PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING

Hello Forumites! However well-intentioned, for the safety of other users we ask that you refrain from seeking or offering medical advice. This includes recommendations for medicines, procedures or over-the-counter remedies. Posts or threads found to be in breach of this rule will be removed.
We're aware that some users are experiencing technical issues which the team are working to resolve. See the Community Noticeboard for more info. Thank you for your patience.
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!

throw away society

Options
24

Comments

  • calleyw
    calleyw Posts: 9,896 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper I've been Money Tipped!
    se999 wrote:
    Hi,
    Back to the idea of the original post. We've now swapped to 1 combined printer/scanner/copier, we used to have seperate printer & scanner. So at least we only have one item instead of two. It also gives us additional space.

    So it could be worth pricing up this alternative, and maybe finding a new home for your working printer. At least it's only one item wearing out and causing a problem, rather than two!!


    Umm not likely as I only bought the printer a few weeks ago. You may think that buying one item that does 2 things is a good idea. But to me personally not really. Once one part goes then you have to throw the whole thing away which is just as wasteful.

    My printer cost about £35 and if I bought a new scanner abother £38 making it about £73 pounds. if I bought a nice all singing all dancing printer/scanner and copier it would cost at least that amount if not more. And when one parts go the whole lost is wasted. Where as with seperates if the scanner goes. I can live with out that for a month or two but if none of it works then then I am forced to go and buy straight away rather then just hang on to a printer that still works but no scanner.

    But each to there own.

    Yours

    Calley
    Hope for everything and expect nothing!!!

    Good enough is almost always good enough -Prof Barry Schwartz

    If it scares you, it might be a good thing to try -Seth Godin
  • Loadsabob
    Loadsabob Posts: 662 Forumite
    lipidicman wrote:
    Loadsabob, I can see the point of the goods being recycled. If somebody takes it home and uses it for a year then landfills it the impact is worse than if the company pays for it to be processed properly. Until this sort of recycling is guaranteed then they really dont have any choice to follow their rules

    Thanks lipidcman, I see the point too, really - responsible disposal etc. It just must be galling for the organisation that was previously able to recoup some of the cost of the I.T. upgrade by selling to staff and students, and also to the staff and students who used to be able to get a good deal on PCs and peripherals around upgrade time!

    But anyway, getting cheap PC gear off your employers isn't really the spirit of this thread, so I'll stop with that line of my post!! :o

    I'm minimising electronic goods in the house...well, I say that, I mean I have a hob-top kettle (my gas is included in my rent, my electricity isn't), and I don't have a toaster, just use the grill. These are two of the most disposable items in the modern home, I guess. I do have a breadmaker, but have so far replaced a seized-up tin/paddle rather than buy a newer machine...

    It's good that there are some of us who will resist the constant need for new!
  • "Computer Aid International has shipped over 50,000 PCs to over 90 different countries in the last 6 years.

    The majority of these have gone to schools and community organisations in sub-Saharan Africa. We have also shipped thousands to Latin America and the South Asian sub-continent."

    Computer Aid International
    Warning ..... I'm a peri-menopausal axe-wielding maniac ;)
  • nightsong
    nightsong Posts: 523 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 100 Posts Combo Breaker
    Re Dualit toasters, we had one and the element broke after a couple of years. I realise I could have had it repaired, but that would have cost more than a new toaster. I'm all for spending more (a LOT more in the case of Dualit) for something that lasts longer, but this was simply uneconomic. Not impressed. We now have an inherited, ultra-cheap toaster which has been making toast quite happily for the last 18 months :D

    In general though, I completely agree with the sentiments here. Our 14-year-old Renault Espace has finally passed on to a new owner, and should have years more service in it. The garage told us, though, that you'd never get that sort of longevity out of a new Espace. Sad, isn't it.
  • nightsong
    nightsong Posts: 523 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 100 Posts Combo Breaker
    SOmething else I've just remembered :D . My suitcase must be at least 50 years old. For a long time it was faintly embarrassing to be seen with (well, I didn't care but my children weren't too keen). Now I reckon it's got to the stage where it's quite distinguished and antique-looking. A bit like Mr nightsong in fact ...
  • nicki_2
    nicki_2 Posts: 7,321 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Photogenic I've been Money Tipped!
    My OH works as the IT Technician in a school. The school have just had a major IT upgrade over the past 12 months or so and they have a storeroom FULL (as in you can't even get in the room - you can only open the door apparently) of computer equipment that is out of date but still works. It will cost them something like £5 or was it £15 PER ITEM to have the local council come and collect them for recycling. :eek: As a school with a limited income/budget this obviously is not an option.

    One of the things I'm going to do this week while I'm there helping out, is to come up with an inventory of what they have to recycle and work out with their ICT co-ordinator a charity to come and collect it all for recycling (something like the charity mentioned in a previous post) so that someone else can benefit from the school good fortune of being able to upgrade at last!
    Creeping back in for accountability after falling off the wagon in 2016.
    Need to get back to old style in modern ways, watching the pennies and getting stuff done!
  • se999
    se999 Posts: 2,409 Forumite
    DS1 & 2 have found their own way around computers being outdated. They decided at Xmas that they'd build their own to get the spec they wanted, and now if anything goes wrong or they need to upgrade they just replace the specific item they need to. They deliberately got large cases to have spare slots for later additions.

    Admittedly I found it quite scary the idea that all these boxes of bits could be put together to make a working machine, but they did it, and they believe it's going to save them time and money in the future, they also don't have to pay maintenance contracts either.
  • cozzie
    cozzie Posts: 521 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 100 Posts Combo Breaker
    A relative of my OH is a video and TV technician/repair man and he will tell you, (and anyone else who will listen) that most electrical items are designed to break shortly after the guarantee/warranty finishes, which is why you never see new TV's with vertical and horizontal hold knobs any more, they are chips inside that do the same job and cost an arm and a leg to have replaced.
    "And crawling on the planet's face,
    Some insects called the human race,
    Lost in time, and lost in space,
    And meaning"
  • lipidicman
    lipidicman Posts: 2,598 Forumite
    nightsong wrote:
    Re Dualit toasters, we had one and the element broke after a couple of years. I realise I could have had it repaired, but that would have cost more than a new toaster.

    A lot more than a new toaster? A lot more than a new cheap toaster maybe. I hope you sold the Dualit rather than throw it away for want of an element! Elements can last 6 months, or 10 years, its luck really. I would have hung on to that Dualit though!
  • lipidicman
    lipidicman Posts: 2,598 Forumite
    cozzie wrote:
    ...most electrical items are designed to break shortly after the guarantee/warranty finishes, ...

    This can't be true as goods have to last for a reasonable period. ie you can make the manufacturer repair it after their paltry 1 year warranty has expired. I remember noting that a TV could be reasonable expected to last at least 5 years
This discussion has been closed.
Meet your Ambassadors

🚀 Getting Started

Hi new member!

Our Getting Started Guide will help you get the most out of the Forum

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 350.9K Banking & Borrowing
  • 253.1K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 453.5K Spending & Discounts
  • 243.9K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 598.8K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 176.9K Life & Family
  • 257.2K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 16.1K Discuss & Feedback
  • 37.6K Read-Only Boards

Is this how you want to be seen?

We see you are using a default avatar. It takes only a few seconds to pick a picture.