Technology is an odd thing sometimes, especially when you talk about updating it and when it becomes obsolete. I’ve seen four year old laptops discarded by organizations!
Personally, I use computers and other devices long past the four year mark. Mostly because I haven’t got the money to replace everything every four years, but also because I don’t believe the technology becomes obsolete that quickly.
There’s a consumer mentality in our country that says as soon as there is something new, the old stuff needs to be gotten rid of, and it simply isn’t the case. I have a computer in my office that I use on a regular basis thats from 2015. I use it daily, partly to illustrate the point that old technology is not obsolete.
The savings to companies who would extend their four year life cycle out to even just five years (although six could work nicely also) would save a significant amount of money and reduce waste considerably. Less waste is better for the environment as well. And if enough people and companies extended the lifecycle of their technology, they might find that technology companies put more effort into building products that will actually last longer instead of throwing out new products every year and new operating systems that aren’t ready for prime time.
It’s a conversation I think we need to have