, have become cheaper over time. You can see companies trying to inject new (useless) angles like 3d, 4k, 8k, etc. But nobody seems to want them, hence the price direction.

How have the other technologies managed to swindle people?

I agree with you about 3D - total flop, didn't work in the 50s, didn't work in the 80s and still not working in the 2010s ... in fact I don't think they bother making 3d TVs now.

But HD and 4K were game changers, watching movies and sports especially in HD and now 4K was a WOW moment for me .... couldn't watch on SD now.

KungPao

Vacuum cleaners with Super Sucking Hyper Technobabble. RRP €600.

It’s for sucking up dirt, like. And that rechargeable battery will need replacement in 18 months too, more money for that.

mammajamma

lawred2 wrote: »

The general internet not so much!?

What do you actually think the internet is?

The internet is 5% information, 95% the mental excrement of a billion chimp-level humanoids.

Samuel T. Cogley

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

I'll give you the touch pad. Apple have managed to perfect that. To get that you have to take a device that's basically made to go wrong as soon as the warranty is up. This has been shown over and over again by people like Louis Rossmann and even Linus Tech Tips did a piece on how anti-consumer apple were with him over his work station.


I'll just plug in a mouse thanks.

I own a lot of apple products as do my family and even 6+ years old stuff still works perfectly I’ve never had an iPhone “go wrong” even my iPhone 4s I use a a back up still works well as does an old iPhone 4 in the house. There was even an iPhone 3GS in use by a family member up until 6 months ago. My MacBook is 3 years old and if I took it out of the box new it would be the same as it is.

Samuel T. Cogley

QuintusFabius wrote: »

I agree with you about 3D - total flop, didn't work in the 50s, didn't work in the 80s and still not working in the 2010s ... in fact I don't think they bother making 3d TVs now.

But HD and 4K were game changers, watching movies and sports especially in HD and now 4K was a WOW moment for me .... couldn't watch on SD now.

To be fair though, sticking with HD and using the extra bandwidth for 60 Frames Per Second would have been much better for Sport... and Porn.

fonecrusher1

Wasn't there a survey done a few years ago that concluded that the vast majority of Apple product buyers bought them primarily for the design of the product over performance.

wexie

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

To be fair though, sticking with HD and using the extra bandwidth for 60 Frames Per Second would have been much better for Sport... and Porn.

How old were you when you realized you could watch pornhub on your smarttv?

I was today years old

Samuel T. Cogley

wexie wrote: »

How old were you when you realized you could watch pornhub on your smarttv?

I was today years old

Not sure my lodger would like that...

OldMrBrennan83

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

Not sure my lodger would like that...

They might join in.

Samuel T. Cogley

Patww79 wrote: »

They might join in.

The wife defo wouldn't like that.

KungPao

wexie wrote: »

How old were you when you realized you could watch pornhub on your smarttv?

I was today years old

Is there a CCleaner for smart TVs? Asking for a friend!

Blazer

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

LOL bollocks. At best they're in a nice box, they've had endless issues with design in the last few years. Then they try and make you repair through themselves, that's even if they'll do the repair. They've never been better, just different. Now they're 'different' in all the wrong ways just using off the shelf tech for double the price. And for some reason the fanbois keep trying to defend their anti-consumer nonsense.

Sorry man but ye fandroid lads are blinkered.
Look at huawei’s latest flagship phone “mate 20 pro”.
Same price as iPhone.
Loads of people have issues with green backlight bleeding and Huawei tried to pass it off as an oled feature.
I sent an iPhone back to Apple last Monday for replacement battery.
UPS came to collect it, delivered it to Apple who fixed it Tuesday and UPS delivered it back to me on Wednesday.
Show me an android phone manufacturer who can deliver the same service??
Thought so!!!

mammajamma

sbs2010 wrote: »

Not all but many consumer electronics seem to have a fixed average price point for a high range model.

A couple of years ago I found an old newspaper from 1995 or so with a full page ad for phones. They were £200.

An €800 iPhone is similar money today taking inflation and disposable income into account.

The manufacturers keep innovating to keep justifying the high price which would fall otherwise due to competition, market saturation, etc.

But for a given item the "high price " remains remarkably static in real terms over the years.

It may seem like a static constant when only equating time/inflation.

But when you add actual innovation into it? The ability to send text messaging was huge, big colourful screens was huge, smart phones were huge. But how many years old are those true innovations?

A 200 euro phone back at the turn of the century was dripping innovation. Now what are you getting in return for paying the same equivalent price?

What is an 800 euro phone doing today, that an 800 euro phone wasn't doing last year? Or the year before that? Or the year before that? Negligible stuff.

Samuel T. Cogley

Blazer wrote: »

Sorry man but ye fandroid lads are blinkered.
Look at huawei’s latest flagship phone “mate 20 pro”.
Same price as iPhone.
Loads of people have issues with green backlight bleeding and Huawei tried to pass it off as an oles feature.
I sent an iPhone back to Apple last Monday for replacement battery.
UPS came to collect it, delivered it to Apple who fixed it Tuesday and UPS delivered it back to me on Wednesday.
Show me an android phone manufacturer who can deliver the same service??
Thought so!!!

I don't have to send my stuff back tbh.