Things don’t seem to go well for the Industry lately. PSUs that explode, melting adapters, EXPO might burn your CPU, etc. I think these are bad news not only for the manufacturers but consumers, as well. We are the ones who buy a product and might face these problems in the end. And usually is a troublesome and time-consuming process to deal with. But my real question is, was that always like this, or were some things drastically changed leading to this situation?
I think some factors have changed, but it is more. The Internet changed the way we are informed and communicate. Social Media, like Reddit, Twitter, etc., are also playing their part. There is a higher-user database that, statically, might face an issue. Different hardware combinations are also important. Recycling components might have a slight impact. I think that the higher-user database and hardware combinations are crucial. The same goes for planned obsolesce and anti-consuming practices (you don’t own your product).
But some things are still the same. Companies are still looking for higher profits, whatever that might mean. Cheaper parts, low-paid employees (non-expert or inexperienced), inadequate quality control, many hours in miserable working conditions, etc. Moreover, at least picking-packing and transporting are also crucial for hardware. There is a background that we usually ignore for a product until it reaches us, the consumers. Still, it is essential. Retailers play their part, too. It is not unusual to get tricked into buying something that we don’t need or even useless, only for a store to have its bonuses. And there is something more. Sales and after-sales support either from the OEM or the retailer. It isn’t easy to RMA/DOA on some occasions. It might even retailers line to make it more difficult. Depending on the problem, of course.
Another thing to consider is Marketing strategies and their latest form, influencing. There is an old saying that describes this situation. “If companies spend more on R&D and less on Marketing, we would have better products.” I think this is true. Moreover, reviewers and influencers are not all suitable. Some of them might accept shady terms, or they are not knowledgeable. Some companies demand control of their product review. Not so innocent. It is a bad practice when you are lying about a product and are aware of it. Not to mention that some companies promote their competitor’s failures by any means to their benefit.
The last thing that changed a bit is the pricey products. Nowadays, a price tag doesn’t mean a better product than it used to be. Of course, suspiciously low-cost products should raise your eye-brow. Some things didn’t change. But what has changed is that pricier products are only heavily priced without a good reason, most of the time. And some of them don’t even meet the expected quality standards. VFM and Overpriced products are terms we all use nowadays.
So, can we expect something better or even a solution to all of these? Well, the answer is not so simple. I think that could be improved, but it won’t change drastically. The simplest thing to change is OEMs and retailers’ practices and support. Each of them should take responsibility and respect their customers more. Hiding or ignoring a problem is not a solution but a bad practice. It could be a good start, at least. I don’t know if things will ever change, but a man can hope, can’t he?
