[GTALUG] Fwd: the wicked waste that is closed Android hardware

[Evan Leibovitch]

I tend to look at things a little differently.

If you want to get the maximum number of updates, get a Nexus (and even
THEY will not get updates forever, as Stewart notes. But I don't lose sleep
for the others' not getting updates (or not getting them as fast as the
tech press thinks they should).

Background: I like tablets and have a few of them, including both gen Nexus
7s, an Acer Iconia, an ancient and underpowered Ainol Nova 7, and a Dell
Venue 8 that I got for $99 at the opening of the Microsoft store in Eaton
Centre. And at work I got a Nexus 9.

Each of these has a function, though of course some have more function than
others. One is nothing more than a web-enabled alarm clock with Accuweather
and a photo frame that syncs with Google Photos. The Ainol serves a similar
function on my desk at work. One is a home media player and remote for my
Chromecast. Two allow me to experiment with Android and Windows 10 without
mucking up the others.

None of these is e-waste. Even old tablets that will never run anything
newer than Jellybean can serve real purpose; remember that they are more
powerful than many of the first computers for many of us.

I read XDA and various fora, and I cringe at the volume of complaining
about the lack of updates. IMO ... if you buy a mobile device based on what
might happen in the future, you're certain to be disappointed. Any apps
that will run on your device now will still work there in five years. Apps
yet-uninvented might not run, but a whole lot of stuff will. And maybe it's
just me, but I spend far more time in the apps than in the OS. I don't run
to root devices until I have a need to.

I will have use for my devices until their batteries die, and even then I
have the option of just keeping them plugged-in (as I do with my high-tech
alarm clocks).

My most recent acquisition is a $150 gem of a 2nd phone (as a spare and for
when I travel), a Xiaomi Redmi 3 that feels like a flagship and is
functionally about 80% there. I don't ever expect an update, so any that
comes is a bonus. It does what I need today, has the spare power to
accommodate my present apps as they mature and get more featured (ie,
bloated) over time, and that is good enough.

I guess my main point is twofold;

   - Even old "obsolete"  phones and tablets can serve a purpose

   - Updates are cool, but buy your device based on what it does now;
   planning for end-of-life before you even get the thing is needless stress

-- Evan Leibovitch, Geneva, CH
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