A Brief History of Technology
It's kind of strange to think modern day technology runs off of an economy of planned obsolescence. Things are made to break in a way that is unique to our time period. Just consider, back when we were roughing it and dependent on the chemical process of combustion (see: fire) to survive--I don't think anyone thought how fast can I design this torch to go out before anyone catches on? No, they tried everything they could to get that small flame to last as long as damn possible because they were just trying to survive on a space rock that was cold and dark as hell half the time.
Take that lightbulb that's been burning for 115 years in a Livermore, California fire station. Have you ever changed a light bulb originally placed by someone who died on the Titanic? Sure, there's no sound business plan for Century+ light bulb designs. You'd sell one and die before you ever saw a repeat customer. But that doesn't mean you have to be entirely at the mercy of a model that sells you short, literally.
Honestly, all I really wanted to talk about here was Micro-USB cables and look what happens. Micro-USB cables are everywhere. Currently, they're one of the most popular compatibility options for your devices. But they really suck, don't they? Don't worry, you can admit it,