5 ms·

If NY really wants to cut e-waste they should require removable batteries in cellphones and laptops. The move to non-removable batteries always seemed like a t

If NY really wants to cut e-waste they should require removable batteries in cellphones and laptops. The move to non-removable batteries always seemed like a thinly veild money grab to me.

Guest42 5y ago
It makes everything disposable. I’ve seen a few 200 dollar health devices that fail quickly because they use cheap cr 2032 batteries that can’t be accessed. I miss the days of clip in batteries. I still have a 2013 laptop like that.
- nashashmi 5y ago
  Agree. Non removable batteries is an aesthetic approach to consumer devices. It has no place in industrial applications. An analogy would be a decorated plastic bag selling seeds at hardware store, Or a brown ugly burlap selling seeds to landscape contractors. One is for consumers. The other is for the expert.
- tachyonbeam 5y ago
  But this would force your laptop to be a whole 1.8cm thick! Unthinkable!
  - ExtraE 5y ago
    You joke, but LG makes a <3lb (1.36kg) 17” laptop. That’s impressive. (I can’t vouch for its quality, I don’t have one). Samsung makes a 15.6” laptop that weighs 2.6lbs, which is extremely practical. I’m planning on getting one. I wouldn’t be if it had the bulk and weight of a removable battery.
    - hutzlibu 5y ago
      "weight of a removable battery" Why would a removable battery be more heavy? More bulky, probably and with more plastic also a bit more heavy. But not much, as the heavy part is not the plastic.
    - tachyonbeam 5y ago
      Maybe we could build laptop cases out of carbon fiber and get the best of both worlds? Or at least make laptop cases easier to open for servicing, with standard screws and no plastic clamps.
    - only_as_i_fall 5y ago
      I literally just don't believe that this is a real problem. Old school laptop batteries were large, but how much of that is really needed? In theory you could add a connector and be 90% of the way there. Put a panel on attached with a simple screw and you're golden.
Wowfunhappy 5y ago
Non-removable batteries are annoying, but they allow you to make devices which are much more compact, or which have a larger battery at the same size. The battery in e.g. an iPhone 6S takes some work to replace, but it's still quite easy for a repair shop to do, so that seems like a very reasonable trade-off to me.
- andrei_says_ 5y ago
  What about non-removable batteries that are also glued in? With a excessive amount of glue? Making them doubly non-removable?
  - hutzlibu 5y ago
    There is the valid argument, of sealing it in, for water protection. I am still looking for a new phone, which removable battery.
    - Wowfunhappy 5y ago
      > There is the valid argument, of sealing it in, for water protection. There is an argument, perhaps, I don't know about a "valid" one. The difference between "the battery can be swapped with a screw driver" and "the battery can be swapped by a repair shop in 15 minutes" isn't really that large, so if it can make devices more compact, sure, why not? Batteries that outright can't be replaced are something else entirely. Maybe some consumers are willing to make the trade, but it's environmentally irresponsible. The Airpods in particular really piss me off given all of Apple's environmental messaging.
    - the_pwner224 5y ago
      That is incorrect. The Samsung Galaxy S5 had a removable battery and headphone jack and was still waterproof. It was a $550 phone and was a flagship with the latest hardware/performance stuff, so clearly this was practical from a cost/manufacturing standpoint. Waterproofing is not a valid reason against having removable batteries or ports.
  - 5y ago
TravHatesMe 5y ago
That is already the case for many power tools and appliances, the universal battery is usually more expensive than the tool.
kgwxd 5y ago
Standardized would be nice too. I have at least 3 laptops that could be put to good use but the batteries are no longer available, 2 of them don't even work with the plug unless there's a battery in there for some god awful reason.
- driverdan 5y ago
  The cells in the packs can be replaced.
  - kgwxd 5y ago
    Really? Never thought of that, is that a DIY thing or would I need to take it someplace?
    - InvaderFizz 5y ago
      Just search for that model laptop battery on Amazon. You'll likely find a slew of Chinese replacement batteries. See if there is a YouTube or iFixit tear down guide, take the bottom cover off, replace battery, put the cover back on.
      - hutzlibu 5y ago
        So ... the DIY is subjective. You don't want to screw up and later have your laptop (and house) on fire.
        hughrr 5y ago
        That’s the risk you take on with promoting right to repair. It’s be better if we had stronger consumer legislation globally that forces manufacturer responsibility rather than demand we can do the job ourselves. Imagine if you bought a laptop and the battery died after 2 years and the state mandated option was for the manufacturer to buy it back at 60% of the original value because it didn’t last the prescribed 6 year life span. Removable batteries would appear overnight in everything. Imagine that at the end of the useful life the manufacturer had to buy it back for 20% of the value to recycle it. Global trash heaps would disappear overnight.
hellbannedguy 5y ago
Politicians use e-waste as the reason use for these RTR bills, but my concern is simple. I'm tired of my closet of broken devices. I don't like spending money on a new item when I was happy with the old model. I am tired of not seeing all the trouble codes on my car when it breaks down. I don't like spending money on electronics because a company won't let me fix their product, restricts information, or spare parts. I came from a family that was too poor to buy new, and repair was just expected.
- dopidopHN 5y ago
  My work want to force me to update my PERSONAL phone because apple do not support very old Iphone anymore. ( they gave me another phone for work stuff, 2FA and what not... ) this old phone works really well still. I do not conduct any work related activities on it. But they see it as a attack vector I guess?
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
  - ghaff 5y ago
    If you don't do any work-related activities on it and you have a work phone, how/why are they requiring you to get a new personal phone? If one does do work things on their phone and, especially if you have MDM installed, it is of course reasonable to require you to be on a current OS. And Apple is pretty good about length of support but it's not forever.
- ryandrake 5y ago
  I'm tired of my closet of broken devices, too. But I'm also tired of my closet of perfectly working devices, which the manufacturer just up and decided to no longer ship software updates for. Hardware that's totally functional as the first day I bought it, except 1. with software that no longer does what it's supposed to because backends have been turned off, and 2. the device will be 0wned instantly if I ever connect to the Internet. We need mandatory bootloader unlocking for products that the manufacture finds unprofitable to ship software updates for.

