Christmas message: be sustainable. Repair your broken phone
According to many people, the most wonderful time of the year has arrived. As the streets fill with Christmas lights, the general motto is:
peace on earth
and the late Michael Jackson’s song “Heal the world” is played above average on the radio. As part of “Heal the world, make it a better place,” it’s time for a serious note.
Smartphones make life much easier. Everything you used to need at least eight separate devices for is now summed up in a tiny computer that also fits in your pocket. And while just about all manufacturers claim their product is sustainably produced, smartphones on the other side of the world also create a big problem.
Waste mountains and child labor
For all of 2016, there were
more than 1.2 billion phones
sold and this number is expected to grow again in 2017. And a new phone usually means sending an old model to the eternal hunting grounds. Because the sustainable recycling of electronic devices costs a lot of money, much of it ends up,
illegally in a landfill
in high-poverty countries such as China, Bangladesh or Nigeria.
Unfortunately, there are often
children are used
To separate, dismantle or incinerate the devices. This is a major health hazard for anyone living near such a landfill. Not to mention the enormous environmental damage this causes.
Sustainable and good for the wallet
Fortunately, there is a way we can all do our part to help with this problem. After all, a broken smartphone does not have to end up in the trash. For many people, a bad battery is a good argument for switching to a newer model smartphone and getting rid of the old one, but a new battery works wonders. Your old critter will feel like new again, and at least you’ll prevent the landfill from getting bigger because of you. An added benefit: You save a lot of money. You can get a new battery for around €50 euros, and you can switch nicely to a cheap sim-only subscription.
Of course, this doesn’t just apply to a new battery. Is there a huge crack in your screen? Get it fixed. Phone accidentally taken during the New Year’s dive? Get it fixed. iPhone charger broken? Only buy a new charger, not a whole phone. Anyway, by now you understand what we mean, go for a phone repair.
On top of that, the current generation of phones last longer than two years because of excellent computing power. As a result, a device ages much less quickly, so it is not necessarily necessary to purchase a newer model. The iPhone 6 or a Samsung Galaxy S6, for example, are hardly inferior to their successors in terms of computing power.
Our Christmas message: ‘Heal the world, act sustainably’
There are a hundred and one ways you can do your part to make the world a better place. Getting your phone repaired instead of buying a new one is one of them. Of course, we don’t want to deny you the pleasure of a new phone, but have you received a notice from your provider that you may switch to a new subscription with a new smartphone? Then think about whether you really want to. Consider whether your old device could not last another year or two with a minor upgrade. Still can’t resist the temptation? Turn in your old appliance so that it is sustainably recycled and
‘heal the world, make it a better place, do sustainable’ .
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