Opinion: Pins and needles

Some time back, Intel eliminated the pins on the underside of its CPUs, replacing them with golden dots. This required the socket the CPU sits in to stop being full of holes for pins to slot into – instead the ‘socket’ is now made up of rows of pins waiting for the golden dots on the CPU to rest on them.

And here’s the environmental disaster waiting to strike. Previously, clumsy insertion of the CPU into its socket meant bent pins. Some time later, after a few hours with a magnifying glass and tweezers, those bent pins often broke off instead of being straightened, rendering the CPU useless. Dang, chuck several hundred bucks in the bin or add it to the other interesting objects for the kids’ show and tell.

Fast forward to today’s CPU and socket combination. Careless insertion of the CPU bends pins on the socket. Some time later, after a few hours with a magnifying glass and tweezers, those bent pins almost always break off rendering the socket useless. Dang, chuck a much less expensive motherboard, to which the socket is invariably soldered, into the bin or add it to the other interesting objects for the kids’ show and tell. Oh, they’ve already got one from last week.

What’s the problem? Well, the new way saves bucks, but causes oodles and oodles of totally unused electronic gizmos soldered to the motherboard to become instant landfill. Let’s see now, is it easier to get more money or easier to get another planet to pollute? Your move Intel.