📱 Here’s why I Don’t Upgrade Gadgets Until I Need to

Learn the art of utilising your devices until end of life for greater satisfaction

Dec 24, 2022

I use my devices for a long time until they no longer work. When I upgrade, the old to new change feels significant. In this post, I showcase why I wait to upgrade and a framework to decide whether to upgrade your device.

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Today we are looking at how I upgrade my electronics. This last year, I've had to upgrade quite a few of my electronics. The difference between the old and the new was noticeable as I waited around five years before upgrading. Stick around till the end to learn about a framework by which you can assess whether or not you need to upgrade!

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The Story

I've never flown in business class, despite flying at least once in the past five years. Yet I am okay with that. I avoid any opportunities where I get a free upgrade to business class because, at the moment, I am content with flying economy. If I were to fly business class, I fear I may no longer be happy with flying economy: extra legroom, three-course menu, open bar, and shower. But if you get used to not having those, you don't know what you miss. You can think of upgrading gadgets similarly.

2022 has been a year of upgrading electronic devices for me. As a tech enthusiast, I have always had my eye out for what new products are available in the market. But I still resist the urge to upgrade whenever a new phone rolls around. On average, my upgrades this year were 6.5 years after I purchased a device. Unfortunately, major manufacturers' best interest is for you to keep buying whatever new device they release. Therefore most manufacturers make their devices hard to repair and easier to replace. With incentives and other benefits, you are always encouraged to upgrade your device rather than stick with it. For example, when I tried to repair a speaker for a phone which cost 50 per cent of the value of a new phone of similar spec.

What I learned

Here are some of the lessons I learnt from not upgrading my devices mindfully.

Be happy with what you have - By not succumbing to your every little craving, you learn to take this attitude to other aspects of your life.
There’s more to life than the latest features - Although at keynote presentations for the latest devices, you may feel that the device has a feature that would change your life forever. But this is rarely the case.
It's not a big deal - No matter how tech reviews portray the latest features, you will rarely ever feel like you notice the difference unless you compare them side to side
Delayed gratification provides greater life satisfaction - Much research suggests that delaying gratification helps improve life measurements. Therefore it is essential to try and prioritise your long-term benefit over short-term gain.
Over time you'll stop caring about your devices anyway - A few weeks or months, or years after the purchase, it is likely that your device will slowly become out of date and make what seems new feel dated in a year or two. By sticking with what you have, you tend to appreciate it more and not feel like every new release is what you need to be happy.

All that being said, that doesn’t mean that I don’t endorse upgrading when necessary. There are some circumstances when upgrading is the better option. Here’s a helpful framework to determine whether the upgrade is worth it.

Framework for upgrading

Here is a simple framework to determine whether upgrading your electronic devices is worth it.

So the framework goes as follows. You first kick off the framework when you consider upgrading your electronic device. That's when you need to make the first decision. It asks if your device is working as intended. If yes, the framework encourages you not to upgrade. If the device isn't working as intended, you will need to answer another question on whether it is bearable. If you answer yes, the framework suggests you stay with your current device. If you answer no, then you are faced with a final decision. It asks if you have adequate finances to cover the cost of the device. If not, then you don't upgrade yet. If yes, then the framework encourages you to upgrade your device.

Make sure that what you have to replace is actually in need of replacement
-Techno Eclipse

I'd love to hear from you. Do you upgrade your devices regularly? If so, what's the motivation behind doing so? Or do you hold on to your devices until the bitter end? I'd love to hear all about it in the comments below or tweet at me with your thoughts.

That's all for this week. I hope you enjoyed reading my approach to upgrading electronic devices. Be sure to refer back to the framework when deciding on upgrading an electronic device in the future. If you enjoyed this post, be sure to like this post and share it with someone who may find it helpful. The biggest compliment you can give is sharing this with those you love.

If you enjoyed this post, check out a framework to buy second-hand products that could help save money and the environment!

Until next time,

Tony

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