Todays electronics is fast. Imagine how much natural resources could be saved if manufacturers delivered software support until device is truly unusable due to hardware limitations.
This post is being written on 3 years old flagship killer that has never dropped any frame, reached 0% battery or crashed but wont get system updates anymore because...
seemingly 3 years old 7nm flagship SoC is too weak to be used for next decade?
We could have taken that approach with cars as well. Who needs more than 20HP anyway? We should have just kept repairing the Model T and been happier with what we have, right?
Maybe the EU πͺπΊ should legislate that German car companies should cease to produce new cars and instead commit to repairing what they have already produced, for free presumably?
Take your disgust at this post and now apply it to what you're talking about π.
You pay to get your car serviced but with your phone you don't even have that option. When the manufacturer drops support, you don't even have the option to pay for prolonged software support.
And there is a large selection of different manufacturers that can make these parts once the OEM stops. Try to find a company that is making and stocking a 5 year old phone display, camera module, etc
To be fair, cars can be used indefinitely if maintained. No blackberry from decades past can function on today's cell and Internet networks effectively, even if maintained.
20 hursepurses is maybe pushing it, but 30 to 50 kW would actually be plenty if we kept our cars lightweight and aerodynamically efficient instead of insisting on 3-ton ugly boxes with the frontal area of a house.
Hell, for a single-person lightweight (<40 kg empty weight) electrical vehicle that is expected to go no faster than 30 km/h (often legally limited to 25km/h here in EU) and requires no license to operate, 250 to 300 W is more than enough.
Heh, I always find someone pushing 30 km/h with one's own muscles, not caring about weather going through rain, cold and heatwaves while carrying what they need to carry far more hardcore (won't use the word "masculine" because people of any gender do this) than someone sitting in a heated seat in climate-controlled box that moves forward without any effort from the user and not even requiring significant driving skills in the age of automatic transmission, traction control and all the other electronic assists (ABS is fine and recommended)π
Cars are heavier with long noses because of crumple zones and stronger cabins that are exponentially safer for passengers than older cars. They're also far safer for pedestrians and bicyclists. Lotus makes cars that are impractical for any amount of cargo (you're not doing your grocery shopping in it) and their crash tests show they're far less safe for drivers and pedestrians. 50kW couldn't safely accelerate even a tiny 1 tonne vehicle onto any highway.
For a lot of people, particularly in large, spread out countries there's no choice. Someone has to deliver freight, some people have to commute to work, etc.
OP is talking about software updates, and you are talking about one of the few products nowadays where decades old models can be maintained without excessive cost.
In most countries the Model T is exempt from any kind of safety inspection and classes of tax, making it an excellent option for the maliciously compliant engineer π
Maybe the EU πͺπΊ should legislate that German car companies should cease to produce new cars and instead commit to repairing what they have already produced, for free presumably?
Why not? While they're at it they can start making buses and trains.
Mercedes in particular absolutely nailed bus design with their Citaro, then promptly proceeded to make a hideous looking successor π€’ perhaps their car designers can fix that