Device Lifetimes

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jamesrt

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#214334 7-May-2017 17:23

It's a small tale of woe, in that my wife's Kobo unexpectedly up and died this morning whilst she was reading a book on it. It's definitely dead, Jim. It has shuffled off this mortal coil, and it's pushing up daisies. And the poor thing was barely 18 months old; maybe 2 years tops. And it's not the first unit that's done this - the failed device is the replacement for an earlier one that was replaced after it died about the same age. "The Wisdom of the Internet" is that apparently this sort of failure on a Kobo is quite common - they just aren't that well designed, and not very robust.

However, my 80Gb 5.5G Video iPod TouchWheel just seems to keep trucking on. It was purchased as a gift for a "major milestone" birthday just over 10 years ago - yeah, I've had another major milestone since, but the iPod just carries on. Sure, the battery life these days can be measured in minutes; but I could probably fix that if I needed to - I don't, because it stays in the car, tethered to the stereo.

So, I have a 10-year old iPod TouchWheel that is still in regular use (on long car trips), which I think is fairly impressive.

What is the oldest electronic device / gadget still in regular use that YOU own?

Oldest device owner gets bragging rights!

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Geektastic

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#1777225 7-May-2017 17:32

A Sony Worldband radio which I bought around 1998 I think.

mattwnz

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#1777231 7-May-2017 17:38

I have heaps. Sony walkman from the 80's. Nintendo game and watch from the early 80's . All still work fine, although the rubber belts usually perish and need replacing on the old electronics.

farcus

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#1777232 7-May-2017 17:38

2010 Amazon Kindle Keyboard
2010 Lenovo Thinkpad
2005 Sony Walkman NW-A3000 (still one of the best sounding portable devices I have heard - significantly better than the ipods of the same era - but with god awful management software)

shk292

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#1777276 7-May-2017 18:19

Not sure if its gadgety enough to count, but I have a Casio digital alarm clock that has woken me up every work day since I bought it in 1991 - have had to change the batteries 4-5 times since then though.

And talking of Casio, the scientific calculator I was given for 6th form in 1982 is still going strong despite a cracked case. Recently dug it out of a desk drawer to help teach my son maths. I also found a manual online (in Spanish), so I can still program it

dafman

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#1777283 7-May-2017 18:27

Panny TH-42PV500 Viera 720p (marketed as HD-ready at the time of sale!) still kicking on 12 years later. Won't part with it till it dies.

And it kills my 2017 Sony 4K for contrast!

RIP plasma

invisibleman18

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#1777321 7-May-2017 19:04

Got a casio clock radio by my bedside that is probably 20 years old at least. Never listen to the radio anymore, just use it as a clock really but everything still works. Also a Casio digital camera that would be around 10 years or so that's still going strong. My Dell laptop is just over 6 years old now and also still going which is the longest I've had a laptop. Battery no longer works so it has to be plugged in to use it and can be a bit slow, but perfectly adequate for my needs. The previous 2 I had before this one both packed up in 3 years.

elpenguino

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#1777408 7-May-2017 21:04

I've got a 2016 Note 7 !!

Most of the posters in this thread are just like chimpanzees on MDMA, full of feelings of bonhomie, joy, and optimism. Fred99 8/4/21

PhantomNVD

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#1777410 7-May-2017 21:07

iPod Mini (circa 2004) also just plugged into the car stereo as battery long gone (but still recognised and useable via iTunes for uploading new songs!)

Apple products have phenomenal lifespan and support (and resale) compared to other handheld electronics.

My son still uses my old (AA battery) 1994 Phillips CD "Walkman" to listen to current library audiobooks though, so Apple still have some catching up to do as this still works perfectly over 20 years later!

freitasm

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#1777412 7-May-2017 21:10

An Omega Seamaster watch, 20 years this year, only changed battery four times and keeps time better than some smartphones. Oh, sorry, not a gadget? But it's got a battery!

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vexxxboy

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#1777414 7-May-2017 21:18

freitasm:

An Omega Seamaster watch, 20 years this year, only changed battery four times and keeps time better than some smartphones. Oh, sorry, not a gadget? But it's got a battery!

My Astina divers watch is getting on to 15 years and it has never been off my wrist in all that time except to replace the battery, still keeps great time. Would be lost without out.

update lol, my wife gave it to me and she said it is closer to 22 years old, never doubt the wife.

Common sense is not as common as you think.

kingjj

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#1777433 7-May-2017 22:35

Like a few of the above I've got a clock radio beside the bed that is older than myself (30+ years). The tuning knob fell off about 15 years ago and was replaced with a plastic bolt from a kids construction set (strangely it fit perfectly) and the aerial dropped off about 10 years ago and was replaced with a piece of wire that was lying around. Pairs up well with the 12 year old lamp next to it that is still on the original bulb.

Aredwood

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#1777455 7-May-2017 23:29

Rectifier set power supply

This one is used as the charger for 2x 100AH backup batteries for my router, wifi Ap, ect. It is actually one of the newer ones that I have. The older ones were made in late 70s. I have it set to output 13.6V, But with a simple resistor swap it can output up to 50V or so. It is running via a timer to take advantage of the peak / offpeak pricing with Flick electric. But used to be switched on 24/7.

When it was still being used for it's intended purpose (in a bank of 8 or so as part of the power supply system for a telephone exchange) it would have most likely also been switched on 24/7, So definitely a contender for highest total hours of use.

mattwnz

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#1777458 8-May-2017 00:23

I've got a Columbus radio, an old valve one believe it is NZ made and dates back to 1952, and is in use everyday, so that makes it 65 years old.. Some retailers could learn a thing or two about how long products should last for, if they think 5 years is reasonable

BlueShift

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#1777506 8-May-2017 08:47

My bedside clock radio is over 30 years old. I actually replaced with a modern shiny ipod dock one about 5 years back but found that the blue led numbers on it were so bright I could literally find it with my eyes closed, so that got shoved in the spare room, and old faithful came back.

Over the years I've probably retired thousands of bucks of nifty gadgets that are still in working order just because they're obsolete and/or replaced by a newer, cooler one. OTOH, there have been quite a few that died while still be regularly used (mostly DVD players for some reason).

Fred99

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#1777522 8-May-2017 09:06

I've got a 1960s "Autocrat" transistor benchtop radio we use every day. It needed some TLC - the rope/cable connecting the tuning dial to the tuning capacitor broke - and over the years the maximum volume slowly decreased to the point it was almost inaudible. I replaced the cable and the electrolytic caps- now it works as good as new.

AM only - "low-fi" of course - but for a kitchen radio to listen to RNZ news etc in the morning etc, it's perfect.

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