#plannedobsolescence — Public Fediverse posts

#USPIRG - #ElectronicWaste Graveyard

Expiring software or server support is responsible for up to 1.7 billion pounds of #EWaste over past decade.

by Nathan Proctor, Lucas Gutterman
April 10, 2025, Updated Jul 14, 2026

"Increasingly, we’re pushed to trash tech that should still work, such as #Chromebooks, phones, and smart home devices, just because the software has expired or lost support. This database lists more than 100 tech products that have stopped working after manufacturers dropped support. It calculates the total weight of all these dead devices which have joined the 68 million tons of electronic waste disposed of each year.

"When software expires, or web cloud services end, consumers and schools are pushed to replace devices that should still work. For example, our 'Chromebook Churn' report found that tens of thousands of laptops were being replaced by schools because the software had expired. Since the graveyard was released in 2025, we have tracked a wave of new product shutdowns, some affecting a handful of niche gadgets, and one, Microsoft’s end of support for Windows 10, affecting 400 million computers at once.

"We now estimate that up to 1.7 billion pounds of electronic waste has been created by expired software and canceled cloud services since 2014. The largest contributor by far was the expiration of #Windows10 resulting in up to 1.6 billion pounds of electronic waste from PCs that can’t upgrade to #Windows11.

"13 #AmazonKindle models have also joined the graveyard this year. On May 20, 2026, Amazon cut off store access for 13 older Kindle models released between 2007 and 2012 — devices that, in many cases, are still being used daily by their original owners more than a decade later. The e-readers still turn on, still display books already downloaded, and still hold a charge. What they can no longer do is buy or download anything new, effectively ending their useful life as e-readers for many owners. Amazon’s shutdown means these e-readers can’t even borrow books from users’ local public #libraries.

"For the planet, this lack of support results in a death by a thousand server support cuts. This e-waste adds up. At the very least we need lifetime transparency for tech—we should know how long manufacturers guarantee the tech we buy will work before we buy it."

Read more:
https://pirg.org/edfund/resources/electronic-waste-graveyard/

#SolarPunkSunday #RightToRepair #RightToRepairLaws #PlannedObsolescence #FixIt #ReuseRepairRestore

New push for #RightToRepair in #Maine aims to cut costs, reduce #ElectronicWaste

Vivien Leigh, August 13, 2026

"Advocates, lawmakers, and business owners have started a renewed push to help #Mainers fix #phones, #laptops, and other small #electronics more easily.

"Supporters set up a mock electronic-waste graveyard on Thursday to underscore the need for 'Right to Repair' reforms.

"Sheldon Arford owns Maine Computer Services, an independent repair shop. He showed nearly six computers that still work but are on their way to the recycling bin.

" 'They can't take the current version of Windows, and #Windows10 no longer gets security updates,' Arford explained. [Um, Sheldon, have you heard of #Linux ?]

"The business owner joined advocates and lawmakers for a mock memorial service focused on electronics that stopped working after their software expired, such as Windows 10 computers, #vacuums, #VideoGames, and over a dozen #Kindle models."

Read more:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/push-repair-maine-aims-cut-195219208.html

#SolarPunkSunday #PlannedObsolescence #RightToRepairLaws #MainePol #FixIt #EWaste #ReuseRepairRestore

#Mainers throw sobbing eulogy for #DeadTech in #RightToRepair battle

Fri, August 14, 2026

#AugustaME (WGME) -- "Local #activists held a literal funeral outside the Maine State Capitol on Thursday, mourning over mock gravestones dedicated to #smartphones, blenders and #SmartRefrigerators.

"They claim manufacturers are discarding technology early and retiring models that still work so customers will buy new ones.

"The activists are fighting for the legal 'right to repair' their gadgets instead of being forced into expensive, corporate-mandated upgrades when devices stop working.

" 'I'd like to offer these remembrances for many #AmazonKindles. Their screens lit up our work and will always be remembered. On May 20, Amazon cut off 13 models of Kindles — every model made before 2012,' Environment Maine Field Director Lily McGovern said. 'I have one of those very models. The company said they had to do this because the technology has come a long way. Meanwhile, I thought reading text on a screen was pretty much the same it had been. Silly me.'

