Grumpy guy at the recycling center made me rethink buying smart home stuff

I was dropping off a dead Roomba at the e-waste bin last Thursday and this old timer pointed at it and said 'you know, you can't fix those things yourself, that's the point.' I was about to argue but looked at the sealed battery pack and the $35 replacement part quote and realized he was right. Has anyone here successfully cracked open a modern vacuum or smart speaker without bricking it?

3 comments

3 Comments

fisher.mason27d ago

You have any idea how many fried smart speakers end up in that e-waste bin? My buddy Mike tried to save his Nest Mini by cracking it open after it stopped listening. He followed a YouTube guide, but the clips inside snapped like toothpicks. @the_kim, that $35 quote is a joke, but he ended up buying a whole new one after breaking two ribbon cables and losing a spring. The thing went from a dumb speaker to a dead paperweight in five minutes flat.

the_kim29d ago

$35 for a replacement part on a Roomba? That's highway robbery.

evanr7929d agoMost Upvoted

Hold on, $35? For one little piece of plastic with a sensor on it? I get that they gotta make money, but that's almost the price of a whole new budget robovac. For a part that probably costs two bucks to make in a factory somewhere.