Dave Waterman is the "Gadget Man." Some might say he is addicted, or at least obsessed by the electronic devices that are purported to make every aspect of our lives easier. But the 69-year-old Bakersfield man claims he is just "extremely interested" in gadgets and that he actually is restrained in his buying.
The Roomba robot that vacuums his bedroom, the cameras and electronic picture frames that capture his memories, the computers, cell phones, PDAs, GPSes, notebooks, "smart shopper" -- you name it -- that he owns are all necessary and thoughtful purchases.
Waterman knows so much about gadgets and owns so many that he gives lectures about them. Last summer, he gave a series of lectures -- how to buy gadgets and how to use them -- for the Kern County Library's baby boomer program. More recently, he spoke to the Bakersfield branch of the American Association of University Women about gadgets.
"You only should buy something that you honestly need, rather than something you just want," Waterman said, noting that too often purchases are made on the basis of peer pressure, glitzy advertising and impulse. And after the novelty wears off, many of our gadgets are left to collect dust on our shelves. We also may be too embarrassed or intimidated to admit we don't know how to use them.
Industry analysts estimate that the average American household spends $1,200 a year on new electronics. Our televisions, mobile phones, computers, etc., eat up 15 percent of our home's electricity use. The International Energy Association predicts by 2022, that figure will double. And by 2030, it will triple.
Our insatiable appetite for gadgets and their rapid obsolescence are creating mounds of e-waste. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports Americans dumped 205 million computer products, more than 100 million cell phones and PDAs, and 27 million TVs in 2007, the most recent year for e-waste disposal statistics. Only about 16 percent was recycled, with much of the remainder finding its way to the nation's landfills. A decade ago, e-waste wasn't considered a problem. Now Congress is crafting laws to "control it."
As technology advances, consumers can do little to curb the energy their gadgets use. Besides, today's gadget actually may be replacing yesterday's energy-hogging machine. Consumers also can do little to control obsolescence.
Just this month, manufacturers gathered in Las Vegas for the world's largest consumer electronics show. The fastest, sexiest, most eye-popping gadgets -- making this Christmas' hot sellers obsolete -- were unveiled. Tomorrow's mouth-droolingly must-have gadgets are on the drawing boards, getting ready to be unveiled at next year's show.
So what's a consumer to do?
Waterman offers his audiences three tips:
Do not buy impulsively
"Make sure you understand why you are buying a gadget and are certain you need it. I don't buy everything I see and want," he said.
Don't be the first to buy the latest gadget
You won't catch Waterman sleeping outside Best Buys to make sure he is the first through the door to snatch up the latest iPhone.
"I like to read the reviews. I want to know what people who bought it first think about it," he said. "Often manufacturers will discover the screen is too small or something. They will upgrade the next version and drop the price.
"I refuse to pay the beginning price. People who have to be the first to own something are paying for the R&D (cost of research and development). They are paying too much."
Do your research.
"Research what you need and what else is available to do the job," he said, noting that we often buy more technology than we plan to use. For example, rather than buying a "fully loaded" cell phone, we might be better off buying a less sophisticated and cheaper version, and complement it with a less expensive PDA.
Waterman says he takes his advice, spending a lot of time on research before deciding if he should spend his money and what he should buy.
Waterman has an electronics background that helps with that research.
After earning an associate of arts degree in electronics from San Diego Community College, Waterman worked for more than two decades for the Navy as an electronics technician at the North Island Naval Air Station. He later worked in communications for Union Pacific Railroad and for Lightspeed in Bakersfield.
Now retired, he volunteers to teach beginning computer classes at Emmanuel Lutheran Church in east Bakersfield.
The message he spreads in his gadget classes: You are never too old or too uninformed to learn how to use and enjoy the latest gadget. Just make sure you need it before you buy it.
And when one of Waterman's gadgets breaks or becomes obsolete, what does he do? He takes it apart to see what made it tick.
Like he said, he's not really a gadget addict. He's just "extremely interested."
This story written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Jan. 22, 2010. See South Valley Solutions at http://www.svs2help.com/
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