How to fight psychological obsolescence?

‍

Fashions come and go and are an eternal restart, aren't they. It's almost the same thing when it comes to digital devices except that they never come back in fashion. This is called obsolescence, whether it is perceived, aesthetic or psychological.

The electronic devices that are affected by this still work very well, but they are seen as outdated, not working as fast as the latest models and with less advanced features.

According to the ADEME, 88% of people dispose of an appliance that is still in working order, even though it has never broken down.

This does not only concern our phones or computers, but all electronic devices in general, such as fridges, washing machines ...

As you can see, perceived or psychological obsolescence is not only a question of technical problems and aging devices.

‍

What is obsolescence?

Obsolescence is when a device becomes outdated or perceived as non-functional.

It's the programmed obsolescence that we hear about most often. And for good reason. Considered a crime since 2015, this practice is punishable by 2 years of imprisonment and 300,000 euros in fines.

Today, however, there is a wide typology of obsolescence that makes it difficult to punish the actors responsible.

‍

The different types

Direct obsolescence or programmed obsolescence

Without doubt the most publicized, programmed obsolescence, also called direct obsolescence, is implemented by manufacturers and aims to make devices obsolete after a certain time, and this in a totally voluntary way.

Why does product obsolescence exist? Simply to encourage the purchase of a new product.

‍

Indirect obsolescence

More subtle, indirect obsolescence does not affect the device in its components. The latter can no longer be used because various associated products are no longer functional or difficult to find.

The most obvious example is the Apple phone chargers that change very regularly and cannot be used on older generations.

It is the same thing whenan application becomes so power hungry and heavy for the current system on the tool that it is necessary to change hardware to support it.

‍

Obsolescence by incompatibility

Even more frustrating, this obsolescence is often encountered when we keep our digital devices long enough.

This happens when new operating systems cannot be installed due to lack of operating system compatibility.

‍

Perceived obsolescence, aesthetic or psychological

Perceived obsolescence, also called aesthetic, cultural or psychological obsolescence, is without a doubt the most difficult to circumvent, because it is born of ever more aggressive marketing.

It is simply the users who make their devices obsolete because they want to get rid of them, even before their end of technical life.

There are many reasons for this:

• aesthetics: the device simply does not appeal anymore;
• technological: it does not have the latest high-tech criteria;
• social: we want to have the same device as all the people around us.

More than half of the users making this choice have phones in their drawers that are still functional.

This psychological obsolescence is increasingly rapid, it follows the frantic pace of the release of new devices imposed by some major brands.

Apple has gone from releasing a new phone every 12 months to almost one release per quarter, or every 4 1/2 months. Instead of one phone per year, it's now 3. The difference is huge.

Samsung went from a new device every 12 months to 6 months and now down to 3 months. That is 4 new phones per year!

‍

3 ways to fight psychological obsolescence

1. Questioning overconsumption

The first thing to do is to highlight the environmental and social problems that this constant renewal produces.

This perceived obsolescence has serious consequences since it is the manufacturing and end of life of the devices that emit the most greenhouse gases.

Being informed about the ecological consequences of such actions allows you tothink twice before buying new appliances.

And there's no point in trying to plant trees to offset the emissions associated with these purchases, because the heart of the problem lies in the pollution associated with manufacturing and end-of-life.

‍

2. Review your needs

According to a survey commissioned by Back Market in 2016 and conducted by OpinionWay in 2016, there are "100 million phones sitting in our drawers" while still in working order.

It is important to ask the following questions to get out of this aesthetic obsolescence:

• Do I really need a new device?
• Can I repair or have repaired the one I am using?
• Is it a need or a desire to have the latest tool?

‍

3. Show the benefits of refurbishing

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you don't have to buy new. There are many refurbished computers, phones and all kinds of electronic devices.

To get out of this psychological obsolescence, it is best to opt for this solution which has only advantages:

• lower financial cost;
• life extension of digital devices;
• a lower environmental and social impact.

Whether it is for your professional computer park or your personal use, the refurbished solution is more and more popular because it is part of a circular economy approach.

‍

Conclusion

Aesthetic or perceived obsolescence cannot be considered a crime because the consumer is considered to bear some responsibility for this phenomenon.

Yet, several simple actions would reduce this psychological obsolescence:

• the slowdown in the rate of new product releases;
• Facilitating the repair or technical extension of equipment;
• optimizing the circulation of replaced products for final recycling.

You want to renew your computer fleet without buying new? Let's discuss your project together.

‍

Sources:

Aesthetic or psychological obsolescence

The champions of programmed obsolescence... psychological -

Even more formidable than programmed obsolescence: do you know about cultural obsolescence?

Apple and Samsung, champions of programmed obsolescence for consumers

Programmed obsolescence

What is software obsolescence? - HOP

‍