I call it the Walmart economics - save money at any expense. It used to be that technology didn't change very quickly. Thus it was applicable to buy a piece of equipment that would last and remain functioning 7 to 10 years or beyond. Nowadays, not only are technology advances changing things at a much quicker pace, but people seem to have much less attention span. The technology in a newer piece of equipment is expected to become obsolete in an approximate 18 month span, and the users interest in the design, color, functionality and desirability seems to last about 18 days. As a result, it makes no sense to build something that will last 18 years when the expected usability is somewhere between 18 days and 18 months.

Of course the economics of Walmart marketing demand they sell something that's functional for only something under the attention span of a your typical Walmart shopper. This ensures that it will break before the usability/desirability is gone, requiring the shopper to buy 2 or 3 of them before their interest in or useability of the item wains