People talk a lot about inbuilt obsolescence nowadays, which is the practice of designing products with a limited lifespan so you have to buy a new one sooner than you’d like and keep late stage capitalism grinding on.
Is it true? Do things break quickly nowadays whereas in the past you’d expect something to last for years? They’ve been chatting on the AskUK subreddit about items with an incredibly long life after user kam_pra posted this:
What is the oldest ‘new’ thing you own and still use? As the question says, the oldest thing that you own which you got from new.
So antiques are out and I guess I’d probably exclude books, comics and other printed stuff in order to get a more varied list. For me it’s a pocket magnifying glass I got when I was 14.
Lots of people wanted to share their most prized and enduring possessions, like these…
1.
‘My dad bought me a peace lily that a wanted for my 18th birthday, I still have it and most of its offspring. I’m 50 now.’
–RodJaneandFreddy5
2.
‘ZX81 I got when I was 9. Still play it regularly if I fancy a bit of gaming.’
–Scarred_fish
3.
‘We’re still using, daily, the Panasonic microwave we bought in 1983. It’s had a couple of new bulbs for the interior light since then, but otherwise as purchased. They knew how to make things, back then.’
–Maude_VonDayo
4.
‘I have a Sex Wax jumper from when I was 13-years-old. It is a size medium, my mum thought I would grow into it. I am 45 now and it is still too big.’
–outlookunsettled
5.
‘A stapler my mum stole from my granddad’s work place when she was in her 20’s. She’s now in her 60’s and I still have it. It’s so robust!’
–dottydani
6.
‘Original GHD straighteners which are older than my son who is 18 in April.’
–TSC-99
7.
‘I have a comb that I got in a multi pack (pound shop kind of thing) when I was maybe 10-12 years old. And it’s still going strong and I am now 35. It’s literally a pink plastic fairly fine toothed thing but it’s stood the test of time!’
–sn34pd0gg
8.
‘I found a green comb on the pavement in 1997 when I was exceptionally poor and happened to need a comb, so I took it home and washed it thoroughly. It’s a really nice comb, thick and strong and the teeth are not too sharp. I used it every day for almost 30 years, but now its passed to my daughter. Hopefully it will make it 60 years with us at least, and who knows how long it had been with its previous owner before dropping on the pavement.’
–LittleSadRufus
9.
‘I still drive a 2007 Saab. I’ll really miss it when it dies.’
–Significant_Return_2
10.
‘My Dr. Marten Shoes, they lasted longer than my Marriage, and I was married for 20 years, still wearing them 10 years later!’
–Odd_Cryptographer941
11.
’32 years ago I think I was given a Swiss Army knife with a fork and spoon on it for camping. It’s still in a drawer and used as often as I need a multi tool.’
–Iwantedalbino
