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Environmentally speaking, it's better, since it's biodegradable. On the other hand, buying a gadget that dissolves when it gets just a bit wet might not be a s

• stdbrouw 4y ago
  FWIW, it's biodegradable but it doesn't dissolve in water. If you've never handled a kombucha scoby, it's very rubbery and tough.
  • ajsnigrutin 4y ago
    I've held it, but i've also got it wet (after being dry), and i seriously doubt that the printed-on metalic layer would survive, since the surface gets soft and jelloey.
    • TSiege 4y ago
      A scoby is just basically a matrix of cellulose. Assuming the circuits are printed into that substrate it could be quite stable
• dokem 4y ago
  Isn't biodegradability not a feature we want in most manufactured goods? Doesn't that just mean they will start to rot and break down on their own?
  • teucris 4y ago
    The issue is time scales. Plastics take thousands of years to degrade but we only really use plastic products for a few years. What can we find that hits a sweet spot of, say, 10 years? Wood does this well, and it’s mostly cellulose. So is paper and this stuff.
  • orthecreedence 4y ago
    If people are going to manufacture trash that breaks or become oBsOlEtE after a year anyway, you might as well have it biodegrade when it's done.
  • userbinator 4y ago
    It's not, but the planned obsolescence advocates sure love it, since they can make products self-destruct and eco-virtue-signal at the same time.
  • ajsnigrutin 4y ago
    Depends on what you want. Disposable cups, plates, forks, spoons, etc? Sure... eat whatever was in them, throw them wherever, and they'll rot very fast. Electronics.. mostly not. Maybe some light-up bracelets for a festival, but those also contain batteries and LEDs, but it's still better if at least the strap degrades and rot.
    • schwartzworld 4y ago
      Lots of electronics are waterproofed as well. I doubt that biodegradation would happen very quickly inside a modern smartphone chassis