How long should a Console last ?
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Soldato
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Older consoles (SNES, etc) tend to last forever never had a console of this gen break.
The likes of the Dreamcast, PS2, Xbox, GC can last 4> years depending on maintence, how much carting around it gets, etc usually they do have laser tear, which is fixable and not normally expensive.
I would say the same about the Xbox 360 (never owned Wii or PS3) however it's possible to wake up and find ring of death, never had this myself but a lot of people round here have so that's a quick death.
Usually each year (or when I can be bothered) I open my console up and blast all that horrible dust out, I try to avoid leaving the console on for an extended time (less time in summer) and also try to give it maximum venterlation.
Also I tend not to watch DVD's on my PS2 or Xbox 360 to save laser power, insted I use my computer.
I keep the tray (slim ps2) closed and not open for no reason due to dust, sunlight and the exposed laser.
I had an old PS2 for three years (was second hand when I bought it) till it died, PSU fault didn't play it much at the time so I threw it out and sold my games.
The likes of the Dreamcast, PS2, Xbox, GC can last 4> years depending on maintence, how much carting around it gets, etc usually they do have laser tear, which is fixable and not normally expensive.
I would say the same about the Xbox 360 (never owned Wii or PS3) however it's possible to wake up and find ring of death, never had this myself but a lot of people round here have so that's a quick death.
Usually each year (or when I can be bothered) I open my console up and blast all that horrible dust out, I try to avoid leaving the console on for an extended time (less time in summer) and also try to give it maximum venterlation.
Also I tend not to watch DVD's on my PS2 or Xbox 360 to save laser power, insted I use my computer.
I keep the tray (slim ps2) closed and not open for no reason due to dust, sunlight and the exposed laser.
I had an old PS2 for three years (was second hand when I bought it) till it died, PSU fault didn't play it much at the time so I threw it out and sold my games.
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Well if we accept that newer consoles will break we must demand backwards compat because a whole generation of gamng will go missing. I expect a Mega drive will work til the day I die. In 20 years time there probably wont be a used 360 working on the planet 
my spectrum with tape drive still works fine. I dont think there is a 'should last' for consoles as each machine is a machine in its own right.
It should never break. They dont make them to break but in practice some are better than others.
It should never break. They dont make them to break but in practice some are better than others.
I've never had a console break down so I guess I would expect them to last indefinitely. My old Xbox sometimes has a little difficulty reading discs and the 360 has locked up on me once or twice, but they both still function OK.
I've never owned a console for more than 5 years so maybe they tend to break down after that. But saying that, 5 years is a good life and I wouldn't be too bothered if I had to go out and buy a new one after that length of time.
People saying that companies delibrately make items so they will break down after a short length of time (resulting in the consumer having to buy another one) is simply ridiculous. One of the biggest strengths (or weakness) of any company is its reputation - if they get a reputation for manufacturing flaky products then people will steer clear of them.
I've never owned a console for more than 5 years so maybe they tend to break down after that. But saying that, 5 years is a good life and I wouldn't be too bothered if I had to go out and buy a new one after that length of time.
People saying that companies delibrately make items so they will break down after a short length of time (resulting in the consumer having to buy another one) is simply ridiculous. One of the biggest strengths (or weakness) of any company is its reputation - if they get a reputation for manufacturing flaky products then people will steer clear of them.
My Sega Master system is still working after, what, 20 years?
Agreed consoles are more complex pieces of kit now, but I still believe they should stand the test of time.
I suppose the old adage stands, 'they don't make 'em like they used to'.
Agreed consoles are more complex pieces of kit now, but I still believe they should stand the test of time.
I suppose the old adage stands, 'they don't make 'em like they used to'.
Soldato
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14 months if it's a 360.......as long as the average TV if not.
We shouldn't really be accepting anything less than lasting until the next gen release tbh. This is part of the problem when, as consumers, we all roll over and say "well I never expected my £200-£400 games console to last more than a couple of years anyway" - the manufacturers will just carry on making shoddy products. We should stand united and insist on quality items built to last the course... who's with me brother? POWER TO THE PEOPLE!!!
My god I sound like citizen smith!
My god I sound like citizen smith!
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Isn't it the way that all home applicances seem to be going though?
In the 60's, my grandfather was given an Electrolux vacuum cleaner for 25 years' service at the electricity board. It still works to this day whilst I've managed to get through 3 Dysons in about 5 years.
In the 60's, my grandfather was given an Electrolux vacuum cleaner for 25 years' service at the electricity board. It still works to this day whilst I've managed to get through 3 Dysons in about 5 years.
3-5 years minimum in my opinion 
It's harder for modern consoles to achieve that though, due to the mechanical side of things, especially when the manufacturer uses cheaper optical drive mechanisms to cut costs (much the same way a lot of modern DVD players won't last long, whilst older ones are still going strong*).
I've got a 15+ year old original GB that works fine, a Lynx which works (although has a load of dead pixels), Snes etc.
*I've got a 5-6 year old Toshiba that has played every disk in my collection at least twice, and it's outlasted 3-4 cheaper players my brother has had (and they don't get anything like the use).
It's harder for modern consoles to achieve that though, due to the mechanical side of things, especially when the manufacturer uses cheaper optical drive mechanisms to cut costs (much the same way a lot of modern DVD players won't last long, whilst older ones are still going strong*).
I've got a 15+ year old original GB that works fine, a Lynx which works (although has a load of dead pixels), Snes etc.
*I've got a 5-6 year old Toshiba that has played every disk in my collection at least twice, and it's outlasted 3-4 cheaper players my brother has had (and they don't get anything like the use).
personally i dont think anything you buy should break but as someone has already said they dont make them like the used to!
consoles i can understand to a degree but i still dont think that ~3 years is at all acceptable
we have a toshiba tv which is 15years old and works perfectly to this day and it is on 18 hours a day, (CCTV). we bought a phillips tv a few years ago broke in 3 months and got same one broke in 6 months! shocking
we had a sony 50' plasma, that broke after a year (thank god for costco!)
we also have this tv from the early 80s which works but it doesnt really have an inputs or anything, still set the mega drive to play on it though!
consoles i can understand to a degree but i still dont think that ~3 years is at all acceptable
we have a toshiba tv which is 15years old and works perfectly to this day and it is on 18 hours a day, (CCTV). we bought a phillips tv a few years ago broke in 3 months and got same one broke in 6 months! shocking
we had a sony 50' plasma, that broke after a year (thank god for costco!)
we also have this tv from the early 80s which works but it doesnt really have an inputs or anything, still set the mega drive to play on it though!
had two TVs die recently both a bit over a year old and out of guarantee
utter crap build quality
this has made me consider a extended warranty on my next TV but maybe this is what they are trying to get me to do if a brand does this to me i will never buy there stuff again this goes for consoles as well
utter crap build quality
this has made me consider a extended warranty on my next TV but maybe this is what they are trying to get me to do if a brand does this to me i will never buy there stuff again this goes for consoles as well