That's also exactly the point. Why is it hard or expensive to repair the device? Would they have purposely chosen a phone they have to throw away like trash and then pay more than a hundred dollars for a new one if they could get one where a new battery is $15 and can be replaced like they do the batteries in their TV remote?
> My impression (citation needed) is that globally folks have been worse off the last few years and so the median Android device spec was actually going down.
Or people have realized that they only use their phone for maps and texting and they don't need a flagship if they're just going to throw it in the trash in two years anyway.
What is so great about the top end phone that I should get one? They all have cameras (plural) with more pixels than I can see. They all have a fair amount of storage.... Sure the top end models have more of everything, but is there anything that I as a user would notice?
I was one of the first to have an Android back when the G1 came out - the hardware was lacking, but any phone from 4 years later was good enough (except none had a slide out keyboard that was so much nicer than touch screens)
That person doesn't spend 3 days' wages for "mainline kernel drivers" -- either they buy the iPhone because it's a status symbol, or they use the Android OS that shipped with the device for three years until the screen is cracked and the battery stops charging. To them security patches are just an inconvenience.
I don't think "if only people had the right information they'd spend money on the right things" is the right thesis -- I think it's more "why is everyone so poor? how do we make it so that more people can afford our wares?"
My impression (citation needed) is that globally folks have been worse off the last few years and so the median Android device spec was actually going down.