Chris Wahl
Remember when you could buy something and actually expect it to last? Those were the days, right? Now, it feels like everything is built to break faster than you can say “planned obsolescence.” Whether it’s your smartphone mysteriously slowing down right after a new model drops or that toaster you just bought already fizzling out, it’s like quality control took a permanent vacation.
A question posed on r/AskReddit asked “What’s the perfect example of ‘they don’t make them like they used to?’.” Plenty of people chimed in and were sharing some pretty spot-on examples of products that just aren’t made like they used to be. It got me thinking about how many things I’ve had to replace way too soon, all because companies seem more interested in cutting corners than making stuff that lasts.
1. Levis. I had a pair for years as a teenager. Bought a pair in 2020 and within 6 months they had fraying and then holes in the seams. Clothes in general seem like they’re getting worse no matter how much you pay for them. u/LordyIHopeThereIsPie
2. Planters Cheez Balls. I was so excited when I saw them at the store a few years ago, but they are not even close to the same. I was told that the difference is trans-fat-elimination.
3. Candy bars, the king size was actually a big hunk of chocolate, now it’s a share size and smaller than it used to be and costs twice as much. u/teethalarm
4. Cars. In the past you could fix almost everything by yourself. Today it feels like you need an engineering degree, a computer science degree and tools, that are more expensive than the car itself just to change a broken headlight.
5. Record players. The technics sl-1200 is still top of the line. The design goes back to 1972 and in spite of an influx of competitors over the years, it is still the industry standard for pro DJs working with vinyl. u/VT_Squire
6. Honeycomb cereal. The pieces were big, puffy and delicious, with the occasional flat, overly crunchy, sad piece. Now every piece is the sad piece. u/Bumpass
7. Houses. My friends that live in relatively recent construction seem to have problems show up in a few years. Most things built in the ’60s-’80s around here look pretty run down. My house is from the 1920s, and while it certainly requires maintenance, it’s clear to me that they don’t make these like they used to.
8. Kitchenaid mixers. My grandma was gifted on her wedding day and she’s used it religiously without any issue. My sister was gifted one on her wedding day and it lasted a year. u/Waffle_Maestro
9. Clothes. I work in a museum and the material and work and care and longevity of clothes is fascinating from the past and the modern standard is insanely appalling. u/ta_bfamessmario
10. Pinesol changed its formula in 2014, knocking out the key ingredient, pine oil. Sigh. u/Greg_Strine
11. McDonald’s hot apple pies. u/MartyFreeze
12. I like sewing. I still have a working 1920 sewing machine that Just keeps going and going when more modern ones already broke down, kinda like the duracell rabbit. u/Stacie_Sophia199
13. I used an HP printer at one job that could take a beating. I remember having to use it for a week straight, 8 hours a day. It never jammed, never overheated, never broke down. They don’t make printers like that anymore. u/Fuhgetabout
14. Video games. You used to get the FULL game, a game manual, and maybe a character poster. Now you can forget the manual, and you don’t even get the full game, as some of it is released later as DLC (downloadable content) and is rarely free. u/Plus-Statistician80
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16. Electronics. Everything now is designed to break and be unfixable. Back in the day if you bought, I don’t know, a TV set, it would literally come with schematics laying out the circuitry so you could go in and fix it yourself if you knew what you were doing. Same with cars to an extent.
17. Up to 1981, my great grandmother had a refrigerator that they had gotten when home fridges were new.. It had that big round compressor on top, and it worked for god knows how long. I just had to replace mine in a home that was built for us 7 years ago…. u/Leftstrat
18. Children’s toys. When my daughter was little, I was floored by the flimsy cheap plastic parts, compared to my solid and sturdy toys (many still in great condition) from the late 80’s/early 90’s. u/YourMothersButtox
19. Craftsman hand tools; EG Sockets, ratchets, screwdrivers. Used to be made in the US with an unlimited warranty. I still have some from back in the 70s/80s that are rock solid. Then around 2000 they started to shift the manufacturing overseas… then it just started the decline. Now they’re junk and I’d rather have Husky/Kobalt/HF sockets/ratchets/wrenches. Or you gotta setup up to professional grade. u/PsychoEngineer
20. Mobile games. “99.99% WILL FAIL!! CAN YOU SOLVE THIS QUIZ??!!?? u/RechehSec
