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QOTW: Which tech do you boycott?

by Parm Mann on 1 April 2016, 16:31

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Technology has become an emotive part of our everyday lives, and whether it's a conscious decision or not, brand preference plays a very important role in determining our product choices.

The same could be said of all our shopping habits, be it for clothing or groceries, but with technology the love-hate relationship tends to be far more intense. This is an industry in which fanboys and fangirls make up a good portion of many firms' customer base, yet when something rubs us the wrong way, we can hold a grudge that's hard to shift.

And there seems to be a growing list of reasons to avoid certain tech. Poor customer service, reports of tax avoidance, claims of horrendous working conditions, privacy concerns, a high-profile security hack or something entirely trivial. I'll give you an example: I've decided not to buy anymore Blu-rays because I loathe the FBI warnings and the inability to skip trailers.

We gadget enthusiasts love to make a stand, so let's hear it: which tech do you boycott? Let us know your reasoning and what it would take for you to change your mind in the comments section below.



HEXUS Forums :: 128 Comments

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Apple need i say more
Stoggy28
Apple need i say more

+1…
I wouldn't say I dislike anything enough to really classify it as “boycotting”. I use Android instead of iOS, because thats what I prefer. While I haven't used more recent versions of iOS, I used iOS 6 on my iTouch 4G and while it was nice, and people's comments about it “just working” are correct, I find the more open nature of Android more beneficial to my use case specifically (if theyd stop pratting around with microsd support)

Similarly I use an Nvidia card right now, but I don't hate AMD, I avoided them at the time of building this pc because of my limited PSU, but now that I'm doing my first upgrade pass, I'm upping my PSU and keeping an eye on HBM offerings from both sides when they eventually release.

The only thing I actively avoid I would say is AMD CPUs since past a certain price range they are indeed pants. Not really boycotting though, just fulfilling my needs.

I'm also avoiding the new windows versions because of the route they are going, though that said the last few days I've been fiddling with a trial version of it in a virtual box, to see if I can configure it to my liking with ribbon disabler, removing all tiles on the start menu etc.

So ye, I have definite preferences, but I really wouldn't say I hate any particular company or product enough to actively boycott them. I guess at a stretch, the closest company to that for me would be Seagate. I don't consider myself as boycotting them though, but rather I choose to use WD drives because Seagates have always had a terrible failure rate for me.
Windows 10?

Though I want to like it, I can't with the default spying options. I'll probably give in at some point or maybe Linux will take off in time and I'll go that route. Who's to say MS won't suddenly decide to change the T&Cs or “update” in future to turn back on the spying features, if you have disabled/blocked them?
It's funny how Governments and corporations are allowed privacy, but the average person on the street gets patronised and laughed off, if they object to invasions of privacy.
I don't boycott anything, but some companies make my choices easier by the amount they charge being way out of line of the value.

On the other hand I won't buy Intel products on a self-build because I believe their prices are over-inflated for what they offer, and I don't want their half-assed integrated GPUs. But I have Intel products within other devices I've bought. Atom still sucks, by the way, and Windows 10 doesn't help.