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Making the battery removable by the user seems like a minimum effort for reducing e-waste and the battery is a common form factor (18650). Someday the path will

Making the battery removable by the user seems like a minimum effort for reducing e-waste and the battery is a common form factor (18650). Someday the path will need to move from manufacturer -> consumer -> landfill to manufacturer -> consumer -> manufacturer -> landfill where part of the device cost covers the reprocessing of materials, especially toxic materials.

intopieces 8y ago
That is, if the manufacturer is still in business when it's time to throw away the device. This is one reason why the 'leasing' model for complex gadgets (like phones) appeals to me in an environmental sense. When Apple/VZW/AT&T take back a device, at least they have the resources and incentive to do something better than toss it in a landfill.
- shaklee3 8y ago
  Huh? What phone manufacturer are you worried about going out of business?
  - cr0sh 8y ago
    > What phone manufacturer are you worried about going out of business? Every single one of them could go out of business in the future. It happens all the time to companies you'd think were "too big to fail": MCI Sears Montgomery Wards Mervyn's Gemco Best Pioneer Chicken Radio Shack Sierra Online Pan Am Atari Commodore I haven't even mentioned the number of car companies that have bit the dust, that people never thought they'd go away. All of these can go away - and likely will go away. It's quite possible that Google, Facebook, Amazon, and many others might go away. I'm honestly surprised that IBM is still around. Sun Microsystems is gone (more or less - they are part of Oracle now, mainly as a name - you might know about the language they developed called "Java"); so is Silicon Graphics... Apple of course still exists - but it wasn't that long ago that Microsoft had to pump some cash into them just to keep them going so that they wouldn't be accused of being a monopoly (or something of that nature). It's kinda funny, given where Apple is today - and where Microsoft is as well... Yeah - any and all of these companies can go away - and in fact are likely to. That's just the way the world is.
  - mcguire 8y ago
    Nokia?
dpflan 8y ago
Agreed. Apple is doing a decent job here with its buyback and recycling program. I traded in my last laptop as part of the purchasing of my new one. The process felt "correct" because I don't know the best way to deal with this electronics waste.
- jjeaff 8y ago
  Assuming your device is functional, Apple's buyback program is significantly worse than selling your device to someone that will use it. They are buying the products to get them off the market so that people will buy more new stuff. Sure, it's better than throwing it away, but just put your device on eBay, you will get more money and also a lot more use. Apple products especially seem to last pretty long. It's Reduce > Reuse > Recycle Apples program falls squarely in the very last category.
  - magduf 8y ago
    I agree, however "just put your device on eBay" is really too much work for a lot of people, particular Apple users (sorry, but it's true). I sell my old stuff on Ebay a fair amount, and it really isn't that easy if you want to be successful at it: you have to take photos, look up similar auctions/items to see what it's worth, maybe copy descriptive content from other sellers, possibly edit your photos (I think eBay rejects ones from my phone because they're too large, so I have to shrink them, and so I crop them in the proceess), weigh the item, etc. It's really kind of a PITA. I haven't tried the eBay mobile app so maybe that's a bit easier.
    - neop1x 8y ago
      yes, but there are some companies which would pick up the old stuff and sell it for you, taking a part of money received from sale. Maybe something like this will become even more popular. They can also employ handicaped ppl.
      - magduf 8y ago
        Yep, those are called consignment shops. I've never tried one, but it's not a bad idea in theory. But considering how little you might make from an Ebay sale for many things after Ebay and PayPal take their fees and then you pay for the usually-"free" shipping (with USPS rates already high and constantly rising, and UPS/Fedex rates even worse unless you're a big business), I do really wonder how profitable such a business would be.

intopieces 8y ago

That is, if the manufacturer is still in business when it's time to throw away the device. This is one reason why the 'leasing' model for complex gadgets (like phones) appeals to me in an environmental sense. When Apple/VZW/AT&T take back a device, at least they have the resources and incentive to do something better than toss it in a landfill.

shaklee3 8y ago
Huh? What phone manufacturer are you worried about going out of business?
- cr0sh 8y ago
  > What phone manufacturer are you worried about going out of business? Every single one of them could go out of business in the future. It happens all the time to companies you'd think were "too big to fail": MCI Sears Montgomery Wards Mervyn's Gemco Best Pioneer Chicken Radio Shack Sierra Online Pan Am Atari Commodore I haven't even mentioned the number of car companies that have bit the dust, that people never thought they'd go away. All of these can go away - and likely will go away. It's quite possible that Google, Facebook, Amazon, and many others might go away. I'm honestly surprised that IBM is still around. Sun Microsystems is gone (more or less - they are part of Oracle now, mainly as a name - you might know about the language they developed called "Java"); so is Silicon Graphics... Apple of course still exists - but it wasn't that long ago that Microsoft had to pump some cash into them just to keep them going so that they wouldn't be accused of being a monopoly (or something of that nature). It's kinda funny, given where Apple is today - and where Microsoft is as well... Yeah - any and all of these companies can go away - and in fact are likely to. That's just the way the world is.
- mcguire 8y ago
  Nokia?

dpflan 8y ago

Agreed. Apple is doing a decent job here with its buyback and recycling program. I traded in my last laptop as part of the purchasing of my new one. The process felt "correct" because I don't know the best way to deal with this electronics waste.

jjeaff 8y ago
Assuming your device is functional, Apple's buyback program is significantly worse than selling your device to someone that will use it. They are buying the products to get them off the market so that people will buy more new stuff. Sure, it's better than throwing it away, but just put your device on eBay, you will get more money and also a lot more use. Apple products especially seem to last pretty long. It's Reduce > Reuse > Recycle Apples program falls squarely in the very last category.
- magduf 8y ago
  I agree, however "just put your device on eBay" is really too much work for a lot of people, particular Apple users (sorry, but it's true). I sell my old stuff on Ebay a fair amount, and it really isn't that easy if you want to be successful at it: you have to take photos, look up similar auctions/items to see what it's worth, maybe copy descriptive content from other sellers, possibly edit your photos (I think eBay rejects ones from my phone because they're too large, so I have to shrink them, and so I crop them in the proceess), weigh the item, etc. It's really kind of a PITA. I haven't tried the eBay mobile app so maybe that's a bit easier.
  - neop1x 8y ago
    yes, but there are some companies which would pick up the old stuff and sell it for you, taking a part of money received from sale. Maybe something like this will become even more popular. They can also employ handicaped ppl.
    - magduf 8y ago
      Yep, those are called consignment shops. I've never tried one, but it's not a bad idea in theory. But considering how little you might make from an Ebay sale for many things after Ebay and PayPal take their fees and then you pay for the usually-"free" shipping (with USPS rates already high and constantly rising, and UPS/Fedex rates even worse unless you're a big business), I do really wonder how profitable such a business would be.