If NY really wants to cut e-waste they should require removable batteries in cellphones and laptops. The move to non-removable batteries always seemed like a thinly veild money grab to me.

Guest42 5y ago

It makes everything disposable. I’ve seen a few 200 dollar health devices that fail quickly because they use cheap cr 2032 batteries that can’t be accessed. I miss the days of clip in batteries. I still have a 2013 laptop like that.

nashashmi 5y ago
Agree. Non removable batteries is an aesthetic approach to consumer devices. It has no place in industrial applications. An analogy would be a decorated plastic bag selling seeds at hardware store, Or a brown ugly burlap selling seeds to landscape contractors. One is for consumers. The other is for the expert.
tachyonbeam 5y ago
But this would force your laptop to be a whole 1.8cm thick! Unthinkable!
- ExtraE 5y ago
  You joke, but LG makes a <3lb (1.36kg) 17” laptop. That’s impressive. (I can’t vouch for its quality, I don’t have one). Samsung makes a 15.6” laptop that weighs 2.6lbs, which is extremely practical. I’m planning on getting one. I wouldn’t be if it had the bulk and weight of a removable battery.
  - hutzlibu 5y ago
    "weight of a removable battery" Why would a removable battery be more heavy? More bulky, probably and with more plastic also a bit more heavy. But not much, as the heavy part is not the plastic.
  - tachyonbeam 5y ago
    Maybe we could build laptop cases out of carbon fiber and get the best of both worlds? Or at least make laptop cases easier to open for servicing, with standard screws and no plastic clamps.
  - only_as_i_fall 5y ago
    I literally just don't believe that this is a real problem. Old school laptop batteries were large, but how much of that is really needed? In theory you could add a connector and be 90% of the way there. Put a panel on attached with a simple screw and you're golden.

