I have a Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 with same chipset and from the same time still working fine except low battery backup due to worn out battery. It runs Lineage OS Extended based on Android 8.1. In moderate use everything still, just runs smooth. I have had zero hardware failure on this phone given WIFI is 24x365 on with mobile network and Bluetooth headset connected. It was actually a rugged phone with some quality hardware and great build quality by Xiaomi. It would really be great for consumers and environment too, if phone companies made phones that lasted longer then they last today. A good quality phone can really make it upto 8 to 10 years of life if OEM battery is available at good price. But batteries available at other places are not good and OEM batteries available at service centers cost nearly half the price of the phones.
You could only find few words to base your thesis of manipulation when a news article gone contrary to what you have been manipulated to believe. You sure it isn’t really you who have been manipulated to believe in what you believe considering the media you consume is the one that uses those words heavily, creating a matrix of misinformation making it really difficult for you to keep your world view unaffected by that matrix you live in.