PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE and a bite of the Apple

My iPad has slowed down. It was my pride and joy and a wonderful gift from my bride who had endured my complaints regarding my painfully unresponsive Sony tablet.
I had resisted becoming Apple reliant eschewing iPhones and MACbooks in favor of the PC/Android standard. Microsoft Windows tablets weren't in the mix back then. It did take some time to get used to, but I thoroughly enjoyed the iPad until recently. It just doesn't work as well as it did just a few short

months ago.

I swallowed my pride and decided to make the pilgrimage to the local APPLE store to see if they could help me understand what was happening. When I arrived the joint was crawling with Apple owners I had to give them my phone number and wait for a text message letting me know I was on deck to see a tech.

That cheery millennial informed me with a smile that my 4th Generation was unable to update to the latest operating system because it was too old. Too old? TOO OLD! It had just turned three! What in the hell were they thinking!? I could hear Steve Jobs belly laughing from the exclusive Trillionaire's clouds in Heaven (I hear they get more legroom and the seats are puffier).They said I could keep using it or they would take it in trade for a $50 credit toward a $400+ brand spanking new one. As my grandmother used to say, "I REMAINED"! The entire trip was a waste of time. It was a travesty...an insult. Why I never.

At home I removed several apps from  my crippled, antique device and emptied the cache in all the rest in hopes of regaining some of the speed enjoyed in it's youth. In other words I had decided to make do.

One afternoon an application I use regularly said it was required I download and install an update in order to use it. What followed was a cascade of apps requesting updates that my rickety ancient iPad would not do. Now what would any normal person do in this situation...scream...yell...fling it against the wall...park the dang thing and read a book or take a walk or go work out? Nope! Gotta haunt the ads in search of the best possible deal on a newer, better, up to date, and readily available replacement that won't break the bank. The issue is you do this knowing that at their whim what you buy will be outdated and require replacement in relatively short order. Apple is a ravenous beast when it comes to pooping out new and ever newer updates requiring you to repeat your previous purchase in order to keep up! Look at the lean and hungry look of those waiting in line for the latest and greatest iPhone! 

Planned obsolesce! They took away the headphone jack! Wow! I gotta have that! Now it comes in blue. I gotta have that! The super duper version goes for $1,000. It can tell if you're pregnant or need a hair cut as well as tell time. I can't afford food but I got to have that! Obsolescence will eventually trickle down to body parts and marriages. Body parts will evolve to include expiration dates...wedding prenups will feature a freshness date (like beers) after which marriage begins to leave a bitter taste. It's just business. The number of iPhones and iPads being bought and sold and shelved is staggering.  Why should this be a concern? Actually, aside from depleting one's discretionary income and forcing one's involuntary keeping up with the Jones, there's little to worry about. Businesses succeed on sales and sales require products and there are items that just take too long to break or require replacement. They need help falling in line with things that break down and wear out mechanically. No moving parts equals long life of usage...unless....

I am enjoying my new, bigger, more powerful and fully functioning iPad I managed to find at a rock bottom price. It races from app to app and has almost all the bells and whistles. Am I a victim? Yes. Does it matter? Apparently not. If you want to keep up you gotta be willing to part with your hard earned wages or savings or credit. Every business gets a taste as you strive to make yourself happily connected in this modern age.