@neilMost of the
#SecondHand stuff I buy is books and clothes from
#CharityShops, so there's that extra dimension of feeling virtuous.
I avoid buying new things, partly, by aggressively blocking adverts and not following the car market. Hence my car is 16 years old. I share your concerns about new products being encumbered with surveillance, and I don't know how much I can do about it when I eventually need a new car. Extreme
#surveillance and data-sharing with
#Facebook were one of the three reasons I didn't go for a tax-efficient EV rental scheme from
#OctopusEV when my employer offered it to me.
I go for new kit when there's a clear advantage in
#EnergyEfficiency. We replaced one freezer last year for that reason, and we're in the middle of replacing the other one right now, rather than having it repaired for the second time. The one we're replacing drew 1.2MWh per year, which is *a lot;* the new one, in theory, will use a third of that, and will pay for itself in four years (even if we ignore the cost of repeated repairs).
In general, I've had the same mental tussle as you about buying more cheaply than I could afford to. But I don't think you need worry about encouraging companies to treat electronics as disposable: they're looking at this quarter's profits and glancing over their shoulders at the competition, not at you. I think you can have a clear conscience on that point.
I do like your point about supporting
#authors by buying new
#books. I don't know how to trade it off against the environmental and social benefits of buying from charity shops. I think consuming mindfully and minimising waste are already two big steps forward.
bazcurtis
C++ guy
Richard 🔶UK #RejoinEU