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The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

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Re: The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

#271

Post by TeMPOraL »

tormeh wrote: post #145
madeofpalk wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe it'll play out differently on the low-end, but on the high-end it seems there's been some "soft collusion" where one manufacturer raised prices, and others saw that as a signal they can also raise their prices.

I think it's more that higher price = more flagship. A higher price is in itself a sales argument to a certain audience. If you just want a competent phone there's no reason to buy a flagship one.

IDK, I always save up and buy flagships, and convinced my wife to do the same, because that's the only reliable way to guarantee neither of us will have to suffer through a phone that chokes under its own stock software, and is a constant pain to use. So yes, I'm one of those for whom "higher price = more flagship" is an argument, mostly because so far, "most flagship = bestest specs" and "= most care taken by the vendor".

Re: The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

#272

Post by MitPitt »

mk_stjames wrote: post #269

In the last decade and a half I have owned 4 phones total and I have yet to have one that has such a poor battery that it has needed the battery replaced before the phone itself was essentially obsolete. I don't know if maybe other people just use their phone so much more than me... Mine sits here on my desks and I look at it for notifications every now and then, maybe send a text... Thats it. Take a phone call once…

So, you don't use your phone, and it doesn't run out of battery. Interesting observation.

Re: The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

#273

Post by TeMPOraL »

scarface_74 wrote: post #108
Mystery-Machine wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is great because the more expensive phones get, the less likely people will want to replace their 2-year old phone with a new one. Plus, those new high end features...there have been barely any new features in a smartphone in the last 5+ years (I'm exaggerating a bit of course). Check out Fairphone. That's an interesting project!

Isn’t this the ultimate “let them eat cake” argument? There are many people in the world who can’t afford anything but the cheapest phone.

IDK, cheapest phones don't work, and I don't think the store price was ever that clear a differentiator, as telcos routinely disrupt this signal. You can easily get the newest flagships, and phones from the next price group below, cheaper than you can get mid-range phones - as long as you're willing and able to sign up for a 1-2 years contract.

Re: The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

#274

Post by TeMPOraL »

scarface_74 wrote: post #174
Barrin92 wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Those people don't live in the EU. And anyhow the higher cost of the phone are balanced out by the increased longevity and support of the device. Lifetime cost may very well be lower when people end up replacing their phones less frequently and just have to swap a battery.

Has the EU also made poverty illegal?

Poverty is a relative thing, not absolute. As for your link downthread - homelessness has many more causes than just not being able to afford a place to stay.

Re: The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

#275

Post by c2h5oh »

mk_stjames wrote: post #269

In the last decade and a half I have owned 4 phones total and I have yet to have one that has such a poor battery that it has needed the battery replaced before the phone itself was essentially obsolete. I don't know if maybe other people just use their phone so much more than me... Mine sits here on my desks and I look at it for notifications every now and then, maybe send a text... Thats it. Take a phone call once…

I the last 5 years alone I've replaced batteries in:

- Pixel 4, more than doubling it's battery life

- Pixel 2 XL making it usable again

- One Plus 6 almost doubling it's battery life

So clearly mileage will vary.

Re: The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

#276

Post by c2h5oh »

bjackman wrote: post #4

I think this is fantastic news. It will be interesting to see how it affects the amount of phones that get discarded. I think the next bottleneck is likely to be software longevity. This has improved a lot lately! But basically I think phones have now reached a place like laptops and desktops where HW capabilities are stable, and there's no good reason for devices to be obsolete in 5 years any more. I wonder if regul…

Qualcomm is still terrible at getting their SoCs supported in mainline kernel and as a result as soon as they stop providing updates to the kernel fork you're SoL.

This can happen as early as 3 years after initial SoC launch

Re: The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

#277

Post by c2h5oh »

askonomm wrote: post #211

No more waterproof phones I guess. This saddens me. I find it very useful when driving my bike outdoors with it being mounted to my bike.

You can still have a waterproof phone with replaceable battery through the revolutionary technology of gaskets ;-) There were several models like that already before manufacturers figured out it's cheaper to glue them

Re: The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

#278

Post by mk_stjames »

MitPitt wrote: post #272
mk_stjames wrote: post #269

In the last decade and a half I have owned 4 phones total and I have yet to have one that has such a poor battery that it has needed the battery replaced before the phone itself was essentially obsolete. I don't know if maybe other people just use their phone so much more than me... Mine sits here on my desks and I look at it for notifications every now and then, maybe send a text... Thats it. Take a phone call once…

So, you don't use your phone, and it doesn't run out of battery. Interesting observation.

The revelation here isn't that I don't understand batteries, it's that I don't understand how people use their phones...

Re: The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

#279

Post by scarface_74 »

TeMPOraL wrote: post #273
scarface_74 wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn’t this the ultimate “let them eat cake” argument? There are many people in the world who can’t afford anything but the cheapest phone.

IDK, cheapest phones don't work, and I don't think the store price was ever that clear a differentiator, as telcos routinely disrupt this signal. You can easily get the newest flagships, and phones from the next price group below, cheaper than you can get mid-range phones - as long as you're willing and able to sign up for a 1-2 years contract.

Outside of the US and a few other companies, people pay full price for phones.

Re: The EU’s fight for user-replaceable smartphone batteries

#280

Post by TeMPOraL »

scarface_74 wrote: post #279
TeMPOraL wrote: post #273

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IDK, cheapest phones don't work, and I don't think the store price was ever that clear a differentiator, as telcos routinely disrupt this signal. You can easily get the newest flagships, and phones from the next price group below, cheaper than you can get mid-range phones - as long as you're willing and able to sign up for a 1-2 years contract.

Outside of the US and a few other companies, people pay full price for phones.

Eventually, always, but not up front. Poorer people "prefer" somewhat higher price that gets spread out over years, to paying full price up front.

(I put "prefer" in quotes, because it's less of a choice, and more the only option they can afford.)

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