That (the Sony boss variant) was what I read.
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3 years ago
Mains failure
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3 years ago
When I was a kid in Liverpool, we NEVER had power cuts unless I managed to blow a domestic fuse (there was only one) whilst "messing about".
OK, we had a couple of denials of service during the strikes of 1970 and
1971, but they were caused by selective switching, not by system failure.In a village in SE England, though, power cuts have been quite common. I got the Parish Council to complain about it.
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3 years ago
numbers in a mobile phone can be used with a landline. People differ but I'm less likely to forgot where my mobile is than where I put that bit of paper...
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3 years ago
Telephone exchanges have batteries and generators IIRC.
Many mobile phone masts have no backup at all. However, even when the mast is down, you'll still be able to use your mobile to get the numbers you need from your contacts list and tap them into the landline phone - or in our case dial them in.
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3 years ago
there are really two standards - 110 and 230
and 50 or 60 hz The point is it makes sense for all. parties to standardise. So they do. You don't need a bureaucracy to force them
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3 years ago
During the Great Storm of 1987, all the leccy was out in SE London (shows you what a really dark sky is ...). The phone line was powered, but all the lines were down, so it just crackled.
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3 years ago
I was at a demonstration (by Philips) to a broadcast body some time before the commercial introduction. And would say everyone was knocked out by it. But oddly, that story wasn't quoted when they were asked about the maximum playing time. Indeed, I never heard it until some years later.
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3 years ago
As with phone chargers, sometimes it just takes a threat of legislation to coerce change.
It does not make sense to standardise; where optional extras will typically have profit margins far greater than the host/initial sale.
iPhones come to mind with their bespoke adaptors with a captive audience willing to pay silly price-tags.
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3 years ago
A sensible cordless base station would have a corded handset that works with no power.
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3 years ago
Wasn't AC supply originally a free for all ? Rival suppliers trying to keep out competition ? Like the very first railway gauges (since they've been mentioned).
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3 years ago
It was, with different voltages, AC and DC. Given the nature of power it was always going to be standardised.
I'm talking say cars, iPhones, where a manufacturer will make more money out of addons and accessories tailor made to their own product, where IP and design rights may also prevent others entering the market.
I know someone with a Honda Accord, which has a SatNav. It's now pretty useless unless he pays the £300 or so for an upgraded map. Only Honda can program the unit.
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3 years ago
Such things do exist.
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3 years ago
Having been underwhelmed (to say the least) with the in car sat nav, compared to a free version of HERE maps on an old MotoG, I really cannot fathom why anyone would pay extra for inbuilt proprietary sat nav.
Then, given how s**te the ICE unit is, repeat for that. Same MotoG will happily play music, podcasts while navigating with a plethora of interfaces to chose from. None of which could be anywhere near as crap as the actual inbuilt one.
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3 years ago
Yes there of course alternatives, but you miss the point that the manufacturer tried to create an income stream that they otherwise they wouldn't have had. He now has a useless display.
Once again you miss the point that the manufacturer makes no money from you using your MotoG.
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3 years ago
Even a standardised bumper height.
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3 years ago
Do you mean 105?
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3 years ago
You jest, I assume? Clutter the thing up with something you may never need?
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3 years ago
Had exactly the same with my car. Luckily pirates abound, and got it done for a reasonable sum. I've no morals about doing so when the makers attempt to rip you off.
Bit the same as workshop manuals. 'Sorry, sir - only for our own dealers' Ok - I'll buy a pirated one.
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3 years ago
Really? In the days of separate bumpers, wasn't unusual to have different heights front and back.
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3 years ago
I get that. My point is I have no incentive to give the manufacturer my money because I can achieve 1000x better performance for free.
It was telling when we chose our last car that even the salesmen didn't try and sell the internet shit (IIRC it was £30/month plus a £300 setup fee). He said he just used a tethered 4G mobile.
What really grates is that in concentrating on ephemeral nonsense like that, some rather bigger annoyances were overlooked in the actual driving functionality.