iPhone price drop highlights obsolescence

The "neatest, niftiest, coolest gadget ever" that you purchased for $499 less than three months ago is no longer available. That's right, this morning Apple announced that the 4gig iPhone is no longer available and they are slashing the price of the 8gig version from $599 to $399.


Obsolete already?

There are too many variables in the question around "how long does it take a computer to be obsolete?" For most people a computer is never completely useless. You can still type a report on a 286 processor from 1990 but you'll have a tough time finding a printer with 17-year-old drivers.

Although you can still use your mid-range, 2005 Dell computer for many applications, there is a measurable gain in productivity by moving to the same grade produced in 2007.

A few points:

• In 2003 the state of Texas reported that they plan for a 4-5 year desktop computer life cycle. In 2007, 2-3 years is a common report.
• By the time you see a computer advertised at a retailer, the next generation is already in test.
• In 1990 the top of the line IBM PCs ran on an Intel 80386 processor clocked at 4.77MHz, 8-bit I/O buses. In 2007 a mid-range cell phone has many times more processing power.
• According to a Time Magazine article, an outdated computer is worth roughly $6 in recycled raw materials.
• Those annoying animated gifs were all the rage in 2003.