Forensic Report: Hitachi TV VES650QNTS-2D-N41
===============


| Identity of the reporting agency | MDEF |
|----------------------------------------|--------------------------------|
| Case identifier | Forensics of the Obsolescence |
| Identity of the submitter | Guillem Comprodon |
| Date of receipt | 09/11/2021 |
| Date of report | 09/11/2021 |
| Identity and signature of the examiner | Paula, Ruben, José, Julia, Chris |

:::warning
## See also: our Google Slides presentation
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/18PuneQvbOcGVa4wapMFWtmdZikAzIa6ly8LUyFQcOWs/edit?usp=sharing
:::

## Key Data
Brand: Hitachi
Model: VES650QNTS-2D-N41
Manufactoring Number: V20B00537
Manufactured by: Vestel
Color: black
Assemblied in: Turkey
Tested: CE (self-certification)
Size: 65"

---

## Forensic Questions

### What does it do?
Displaying images and video on a 65" screen via analog (RCA) and digital input ports (VGA, HDMI, USB, Ethernet and Coax) with audio (3,5mm jack) support.

### How does it work?
User connects the desired medium to the corresponding input-port and navigates to the input signal on the television's menu. The 'input-PCB' translates these signals to visual output on the LCD-screen being backlit by the LED lightbox.

### How it's built?

:::warning
## See a detailed list of the internal chips here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fchGMTPCAJj9o4H8RPzMEL5QTBl-k9JOE-pUe0YaflY/edit?usp=sharing
:::


### Why it failed, or it wasn't used anymore?
Cracked LCD-screen.

## Steps taken
1. Disassembly
2. Component mapping
3. Circuit mapping
4. Testing backlighting (isolated)


## Results

### How many motors we find inside, does it contain a computer or microcontroller?
- Several types and sizes of capacitors.
- Large 2GB RAM on controlling PCB unit.
- Microcontroller cooled by aluminum profile.


### Did the appliance fail, why?
Yes, incorrect visual output. Cracked screen with only a part of the tv's side-menu showing.

## Conclusions
- Fab for Economics vs Fab for Environment:
The traditional mindset about the economic model makes the "cost/benefit" the main purpose of the industry, leaving long term purposes (environment contamination, carbon footprint, recycling and reutilization) aside. The challenge for this type of products is to start producing in a circular economic way.

- Black Box (TV) has inside black boxes that have inside blackboxes that have inside blackboxes:
The understanding about machines that are made of smaller machines, each one with their own utility, is a interesting fact when fixing or reinventing products. In the case of this TV, we had a lot of black boxes that could be used for fabrication of other type of products.

- The difficulty of disassembling it without breaking it:
Disposable products, not made for fixing at home, is a paradigm that is changing. In today´s world the concept of DIY is attached to the way humans and things are related.

- The industry managed to settle products for different public using the same boards:
Low cost and simplificity for production is exemplified, fabricating different models for different public using the same "materials".

- It’s not that the TV did not work, it was only the the black LCD screen:
Can the client replace the screen?, or is too dangerous?, or is not favorable for the industry?


## Reflections


Questioning what is inside the products we use on daily base provided insights on how extremely extensive modern day production systems are. Supply chains literally stretch across the globe with one product having components being manufactured in Japan, Turkey, Russia, China and Taiwan. And more so, each of these locations having it's own selection of suppliers with sub-components, sub-sub-components and raw materials that can come from e.g. Africa, South-East Asia or South-America. With likeliness of being cross-distributed between them so that any product produced by this system - on itself - has travelled an insane amount of distance and, in a way, is an encapsulement of the world's efforts itself. 🌍

Aside of that we learned that by disassembling a recent model HITACHI television 📺 and web-researching the parts inside that the same PCB (printed circuit board) produced by a single chip-giant can be sold to several (direct market-rivals) electronics-companies and they can sell it to different customer segments by choosing to in- or exclude certain functionalities on the same single PCB. In the case of our HITACHI tv this was shown as the unused outlines of where an HDMI-port would be in a more expensive model of the same brand.

I think that for those willing to see it's clear as day that this one-way-stream system cannot survive longterm and exploits its early layers for the benefits of those at the end.
Yes, the consumer has his television and he has it cheap, but at what cost for those that mined its materials and what purpose will it serve next.

Our television got to us because its LCD screen was cracked. The LCD screen, just one broken component out of at least ten perfect working parts and still the entirity of the product was discarded. Even with the knowledgement of which component being the infunctional one, since it gave this as visual feedback on the screen.

## Uncovered Supply Chain

https://www.statista.com/statistics/270277/mining-of-rare-earths-by-country/