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Humanist_Activist

(7,670 posts)

46. Its called market saturation, it happens with pretty much every durable consumer good...

Wed May 4, 2016, 01:54 PM

May 2016

the demand for automatic dishwashers I'm sure was a hot commodity when they first came out, but now we only buy them when we have to, when they break, wear down, and don't work as well anymore. Same for PCs, laptops, tablets, smartphones, etc. Smartphones are the hot new thing, but once everyone who wants one has one, and they like it, then the cycle of upgrades/binge buying is going to slow down, despite the incentives that exist through cellular services.

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Are Smartphones Doomed to the Same Fate as Personal Computers? [View all] marmar May 2016 OP

Good, maybe they'll stop charging $500 for a new phone. auntpurl May 2016 #1

The only reason they cost $500 is because they are made overseas with cheap labor. LiberalFighter May 2016 #19

Oh no, that is absurd. Jackie Wilson Said May 2016 #26

Broken clocks are right twice a day. cleanhippie May 2016 #62

like n/t okieinpain May 2016 #63

I am currently writing product descriptions for cellphone... ScreamingMeemie May 2016 #38

Well duh, FoxNewsSucks May 2016 #2

There is one thing you are not accounting for GummyBearz May 2016 #9

When all they offer in the new version is a slightly better camera, moving the headphone port to the hughee99 May 2016 #34

Yes GummyBearz May 2016 #36

wifi changes the equation Mosby May 2016 #56

Not unless they get rid of data caps. RichVRichV May 2016 #39

Data caps have been slowly improving GummyBearz May 2016 #41

2GBs is a 1.5 hour movie download. Nice to get but hardly a deal breaker. n/t RichVRichV May 2016 #49

The next big thing will be a combined device... apnu May 2016 #17

This is the right answer tkmorris May 2016 #45

Given how lucrative the "phablet" market is for phones apnu May 2016 #48

$100 tab & a cell phone. That's about it for me... Eleanors38 May 2016 #60

Bingo! brush May 2016 #54

And so it goes . . . JustAnotherGen May 2016 #3

The idea of upgrading a perfectly funtional edhopper May 2016 #4

Planned obsolescence, it's been working for the automobile industry for decades tularetom May 2016 #6

Technology does not work that way randr May 2016 #10

Which are unnecesarry for most people edhopper May 2016 #24

Most people use their phones for more than that. FLPanhandle May 2016 #30

And all of those work as well edhopper May 2016 #32

They reached that point a while back. RichVRichV May 2016 #44

true that edhopper May 2016 #53

I just jumped from an s4 to an s7 Fuddnik May 2016 #58

Uh, Tom???? ProfessorGAC May 2016 #18

How true randr May 2016 #51

Nope, how long did a 1987 Chevy Cavalier last? Lucky to get 90k out of it.. snooper2 May 2016 #20

that is a lot of miles for a young car hfojvt May 2016 #40

Dont bjuy a Toshiba PC then... Jackie Wilson Said May 2016 #27

I have had very good results from Dell edhopper May 2016 #29

I was gonna go Apple but I use connectify, and they dont have one for Apple Jackie Wilson Said May 2016 #33

I won't diss Apple edhopper May 2016 #55

Smartphones have come a long way but seem to have peaked in performance/abilities FLPanhandle May 2016 #5

Until 5G is rolled out GummyBearz May 2016 #11

That will be worth upgrading for! FLPanhandle May 2016 #15

that was my old joke hfojvt May 2016 #42

No doubt there will be a 6G GummyBearz May 2016 #47

They'd have done better to bring out updates more slowly. LisaM May 2016 #7

I always keep my previous phone in case something like that were to happen. frylock May 2016 #35

It was my first smartphone. I did (do) still have my old flipphone LisaM May 2016 #43

I had my old non-texting cell phone for 10 years before the battery would no longer hold a charge. CrispyQ May 2016 #8

I just upgraded to the Galaxy S7 gollygee May 2016 #12

+1000 n/t JustAnotherGen May 2016 #21

My Galaxy S3 stopped being reliable last October MurrayDelph May 2016 #23

Do you think the advances in technology will come to a halt? randr May 2016 #13

Just gotta say, I love all the Olde English D's in this thread.... marmar May 2016 #14

I'm from the D! GreenEyedLefty May 2016 #50

by the time the tower improvements to make faster network finally reach where i live dembotoz May 2016 #16

When they stop charging astronomical prices for new phones, get back to me. Initech May 2016 #22

soon to be replaced w/the SmartAnalPlug with spinal column interface Bucky May 2016 #25

Upgrading the dumb anal plug... chknltl May 2016 #31

I'm not convinced that personal computers have gone (or are going) extinct Orrex May 2016 #28

I just bought a small PC, and wish it was smaller... The boxes are unnecessarily huge to underahedgerow May 2016 #52

I think they'll be around for a good while, but as the article states... Lizzie Poppet May 2016 #37

Its called market saturation, it happens with pretty much every durable consumer good... Humanist_Activist May 2016 #46

expensive overpriced phones have peaked. Going forward it will not be apple seeing growth. Egnever May 2016 #57

Yep. nt bemildred May 2016 #59

Eventually once they offload the audio/visual and sensors into wearables MowCowWhoHow III May 2016 #61