The Sam Vimes “Boots” theory of socioeconomic unfairness, often called simply the boots theory, is an economic theory that people in poverty have to buy cheap and subpar products that need to be replaced repeatedly, proving more expensive in the long run than more expensive items.
My main trick used to be getting Senheisers extra thin/light model, because they were basically guaranteed to break inside the warranted period (mostly due to cable breaks from my pockets), and then they’d replace it basically for free, or a few bucks to upgrade to the next model.
And then the bastards made a set good enough that it lasted me 6 years.