On the contrary, new stuff is cheap and abundant, it’s just optimized for price and quality at the expense of UX. 20 years ago setting up a new TV required plugging in wires and shit. Now it just means installing the walled garden OS, logging in, and handing over your data for collection. Based on the number of people who are OK with this, it’s hard to imagine it changing without people choosing something else.

Different kind of apocalypse

Actually if it was "just" cheap and junky that would probably be fine with a lot of people here. Yes shrinkinflation is a problem but technology doesn't seem to have that problem, prices genuinely do keep coming down. The problem is what companies add on top of the cheap junk in order to obtain an extra revenue stream while also still selling cheap junk. In fact I think I would rather take cheap dumb junk than high-quality but spying on me.