Not sure about necessity but it sure sound like it's tomorrow's e-waste and land fill material

Indeed, see stuff like fridges, cars, phones, internet access...

> pop-up ads, selfies, subscriptions, the cybertruck...

None of these are a luxury, or ever was; in a way, they are the opposite.

* Never ran out of batteries

* Didn't rely on an IR sensor that would work about 80% of the time, but would sometimes require waving more than once to get it to open.

* Didn't have a delicate gearing mechanism (automatic one eventually stripped a gear and broke).

* No set open time. God forbid you throw something in, turn to the counter and throw a second thing in...

* large lid, since it relies on foot power, not a motor / battery can only realistically open a certain weight lid.

My inlaws also have an automatic one -- last time I visited I saw that they also suffered from the stripped gear issue...

I wish public restrooms used foot-operated faucets instead of the existing "wave frantically for 3 seconds of water" sensors they have.

I am jealous of the auto-seal garbage bag option, but I am skeptical about long term reliability.