I’ve read an article called How device hoarding by Americans is costing the economy, which discusses how people are hanging onto their old devices for much longer than they used to, and claimed that “While it may seem to be a smart money move, it can result in a costly productivity and innovation lag for the economy.”
I don’t fully agree with it. If an old device is still functional and meets the user’s needs, why replace it? Calling it “device hoarding” is quite wild. If anything, I think we should encourage people to use their devices longer, and only replace them when absolutely necessary. This not only saves money but also reduces electronic waste.
While some tasks really do demand powerful hardware, I don’t think the average user needs to upgrade their devices often. Most software is designed to run on a wide range of hardware, and even if a task is really demanding, it will often stay like that for years. For instance, 3D modeling/animation software has been demanding for a long time , but the requirements haven’t changed drastically in recent years. If your hardware can handle it now, it will likely be able to handle it for the foreseeable future.
I think instead, we should be focusing on software bloat. Applications and operating systems become slower over time not because the hardware is outdated, but because the software itself becomes more resource-intensive, also known as the Wirth’s Law. As users use their devices longer, they might install bloatware, leave background processes running, and register lots of startup applications, all without the user realizing. This is what really slows down a device, not the age of the hardware.
I maintain my systems by regularly cleaning up unnecessary files, uninstalling unused applications, and monitoring startup processes. I even go as far as reinstalling the operating system every couple of years to ensure optimal performance. I always try to keep my devices running smoothly without needing to upgrade the hardware frequently.
Most people don’t even utilize the full potential of their devices, yet they get a new device every few years. I think it’s quite unnecessary and wasteful. You don’t need an iPhone 17 pro max if all you do is watch some videos, browse the web and call people. Instead, we should focus on using our existing devices and making the most out of them.
Of course, it’s your money, and you can do whatever you want, but I believe that with proper maintenance and care, older devices can still provide excellent performance for many years. It’s not worth it to spend so much money on new hardware for a few new buttons and camera improvements when the old one still works just fine.