Is it likely that some products are manufactured with known defects intended to break shortly after the warranty period is up?
If so, what are the short, mid, and long term effects of this practice?
...computers and cellphones clear examples of Planned obsolescence
Planned obsolescence is different than planned breakdown.
When something is obsolete, it does not mean that it does not work. For example, a lot of people are still using Windows 7 machines that are 10ish years old. A lot of people consider these machine obsolete, but they are still adequate machines for some users.
But if a products breaks, usually the best option between repair or replace is to replace it.
I am talking more about products that are no longer being made obsolete due to emerging technologies. Washing machines, dishwashers, air conditioners, etc..
Manufacturers are implementing some new tech into these products, like being able to be controlled by a smartphone, but most people will not replace their working washing machine with a "smart" washing machine because the new technology does not provide enough benefit to justify the cost.
The thing that got me thinking about this was my TV. It only lasted a year and 4 months before it went kaput. We got it at Costco so luckily it came with a second year warranty. A local repair guy picked it up and diagnosed it and told the warranty company how much it would be to fix it. The warranty company decided the repair was not worth it so they refunded our money. While talking to the repair guy, he told me that new TVs were not lasting long. A couple of years is all you can expect, he said.
Well up to now, TVs were much like cell phones and computers - they were constantly improving with new technology. So there was always a good incentive to upgrade every few years.
But we might be at the point where we are not going to see significant improvements.
They are already very thin.
They already have great brightness and contrast and colour reproduction.
And they are at 4K definition.
Definition is what they always improved before, but now we are at the point where higher definition will not make a noticeable difference.
Do you know the recommended viewing distance for a 65" 4K TV?
Without Googling, give it a guess.