Of course nobody but them knows. I think it cannot be in the
best interest of the customer. It is the first thing I turn
back on, including the offline-data collection (automatic
self-test, usually every 4 hours or so).
There are a lot of bad practices out there, that hurt the customer.
But apparently the customer does not know enough to understand
what is going on and so they may actually be beneficial from
a business perspective.
For example I have now seen several devices with self-destruct
mechanisms. One was a 3000 USD Somy Vaio laptop, definitely not low
end (its chipset was rigged to run hot enough to die about 1...1.5
years after purchase). I will never buy anythign from them again/
Another one (a long time ago) was a PC that had two conventional
betteries over the mainboard. After 2-3 Years they would start leaking
acid onto it. I have seen other instances.
I don't trust technology vendors. To many important decision my
management that is only interested in profits. To little decisions by
engineers that want to make a good product.
Arno