"Maine already has a right-to-repair law for cars, but a bill addressing smartphones fell short by just two votes last spring."

Source:
https://wgme.com/news/local/mainers-throw-sobbing-eulogy-for-dead-tech-in-right-to-repair-battle-electronics-funeral-activists

#SolarPunkSunday #PlannedObsolescence #RightToRepairLaws #MainePol #FixIt #ReuseRepairRestore

@kokos @jwcph @iFixit

I can't believe in 2026 while the planet is burning , we still have to explain why #plannedobsolescence should be banned for ever.

Your obsolete ipads ( see iosref.com ) are useless because they are "internet devices" , without the freedom to use another operating system people :

- Leave them in their cave and buy a new one
- Or worst just dump them in the trash

Brands to avoid for electronic mobile waste :

- Apple
- Huawei
- Asus
- Samsung Since Android 16

@cobrate @regendans
Yes we hope so ....
But without an unlocking push from apple , it won't happen ...

The EU needs to force apple to stop #plannedobsolescence

@villebooks This is on top of adding layers of unnecessary complexity, adding to profit margins in #PlannedObsolescence.

Classic 'too much is never too much', in Western #Capitalism #greed, and #AbuseOfPower. Remove the abusers from power, asap.

Mijn presentatieklikker zat vol met een plakkerig goedje. Ik dacht wellicht dat het kwam door warmte (van het vast houden), maar veel meer apparaten met o.a. plastic knoppen hebben er last van (hmm #plannedobsolescence ?).

Weggooien is zonde, dus aan de slag!

- Bakje met warm water
- Baksoda
- Batterijen er uit halen
- Nat maken en dan flink wrijven, af en toe met gladde doek schoon wrijven

Heb jij ook een schoon apparaat, laat even weten hoe het ging 💪

I f*cking hate #PlannedObsolescence. #WeAreMorons

Meaningless busy work ridding people of purpose.

(1 side) People working to make a product that breaks due to planned obsolescence...

(2nd side) People working to afford the constantly breaking things on the other.

Cut and paste quote almost exact from @ErikUden

https://mastodon.social/@ErikUden@mastodon.de/116981656711196289

#Planned #Obsolescence #PlannedObsolescence

@tj Completely agree that these should need to be published by law!

Also, the reason I opted for the age-old Gaggia Classic with a manual grinder. I can get every part and repair it when needed.

And don't get me started on the fact that you can not buy any "dumb TV" anymore...

#righttorepair #plannedobsolescence

After having my Celestron SLT 130 telescope for some 10 years now, yesterday it broke. Exactly before the total solar eclipse next month...after I was preparing so much for it.

What broke? This shitty little plastic gear that got worn out over the years:

That's all. A terrible design pairing such badly made gears with metal ones. And now I cannot control the left/right movements of my telescope. And I cannot find a way to replace it. Or to buy the entire motor... Unless, maybe, I order it from USA/Canada and I pay a lot of money and may not arrive in time for the eclipse.

Hey Universe, not enough that I was already in a black hole mentally? You want more?! What else next ha?!

I give up man... :))

Fuck this shit. All of it. I wish I could sleep and just sleep. And not dream. But I can't even sleep for the past weeks. And when I do I always have nightmares.

Welcome to my downfall.

Is fine...I think I will survive. But that's the last thing I needed for the telescope to break. I also don't feel like buying a different one since it works, is just a little fucking gear/wheel....is just that I also broke something else when I opened it...so I likely need to get the entire engine for it...

I wish life was a stupid game and I can say: ok that's it, turn it off. I'll go back to the real life and not play this stupid game again.

#solareclipse #telescope #plannedobsolescence

My Shokz OpenRun Pro's are failing, specifically the power/volume+ button. Which apparently is a very well-known issue, due to a small plastic tube below the button that's failing after a while.

Turns out that even though this is a common and well-known issue, Shokz have stuck to the same setup for their subsequent models. So at this point, they just seem to be designed to fail. And of course you can’t repair them.

