The Pitfall of Buying Household Appliances is Based on “Pretty Looks"

If you have to pay for it - be aware that in product marketing, the biggest gun is: “Eye appeal - is buy appeal”.
In a con artist’s world: “BS baffles brains”.
In the psychology of Intentional Distraction, there is “cognitive distraction”. In simple terms, this is the showing of ‘the shiny thing’.

If you have doubts about whether high-quality appliances are worth the money, you have to think deeply about why some things cost more than others.

I hope that this article will help you avoid the huge, gaping pit that is represented by the lure of ‘the shiny thing’.

"Eye Appeal" - The Home Appliance Aesthetic

Do not be distracted by the marketing term: “Luxury appliances”. They are not a luxury.

While “Standard” appliances lack some aesthetics in their overall design, and “Budget” appliances can get the job done, much of this “comes down to economies of scale”.
Which is marketing jargon for: “we discovered a secret way to get money out you – and now we are building a pipeline into your bank account”.

Budget appliances utilise cheaper internal components, which have a short life-cycle – but the outer shell is composed of the same material as the luxury item. Just thinner – hence less material costs less. So you can get the appeal-factor without spending the money. A false economy.
You buy junk. It fails in a year. You buy more junk.

OR - you buy something excellent. Pay good money - and it lasts 20 years. THAT is what saving money and time is.

Standard appliances are designed for basic function, and helps the DESIGNER to get the design job done, and the fabricator to create the cheapest moulding process– without having to bother the about ergonomics and aesthetics of the final item.

It just has to look pretty enough to sell.

Which brings me to -

Longevity of Quality Home Appliances

How much longer can quality appliances last? Higher-end appliances have a higher price tag because the materials used in the components and sub-assemblies, makes them sturdier and therefore more resistant to breakage.
They can be counted on to last longer.

While the best kitchen appliances can be claimed to be built with “expert craftsmanship”, the claim disregards the fact that an expert craftsman only works with the best, and therefore the most expensive, materials.

High-quality components in any home appliances contribute to lower maintenance.
So any “luxury” home appliance, is a worthwhile investment.
Compared to budget kitchen appliances, luxury kitchen appliances are sold with with extended warranties.

Raising the Ante

The optics of a beautifully designed kitchen appliance elevates its appeal.

The primary traits of ergonomically designed kitchen appliances are versatility and their bespoke design, which is intrinsic to each Brand.

The luxury item costs more, because more effort and care goes into the design time, with more testing of ergonomics, and aesthetics trials with focus groups and more engineering time applied to the tooling of the manufacturing equipment.

HOWEVER – in the secret of “economies of scale”, that I mentioned earlier– all of this is relatively cheap. If we made millions of these “luxury items”, they would eventually cost the same as the “budget items”.

But then there would be no way to GET MORE MONEY out of you. So as manufacturers, we have to make “junk”, so that we can justify over-pricing, and over-charging for the “perception-of-luxury” that we want to sell you – and make you happy to pay for.

You call this practice: "price gouging". We prefer to call it: "a fair return on our investment". But what the hell?

It WAS your money to spend as you wished. And now it is OUR money. And you have your wish.
We just wont talk about programmed obsolescence.

The Art of Compact Living

Bring life to Compact Living by outfitting your Compact Lifestyle space with the optimum small home appliances.
Smart choices make the seemingly utilitarian approach a happy and liveable one.

My small home appliances Guide to Compact Living saves you from the heart-ache and pain of becoming a victim of "Buying Junk You Dont Need"! I cut through the veil of marketing BS to present you with the "short-and-sweet", no-nonsense version - of Important Things to Buy - That Work.

Most Luxury Kitchen Appliances are “Energy Efficient”

What used to be a highlight of luxury kitchen appliances, is now an expected standard of any household appliance: their ability to save energy.

So expect this to already be a function of whatever luxury kitchen appliance you might be buying. Most luxury appliances come with an energy efficiency rating.

This is an efficient way for you to save money on energy requirements, and to support an environment-friendly way of living.
(If it is not energy-efficient - do not buy it.)

“Smart” Integration

What is "smart integration"? A buzz phrase of marketing jargon. Most people do not know what "integration" might mean. No amount of “smart” anything, will overcome the ability of the “operator” to ignore, by-pass, defeat, immobilze, incapacitate, render inoperable or otherwise damage the device or machine they are attempting to operate.

That said, a significant benefit that high-quality appliances have over standard devices is the integration of smart features into their operational capabilities. Effectively (or hopefully) By-passing Stupid.
Most standard models and budget appliances come with the most basic smart functionalities and features, fully incorporated.

High-quality appliances have smart features with more programming, more densely 'packed' into more intricate circuitry - making them more costly.

More fragile and more irrepairable when they fail.
You gets what you pays for.

High-end appliances, however, "benefit from the integration of smart features that assist you almost intuitively, in your cooking experience".
So says the product description. I did not make this up.

"Enjoy adjusting and monitoring their operation remotely via the mobile app".

Not to mention - that cooking is an Art. And if you are not there. . . there will be tragedy and defeat.
Here is a function to admire: For people who cannot even get it right while they are present in the kitchen, they can now to get it wrong.
Remotely, with a mobile app which can always be blamed later - when the meal finally turns out badly. Splendid!

How much does it cost!?

"Enjoy adjusting and monitoring their operation remotely via the mobile app".

IF YOU REMEMBER to do so. I don't know that remote cooking should be a 'thing', when I think of all the things that can go wrong where electricity, heat and stuff that could burn, all meet.

I think of words like: 'equipment failure', 'unattended' and 'not insured for'.

Smart features may take the guesswork out of your cooking – but they cannot overcome wilful disregard, or criminal negligence. Yet.
Or remove "Stupid" from the guesswork.

As it says on SpaceX's autonomous drone rocket recovery barge:
"Just Read the Instructions".

If You Have to Pay for It - The Pitfalls of Buying Household Appliances is Based on “Pretty Looks"

"Eye Appeal" - The Home Appliance Aesthetic

Longevity of Quality Home Appliances

Raising the Ante

Most Luxury Kitchen Appliances are “Energy Efficient”

“Smart” Integration

Other Articles in the Compact Lifestyle Guide.