Wowfunhappy 5y ago

Non-removable batteries are annoying, but they allow you to make devices which are much more compact, or which have a larger battery at the same size. The battery in e.g. an iPhone 6S takes some work to replace, but it's still quite easy for a repair shop to do, so that seems like a very reasonable trade-off to me.

andrei_says_ 5y ago
What about non-removable batteries that are also glued in? With a excessive amount of glue? Making them doubly non-removable?
- hutzlibu 5y ago
  There is the valid argument, of sealing it in, for water protection. I am still looking for a new phone, which removable battery.
  - Wowfunhappy 5y ago
    > There is the valid argument, of sealing it in, for water protection. There is an argument, perhaps, I don't know about a "valid" one. The difference between "the battery can be swapped with a screw driver" and "the battery can be swapped by a repair shop in 15 minutes" isn't really that large, so if it can make devices more compact, sure, why not? Batteries that outright can't be replaced are something else entirely. Maybe some consumers are willing to make the trade, but it's environmentally irresponsible. The Airpods in particular really piss me off given all of Apple's environmental messaging.
  - the_pwner224 5y ago
    That is incorrect. The Samsung Galaxy S5 had a removable battery and headphone jack and was still waterproof. It was a $550 phone and was a flagship with the latest hardware/performance stuff, so clearly this was practical from a cost/manufacturing standpoint. Waterproofing is not a valid reason against having removable batteries or ports.
- 5y ago

TravHatesMe 5y ago

That is already the case for many power tools and appliances, the universal battery is usually more expensive than the tool.

kgwxd 5y ago

Standardized would be nice too. I have at least 3 laptops that could be put to good use but the batteries are no longer available, 2 of them don't even work with the plug unless there's a battery in there for some god awful reason.

driverdan 5y ago
The cells in the packs can be replaced.
- kgwxd 5y ago
  Really? Never thought of that, is that a DIY thing or would I need to take it someplace?
  - InvaderFizz 5y ago
    Just search for that model laptop battery on Amazon. You'll likely find a slew of Chinese replacement batteries. See if there is a YouTube or iFixit tear down guide, take the bottom cover off, replace battery, put the cover back on.
    - hutzlibu 5y ago
      So ... the DIY is subjective. You don't want to screw up and later have your laptop (and house) on fire.
      - hughrr 5y ago
        That’s the risk you take on with promoting right to repair. It’s be better if we had stronger consumer legislation globally that forces manufacturer responsibility rather than demand we can do the job ourselves. Imagine if you bought a laptop and the battery died after 2 years and the state mandated option was for the manufacturer to buy it back at 60% of the original value because it didn’t last the prescribed 6 year life span. Removable batteries would appear overnight in everything. Imagine that at the end of the useful life the manufacturer had to buy it back for 20% of the value to recycle it. Global trash heaps would disappear overnight.

hellbannedguy 5y ago

Politicians use e-waste as the reason use for these RTR bills, but my concern is simple. I'm tired of my closet of broken devices. I don't like spending money on a new item when I was happy with the old model. I am tired of not seeing all the trouble codes on my car when it breaks down. I don't like spending money on electronics because a company won't let me fix their product, restricts information, or spare parts. I came from a family that was too poor to buy new, and repair was just expected.

dopidopHN 5y ago
My work want to force me to update my PERSONAL phone because apple do not support very old Iphone anymore. ( they gave me another phone for work stuff, 2FA and what not... ) this old phone works really well still. I do not conduct any work related activities on it. But they see it as a attack vector I guess?
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- ghaff 5y ago
  If you don't do any work-related activities on it and you have a work phone, how/why are they requiring you to get a new personal phone? If one does do work things on their phone and, especially if you have MDM installed, it is of course reasonable to require you to be on a current OS. And Apple is pretty good about length of support but it's not forever.
ryandrake 5y ago
I'm tired of my closet of broken devices, too. But I'm also tired of my closet of perfectly working devices, which the manufacturer just up and decided to no longer ship software updates for. Hardware that's totally functional as the first day I bought it, except 1. with software that no longer does what it's supposed to because backends have been turned off, and 2. the device will be 0wned instantly if I ever connect to the Internet. We need mandatory bootloader unlocking for products that the manufacture finds unprofitable to ship software updates for.