I got a one of those fancy magic keyboards for that one fancy tablet a little bit ago. Wasn't cheap. However, I upgraded to the new model, and since this one is 11" instead of 10.9", the damn thing doesn't fit. Wankers.
13 thoughts on “April 25, 2025: Planned Obsolescence”
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.1" different? You don't have sandpaper or a grinding wheel?
I finally got around to replacing the Santa Fe I wrecked several months ago. On Monday I picked up a 2018 Subaru Forester 2.5i Touring. Onyx black exterior, saddle brown leather interior. A tad over 127,000 miles. A Florida car so there's no hint of rust and it is in great condition bumper to bumper. The only flaws I could find were one heated seat switch that looks like it got overheated and the surface melted a bit. I've got that part ordered and on the way. The other issue is that the leather steering wheel is cracking and peeling. According to the internet that's a common problem on these vehicles. My options are to replace the wheel for about $300 (more than $1,000 through the dealer), have it professionally repaired for about $200, or buy a good lace-up leather wheel cover for about $100 and install it myself. I am leaning toward the latter, I've seen some videos and it's not a difficult job, it just takes time and some patience and I have at least one of those things. The other minor complaint is that the stereo does not have CarPlay, although it has a navigation system and Bluetooth phone integration and all that so not a big deal. Subaru made CarPlay a standard feature in all their vehicles starting in 2019.
I have a 2017 forester that I really like. Low miles, but had to replace the entire ac system this month. Bummer about living in Satan’s mouth for 8 months a year.
I’ve looked at replacing the head unit to get car play functionality and a better screen - but I really can’t be bothered and with our current administration I’m sure I’ll be sufficiently priced out of electronics in the near future.
I’ve contemplated installing a portable CarPlay screen in the ‘08 Outback because it has a single-piece center stack where the climate controls are integrated with the radio/CD changer. This car is fantastic in so many ways (a modern Volvo 240 in many respects), and this might be one of two things holding it back from feeling like a modern vehicle. (The other is the 4-speed automatic.) Before buying the Toyota I’d only ever experienced CarPlay in a rental, and would have said that dual zone climate control was the single in-cabin feature I would upgrade to buy. I think CarPlay is now on that list — I would never consider a car that only has the proprietary system developed by the automaker (ahem, swastikar).
Enjoy the Subaru! They have their quirks (mine now uses Rotella diesel synthetic), but they’re dependable, honest cars that are pretty robust and well-engineered.
Our 2015 Forester just hit 100k about a week ago (it's amazing how the miles don't add up like when the Mrs had a 40 mile a day commute). It has been the most problem free vehicle we have ever owned, other than for some strange reason the headlights need to be replaced about every year.
Welcome back López.
Good timing on the planned obsolescence post! Google just told me that my Nest thermostat needs to be replaced because they can not possibly continue to send it security updates. (I'm sure such expenses would break them financially.) I would protest and install a dumb thermostat, but I like the "you're away" detection too much, and I like the ability to turn the heat back on from my phone an hour before we arrive home from being away.
Maybe there is a semi-smart, won't send your movement patterns to a server version of a thermostat?
(In case it's not obvious, I bought a Nest thermostat before Nest was bought by Google.)
(psst -- Ecobee3 Lite)
you can find them cheaper with a quick search -- we actually got ours for $99 with a rebate from the power company; we have one on each floor with two sensors apiece, so the home/away works well. we even had one email me on vacation a couple years ago to tell me that it wasn't able to cool, and I was able to contact HVAC to get coolant added.
Thanks for the recommendation. Will definitely look into Ecobee!
Ecobee is a Generac company, so thank you.
No, thank you
To be fair, I don't have anything to do with the Ecobee products. I did get myself one with a nice employee discount, though.
Mrs Runner and I enjoyed a nice Detroit-style pizza here in Ann Arbor tonight. Yum. Mrs Runner still prefers the NY-style we can get back home, but what does she know?