Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
One gig I did recently that I did not mention was for google's modular cellphone. You actually could snap in different sensors and other pieces of wee hardware for different functions. It was not killed by google, suddenly, because of any of these concerns but (in part) because the competition (apps, but more) was too advanced and too fast and the future did not look as bright as it hard a year prior.
That was a modular phone that seems to have been killed because it was too bulky with all the modules and couldn't keep up, but I think there are two different aspects to it--one it was modular, but two it was open source. I think the latter open source decision was a mistake in my view, but it also reveals the systemic priority of most engineers I mentioned earlier--to add the latest and greatest features--apps--to products as opposed to building a durable product with perhaps limited repairable/replaceable modules that lasts as long possible. Open source and the connectivity to it that made the modular phone bulkier would allow all sorts of additions from outside manufacturers, but also created stability and compatibility issues.
Regarding the modular phone, there is an instructive story from a little known competitor called the Fairphone:https://fairphone.com/en/2017/07/20/why-we-had-to-stop-supporting-the-fairphone-1/ At first they licensed the parts or modules of the phone from outside parties, but then those manufacturers decided to abandon their support for those parts. So the company decided to launch Fairphone 2, a modular phone they designed in-house. That seems to be working for them and I hope it continues to work: https://fairphone.com/en/our-goals/?ref=header It's good for consumers and the environment to build durable products. I wonder if they will offer the phone in the U.S. as it seems to mainly be available in Europe right now.
By the way, these modular issues with phones shouldn't exist for bigger electronic devices like laptops and tablets and even the larger handheld phones, yet the market unfortunately is moving in the opposite direction with devices you can't open up, tinker with, upgrade and repair easily.
Comments
https://firstpost.com/tech/news-analysis/why-project-ara-failed-technology-is-not-yet-advanced-enough-for-modular-smartphones-3687977.html
That was a modular phone that seems to have been killed because it was too bulky with all the modules and couldn't keep up, but I think there are two different aspects to it--one it was modular, but two it was open source. I think the latter open source decision was a mistake in my view, but it also reveals the systemic priority of most engineers I mentioned earlier--to add the latest and greatest features--apps--to products as opposed to building a durable product with perhaps limited repairable/replaceable modules that lasts as long possible. Open source and the connectivity to it that made the modular phone bulkier would allow all sorts of additions from outside manufacturers, but also created stability and compatibility issues.
Regarding the modular phone, there is an instructive story from a little known competitor called the Fairphone:https://fairphone.com/en/2017/07/20/why-we-had-to-stop-supporting-the-fairphone-1/
At first they licensed the parts or modules of the phone from outside parties, but then those manufacturers decided to abandon their support for those parts. So the company decided to launch Fairphone 2, a modular phone they designed in-house. That seems to be working for them and I hope it continues to work: https://fairphone.com/en/our-goals/?ref=header It's good for consumers and the environment to build durable products. I wonder if they will offer the phone in the U.S. as it seems to mainly be available in Europe right now.
By the way, these modular issues with phones shouldn't exist for bigger electronic devices like laptops and tablets and even the larger handheld phones, yet the market unfortunately is moving in the opposite direction with devices you can't open up, tinker with, upgrade and repair easily.