Advice for tape drive repair / maintenance

Generally still OT, but on-topic regarding the maintainability of modern devices, did anyone perchance read the "A New Spin on White Goods" article in the December 15, Electronic Design? My clothes washer and dryer are going on 17 years and work just fine. I see no reason that I won'd get 20-25 years of service out of them. But reading about technology in the pipeline makes me wish they'd last forever. Motors controlled by DSPs with 10 A/D converters on chip, GUI displays, talk about inventorying the stuff in your refrigerator (using RFID tags on the food) really makes me wonder where the heck repair parts are going to come from when the new appliances are 20 years old. BTW, when I looked at replacement ovens over the last few days, I found that just about all of the new ones are loaded with features that I'll never use, such as "Sabbath Mode" (no kidding). It looks like a brave new world, folks. Cheers, Chuck