An object lesson in design flaws...

[kc7gr-15]

Recent scrounging efforts netted me a nice wireless (DECT) VoIP phone, specifically a Snom M9 for cheap. I soon found out why. Subsequent testing revealed a lack of ability to transmit on the Ethernet side.

Thinking the transceiver chip might have gone bad, and/or might be replaceable, I popped open the base unit -- and, after a brief inspection, found myself having to retrieve my jaw from the floor.

It seems, rather than using a standard Ethernet connector with a built-in shield, Snom went the cheap route with a basic RJ45 receptacle and a strip of copper adhesive tape pasted across its backside. The adhesive on the back of the lower part of the tape had lost its tack, allowing the edge of the (very conductive) tape strip to peel back and (drumroll) short out several contacts on the Ethernet pulse transformer -- which was mounted directly behind the jack.

The fix consisted of trimming off some of the tape, and putting everything back together.

So, in essence, someone ended up dumping a perfectly decent $200 cordless phone on the surplus market because a manufacturer didn't think things through in both component placement and type of component to use. I know it's not the first time, and it certainly won't be the last, but... a  loose strip of tape? Seriously?!

[OwO]

Planned obsolescence.

[Kleinstein]

Sometimes design flaws happen - usually not be full intention but in an attempt to save a few cents.

Rather similar to the case described I remember the EMI shield in the Commodore C64 was made out of cardboard covered with aluminum foil. Over time and with chaining humidity the  composite bends and could short out the supply at one corner. A piece of insulating tape fixed it.

It's quite common to see products fail quite often at a similar spot. If this usually only happens after the warranty period such design flaws / weaknesses may not get fixed with a high priority - especially not for products (like the phone)  that are only produced for a short time anyway.