So I'm looking for a new pair of bone conducting headphones that are not Shokz. Because fuck them.

#righttorepair #plannedobsolescence

"In its day, however, the shift to planned obsolescence was in keeping with the views of a growing body of economists and businesspeople who felt that, unless you dealt in coffins, it was bad business and unsound economics to sell a person any product only once."

#JBMacKinnon, 2016

http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/the-l-e-d-quandary-why-theres-no-such-thing-as-built-to-last

(1/2)

#PlannedObsolescence

@Earl @RueNahcMohr it makes me think of #righttorepair and #plannedobsolescence and #schematics. Why aren't there laws requiring the posting of electronics schematics? With a schematic I would have a fighting chance of repairing this.

Science has gone to far... so we are trying to bring things back to order...
@FahrradkuecheGraz

#cargobike #DIY #repair #bikekitchen #cycling #welding #bullit #plannedobsolescence #bike #cycling #framebuilding #e-mobilityisalie

Bissell has totally dropped the ball on a battery replacement for my SpinWave floor cleaner. The damn thing is only about 8 years old but they don't offer batteries for it (and I can't find one online). They had the nerve to offer me a 20% discount on a new Bissell. Considering their inability to support customers, why would I ever buy another Bissell product? And yeah, that was my reply to them. #RightToRepair #PlannedObsolescence

Rejuvenating a Microsoft Surface Book w/ NixOS

> Why a Surface Book? Well, I found this one at a yard sale many moons ago. I paid next to nothing for it. I love the design and I especially love the gorgeous 16:10 display. Also, it does the neat party trick of separating the screen half from the...

#Guides #PlannedObsolescence #Enshittification #Linux #NixOS #ConsumerDisobedience #BryantReview

https://gardinerbryant.com/rejuvenating-a-microsoft-surface-book-w-nixos/?utm_campaign=widget&utm_source=mastodon

The other day, autofocus failed on my general-purpose camera lens (Sony 16-70/4). The other lens with me (Sony 70-350) works fine.

Now I learn that my lens is discontinued. And I’m traveling so I cannot track down a used lens in good condition. I didn’t want to miss any photos on my trip so I bought something else that is good enough for now.

In the meantime, I learned that the cost to repair my lens is … about the same as buying a replacement one. 🤯

#plannedobsolescence #photography

Quite incredible that this guy ( #Thinkpad x200s) - who is now at least 12 years old - is still alive and kicking! :blobrat_aww:

Also, this was the best keyboard ever, the Lenovo keyboards have been downgraded since then to become blend just like any other laptop keyboard. The trackpoint still works perfectly on it while it doesn't on my more recent lenovo (T490s, about 6 y.o.).
The fingerprint reader is much more reliable.
The screen is perfect, while T490 has a dead pixel band at the top.
It has a WiFi switch (😍) and a removeable battery.

Why are things getting worse instead of getting better? 😕

#ComputerProblems #PlannedObsolescence #Lenovo #OldieButGoodie

RE: https://mastodon.nz/@SimonCHulse/116672214015425700

Tagging for #SolarPunkSunday !

#PlannedObsolescence #Computing #MicrosoftSucks

PROTECTING THE RIGHT TO REPAIR

The first computer in my house was a Tandy 1000. It was made by RadioShack and it was the coolest thing I had ever seen. Sure, it was not much to look at with its light brown plastic case and monochrome screen. I am pretty sure my calculator from middle school has more processing power. The laptop I am typing on right now is basically a supercomputer when put up against that Tandy, but it […]

@dangillmor
This is great. Hopefully a burst to the ‘repairable’ tech movement. We, the whole world needs more of this.

Let’s end #PlannedObsolescence

> After Office 2019 for Mac reached end of support in October 2023, Microsoft assured customers their installed apps would "continue to function." The July 13, 2026 conversion instead drops the apps into a Microsoft-defined "reduced functionality mode," in which files can be opened and viewed but not edited or saved.

https://consumerrights.wiki/w/Microsoft_Office_2019_and_2021_for_Mac_view-only_conversion_(2026)

#microsoft #plannedobsolescence #obsolescence #lockin