I wonder if anyone has ever talked about how difficult it is to challenge capitalist imperatives while capitalists own all the factories and their supply chains.
this post was submitted on 31 Jan 2026
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Indeed, I know someone who has an early 1980's Kenmore Microwave, Made in Japan, with a single dial control for the timer and the damn thing is still working in the kitchen.
My grandparents had a microwave so old it had mechanical buttons you push in that would pop out when it was done. It was freaking huge, and so old fashioned it had those red numbers like old clocks or calculators, it even had a turkey setting, as if people want microwaved turkey. Can you imagine someone trying to feed you microwaved turkey for thanksgiving? The thing weighed a ton and people were afraid to be near it while it was running. But it was still working in 2015 or so, after my uncle had inherited it and he finally said he lost interest in seeing how long it would last. The microwave won in the battle of wills, but still found itself in some landfill.
Oh, do I am reminded of those damned stacks of inkjet printers in some forgotten room in the office, or my cousin's small collection of cut-rate plastic washing machines in his backyard.
In any system -- capitalist or communist -- once mass manufacture became normal, a product is expected to last for a certain period of time until it breaks, and whether it could be repaired or not. But right now and in this age where most manufacture of consumer goods is now conducted by one country on this planet, any corporation will want to keep profits and business going, so by consequence with planned obsolescence they reduce the product's quality or lifetime which will of course force the consumer to replace the product with a new one anywhere from a few years to a few days. And why corporations are increasingly anti-repair by the day, by adding minute deliberate changes in their products in their attempts to defeat what they call "unauthorized" repair.
I still can't believe how normalized not repairing your own things became in just a period of decades. My grandparents, now deceased, were born in the thirties. Repairing things is just what you did all the way up until their fifth decade, when it started to change. Even they noticed how they just went along with it over time, since technology got past what two former farm kids who grew up without electricity could easily understand.
Intentionally over-complicating a device so that it must be repaired (additional revenue) by a 'professional' that they approve of (additional revenue) with their own parts (additional revenue).
You might expect a company that makes easier-to-repair things to retain more customers, but 'more customers' is an incentive because it means more profit, but if you can get several more profit more directly by doing these shenanigans, then why wouldn't unregulated capitalists go in that direction?
Ya... That just won't work, at least here in the states. Those old appliances were great and lasted forever but they consumed a massive amount of energy, they would never pass federal regulations now a days.
Also fridges from the 50s had a tiny tendency to explode from time to time.
Little bit of this, little bit of that.
Bold of you to assume those federal regulations still exist
Ummm... They do. Since you know... They sell them... In the US.
1 I'm not really being that serious, 2 even if the regulations vanished; companies are lazy, they wouldn't just switch production.
I'm sure it's possible to fix those issues without reducing its lifespan to one day over its warranty.
O God yes. And they have good ones.
The issue is they cheap out on the resistance sensors and put in too many control boards and features into these appliances that amount to jack but sound great on a spec sheet.
There was a startup that wanted to build exactly that, a washing machine that would last a lifetime.
I like what they're going for, but it's not so much "it will never break" but that it's easy to swap out the parts that break or become obsolete.
You’re using past-tense, did they fail?
Can't see anything about where to get one
And the site copyright is 2021
I don't think they are doing much anymore
That front display it has definitely looks like it would die in a decade so I'm doubtful they achieved their goal. So many failure points.
Every part doesn't have to last forever if the parts can be replaced...
Washing machine of Theseus
Yes and no. Yes they should build those old patents in a general sense. No they should not follow those patents exactly because they contained things like asbestos and lead.
Reliable appliances already exist. They cost 10x what the cheap stuff costs and very, very few people buy them because “why would I get this washing machine for $5000 when I can get this other one with more features for $500?”.
Having looked at many appliances I don't think it is true. I spent 4x for a high end Bosch that died in 3 years just like the Kitchenaid it replaced. I replaced it with another Bosch and discovered the new model took away buttons and put behind a cloud app. Miele pushes lock in with their own custom detergents for their Dishwashers and Laundry machines. You end up paying more for less reliability now.
I am still considering a Speed Queen which will be $5000 for a set compared to a $1600 LG but have read many stories of lemon Speed Queens. They might be built with large struts and thick stainless steal, but they now all have Chinese manufactured controller boards that are $700 to replace. My Maytag's controller board was $150.
The cheap models of appliances are now the reliable ones because they are simple. And when they fail they are cheap to repair.
TBF, there are lot of the “10x as expensive” appliances that are absolute garbage, have awful reliability and are very expensive to repair. The “best” would be to buy commercial kitchen gear, but it isn’t pretty enamel colors or designer chic. Of course there are still a few reliable standouts like the typical Kitchen Aid stand mixer, but like you said, a hand mixer can be had for $50, and Kitchen Aids can cost $500+.
FYI: today's Kitchen Aids are not the beasts of durability of years gone by
I’ve had one for a decade, moderate use, and it works great. Importantly, it is repairable. The company offers many replacement parts and there are aftermarket ones as well.
And WiFi.
And AI.
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just a reminder that survivorship bias is a huge thing. There have been shitty products from back then too. Many. We just don't see them now, because only the few good products have survived. The same happens today.
Its not all planned obsolescence and not all obsolescence is bad. Imagine having a 40 year old fridge that doesn't cool shit and burn 3 times the energy.
2 tips for good quality products now: end capitalism and spend money on the right products (not just convenience) and the right people to repair them.
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