I mean, there are things that you are just more interested in than others.
Tinkering with electronics and coding some kind of "complicated" method of cheating for some people would be way easier than studying, especially if the cheating is through something that already is your hobby.
I can work on my motorcycle and fix various things for hours and not mind a thing, but if you ask me to study a chapter from my production management textbook, I'm going to complain all the way
My personal experience as a university student who had to use a flip phone for like a month while waiting for a replacement screen to arrive for the main phone, which is quite similar to what would have probably happened 10 years ago when I was still in school.
Everyone kinda expects you to just have one, for example, nobody uses the actual calling or SMS functions, they use chat apps like Messenger, WhatsApp, Line, or discord. Most of the people that I talk to in the university, I wouldn't even be able to contact without the apps, since I don't actually know their phone numbers or e-mails
If there's one copy of a book in a town and its your cherished thing, that's fine.
If you're the only person in town with a copy of a library's worth of books and you aren't willing to share any with your community to borrow, you're allowed to do that, but you sound like someone who doesn't really want to be a member of a community.
In that case, it's all on a case-by-case basis.
There are some books that I would just give away since they would be taking up space, there are some books that I wouldn't mind lending to anyone at any time, and there are some books that I would only lend to someone that I know personally.
Live together or die alone. We can be a civilization one day, or we can keep being monkeys throwing sticks at each other in the dirt, but with smartphones and smog.
Sure, but we were never meant to be a global one, I'm perfectly fine with being a part of a certain tribe of monkeys that is ready to throw sticks at another tribe for our way of life.
My problem with my example is with the individuals in our society.
I honestly have no idea why people still want to buy the newest models of phones since they don't really bring anything new to the table.
But, in my opinion, it's a failing of the individuals rather than a failing of an economic model. There really is no negative for a company to release new models with minor updates if there are enough dumbasses that will give them money for it
Without considering how your free use however you want effects others?
Define the others, I'm not out here throwing trash on the streets or smashing windows, I don't mind helping the people in my community or lending the things that I own to them.
My problem in that regard would be that there is nothing that I'm passionate about.
Sure, I have 100s of different interests that I have dabbled with, but for all of them, I have stopped at some point, before forgetting about them entirely or picking them up again sometimes years later.
If you don't value the thing for it's intended function why are you bothering to take one?
That's beside the point, the point is that I don't borrow things because I like to have the ability to use them however I want and according to my current needs.
I have a paint can that I can't get open, but I own a flathead screwdriver. It's not the intended purpose of a flathead screwdriver, but I can use it as a prybar to open the paint can, if the screwdriver breaks, now I have 2 pieces of metal to use for something else.
I don't mind working, but I would like to work for a currency that I can use to buy things that I will own and see to use however I see fit for it to be used.
Part of it is my personal feelings about the current technology. I'm using a phone that is around 4 years old now and sure some of the new foldable phones do sound interesting, but I really have no need to upgrade mine, it makes calls, I can watch YouTube videos, look up where I want to go, and play some games. I don't really see a need for anything to change for something new and if someone asked me to pitch in for research in phones I would ask why?
As for what drives innovation, I won't deny that any of the examples that you listed drive innovation, but I guess it's more about the pace of it.
Right now the companies pour resources into creating a product that meets requirements and that the customers will pick over the competition and give money to the company that created a product that they wanted
On the flip side, it shown no Domino's pizza in Latvia, but we have it now