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Incandescent light bulbs burned out at the speed they did because of an agreement between light bulb manufacturers to not make them better. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoebus_cartel
That’s so oversimplified that it borders on being a lie. Yes it happened, but the why of it wasn’t as simple as just “sell more lightbulbs”.
I can’t link it right now, but go on YouTube and find the channel technology connections. He does a deep dive into the history of the light bulb and the phoebus cartel. TLDR: believe it or not, it was actually a good thing.
Maybe the Technology Connections guy is an heir to the General Electric fortune. He certainly has a lot of access to old toasters. 🤔🧐
/s
Now there’s a conspiracy theory I can get behind. He’s financed by big toaster.
Does that explain why he did a 40 minute video on why microwaves from the 60s were better, but have since become shitified? To promote toasters instead?
Actually, come to think of it, it’s not just toasters… it’s coffeemakers, microwaves, stove knobs, thermostats…
HE’S SUPPORTED BY BIG BIMETALLIC STRIP!
Frakkin Cylons! I knew it!
It was neutral at best, it was still a conspiracy to reduce choice in the market in a way that was beneficial to them. Yes, the excuse they used was that it prevented people from creating light bulbs that were of poor quality, and had an unpleasant color to them, but it also was profitable for them to do so.
Here's the video you mentioned: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zb7Bs98KmnY
It would have been a race to the bottom. The same way it happens with other products today. Some number bigger = better marketing = selling more = others need to do the same or go bankrupt = everyone does it.
Big business doesn't have the right to decide that for us.
If the government does not, good thing they did.
Lmao that's not how any of this works
People buy iPhones bruh
That’s fair. I can get behind a neutral view of it.
That's totally true. If you go to Edison's house they have light bulbs that have been burning for a really long time. Every tour someone asks, "why don't my light bulbs last that long?" The tour guide replies, "because then you'd only buy them once."
Also the bulbs that last forever are majorly undervolted. They last forever because they’re not run anywhere near their current capacity, and as a result, they emit way less light and their filament doesn’t degrade as fast.
If you take any old off the shelf incandescent bulb and only run it at 50v, it’ll last decades.
They also don't produce usable amounts of light.
A big part of that is that those bulbs are never turned off. Cycling power is actually a large part of what degrades them.