The simpler a toaster is, the more likely it is to have eternal life. If you can buy a modern toaster that's just the knob and levers (no digital controls or whatever) then there's really no reason it won't last decades.
Back when I was a kid in the 80s toasters would break because we shoved in hacked up pieces of bread or bagels where the food touched the elements and caught fire. And knives were poked inside to extract burnt remains from the heating elements.
I was shocked to see there are toasters with motorized lifting mechanisms. Is there any practical reason why this is better than a spring?
People are propagandized to pay more money for them, then do it again when they break.
Motorized mechanisms... hmm. Well, sometimes toasters pop up toasts too hard making them land on the floor.
This isn't really true. The heating elements are pretty much entirely a resistive load, which do not cause arcing when switched off. What desoldered your PCB might be the heat itself.
Here's a pic BTW: https://imgur.com/tZadj6N
Depends what you mean by “practical”. Motorised avoid the jump scare and don’t risk launching light pieces out of the toaster.
I’d also assume (but don’t know as I’ve never been much of a toaster person) they can have a longer movement range and limit crumbing through lower acceleration stress.