[is74]

A big reason manufacturers don't produce durable devices/clothes is because durability is invisible at purchase time. It is also hard for a manufacturer to signal durability to customers who care about it.

It is similar to the reason for which all restaurants being unhealthy --- because the healthiness of a meal is invisible. A meal may have lots of vegetables and nice-looking meat, but also lots of salt and transparent sauces that are unhealthy but tasty.

[astrodust]

There are exceptions to this rule where the durability of the product is the key selling point. Example: Tilley Endurables (http://www.tilley.com/default.aspx) and their hat.

[rubashov]

> It is also hard for a manufacturer to signal durability

The distribution channels and price are the primary signal. Good stuff made by craftsmen is, of course, much more expensive than crap glued together by slave labor. So spend double or triple. The craftsmen who make the good stuff do not put up with crap from the big box stores and maintain a certain level of distribution exclusivity. You might have to go to a higher end department store, like bloomingdales or saks, to even find the stuff.

The other signal is nation of manufacture. Anybody left making things in America or Northern Europe is probably good. Sadly, made in Italy doesn't mean much anymore because in the south there are many sweatshops full of chinese slaves cranking out stuff on which to stamp "made in italy".

> the reason for which all restaurants being unhealthy

All restaurants are not unhealthy. Cheap restaurants are, because they use cheap ingredients. If you're going to eat out you have to spend money. Just don't go to $15 entree places.

[klipt]

> The distribution channels and price are the primary signal. Good stuff made by craftsmen is, of course, much more expensive than crap glued together by slave labor. So spend double or triple.

Of course, this signal is easily abused - junk sold for high prices will be assumed to be 'better' than equivalent junk sold for low prices...