Jamil

I was at a camera repair with my D810 the other day and the repair person was exclaiming about how my camera was made to last a year or two. I’ve had this unit for almost 2 years and have had nary a problem. His point was that manufacturers plan it that way to stimulate sales. I’ve used Nikon for the past 40 years and have never entertained that planned obsolescence was Nikon ‘s criterion for it’s products.
I was wondering whether any of you had heard “such “

StaneeRae Loc: Lincroft, NJ USA

Not really. My D70 still works fine.

Fotoartist Loc: Detroit, Michigan

Sounds like marketing talk for planned obsolescence not build of the camera if that's what you were worrying about.

Rongnongno Loc: FL

Your repair critter is an ass, simple as that. Cameras and lenses can have 5 years extended warranty. This would not be possible if he was right.

I had a Fuji pro 2s. It still works. (2005?)
I had a D300. It still works (2009?)
.I have a D800e. It still works. (2013?)
I have numerous lenses. None went to the bin. Two exceptions: It broke after falling, the other was DOA (dead on arrival).
I have Metz flashes I use since 1992. They still work - Had to replace the power packs thought.

'Programmed obsolescence' started in the early sixties. It is prevalent in many fields (appliances, cars). Most companies just phase out support.

CaptainC Loc: Colorado, south of Denver

I have a D3. It will be 10 years old in January. Still works fine. Built like a tank.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

Yes, but not related to Nikon. It was related to any product. The engineering class I took was titled "Strength and Materials". Obviously, durability was a topic that was covered. So, yes, there is a lifetime designed into most products. In some, it's definitely a consideration. Air Carriers don't want purchase a new plane every 3-5 years. The average family doesn't mind buying a new car in the same period of time. But then, cars don't cost what a commercial airliner costs.

With today's camera's the most predictable mechanical weak link is the shutter. Camera durability is not mechanically related as much as feature related. The Nikon F I still use was given to me as a Christmas present in 1971. It's been cleaned and maintained through all these years. It still works like it did when I received it. However, the camera is primarily mechanical.

With the incorporation of the whiz bang gimmicks that are not really photography related, cameras become obsolete due to better whiz bang features on the next released model. Mechanically, the camera should last years. My D700 is 7 years old. It still works the same as when I purchased it. My D800, I don't know about, as I'd have to look up the year of manufacture. I purchased it a year and a half ago used. I believe it had been replaced by a newer model by then. However, it still works like new.

So, do camera manufacturers plan obsolescence? Probably. But, not through mechanical design. It's mostly electronic today.
--Bob

Jamil

Thx y’all
My sentiments exactly; over the years I’ve had several Nikons and have not experienced any drama with the exception of theft.

Fotoartist Loc: Detroit, Michigan

Agreed. It's not the mechanical part just the new buttons and whistles that keep us buying. That's the marketing plan.

Rich1939 Loc: Pike County Penna.

'Programmed obsolescence' started in the early sixties, about the same time as the secret 80 mpg carburetor stories. Where would conversation be if it wasn't for conspiracy theories

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

I don't think you'll get more than 25 years worth of functionality out of a D810. But I think you'll WANT only perhaps 5, at most, before GAS (gear acquisition syndrome) sets in.

Lots of folks "just have to have" the latest model when it first comes out. Others skip every other release. The D800 came out in February, 2012. The D810 came out in July, 2014. The D850 came out in September, 2017. D800 users are probably drooling... or already have one, or have ordered one, or simply want one.

The digital camera market has evolved very rapidly since the first dSLR was introduced in the mid-1990s. About a decade ago, a new model came out every 18 months to two years. That has settled down to three or four years, but the new technology developments crammed into modern bodies (especially mirrorless cameras) are more and more impressive.

I think it's THAT sort of planned obsolescence (if you can call it that) that the repair guy was lamenting. The new model is always so good as to be irresistible, while the old one still works, and will for many years if treated kindly.

MT Shooter Loc: Montana

Time to find a better camera repair place!!!

dfrodin Loc: Colorado Springs, CO

Planned obsolescence is just another conspiracy theory. Back in the sixties a guy told my mother that every year the auto manufacturers planned a different place on the cars to rust through so the owner wouldn't be able to prevent it, thereby having to trade in the car sooner than expected. Yeah right....

Rongnongno Loc: FL

For info. This is not about 'conspiracy'. It is a fact of life today. How do you explain AC units that die within 5 years and 'cannot be repaired' to lack of parts? When the older units are still churning away after twenty years? How about water heaters? The list is getting longer. One can blame the technology for being too 'advanced' for being repairable... The usual answer? "This model no longer exist and is not supported anymore".

One recent example of control exerted by a company... Tesla. During the hurricane season they revealed they were able to control their sold car remotely and remove 'limitations' placed on some of their models. This really inspire confidence. Tesla has an habit of lying anyway (personal comment and opinion).

Also... The great evil EU is working on laws that prevents manufacturers to wash up their hands after a certain number of years and are planning to enforce longer warranty and support on appliances among other things.

One sample of product made in photography... Single film cameras that were all the rage at one point. No need to buy a camera, it comes with the film. A marketing gimmick - that still works by the way -. The ultimate obsolescence in photography.

How many products that once were used several times and are now discarded after one use?

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

Bill, The only things I know about the D850 is the megapixel size of the image and it has one of those flip out screens. I've not even seen one in real life, that I'm aware of. I'm quite happy with my D800e and my D700. I've no need to upgrade to another camera.

I will admit that if I were to suddenly fall into a substantial amount of money. I'd be visiting Hershel in person and arranging to have an H6D-100c shipped to my house. Otherwise, I've recently purchased a couple of lenses. One for my Leica IIIf and one for my Nikons. I'll spend my money on film and chemicals instead.
--Bob

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

In Reliability engineering when I worked on the Minute Man missile program we had to do a reliability analysis of the components. That shows a bath tub curve, early failures is the slope of the bath tub then the flat part failure rate and then the other side of the bath tub we called end of life. I am confident Nikon knows the early failure quantity and end of life based upon usage. I don't believe they engineered planned obsolescence. They do that buy introducing new models with great features hoping to give you GAS.