PhD: is the doctoral thesis obsolete?

I am surprised to hear the view that Examiners do not read all of a PhD. In my experience of about 35 PhD examinations to date, I have read the whole thesis and marked it up with notes for the viva. I also take issue with the time "waiting to be examined". Unless I am missing some funding source, I would assume that candidates need to do what I had to do long ago and start work whilst they wait for the viva. This is not thus wasted time as viva preparation takes place in parallel with whatever post comes next. I would not say that the PhDs that I have supervised nor those that I have examined were part of a "conveyor belt". They have all been different and the students all progressed as researchers and as people during their completion.

I disagree with views which expressed PhD theses as"conveyor belt". I am yet to hear of, or come across an examiner who did or does not read a theses in its entirety, when they have at least 3 months before the viva. PhD researchers put in so much hardwork to get awarded the degree. For a senior colleague to describe it as a "conveyor belt" is appalling, undermining and demeaning!