By Kate Solomon on Wednesday, 25th August 2010
When it’s not trying to flog you mobile phones, texts, calls or mobile broadband, O2 wants to help you UK mobile phone users be greener. To this end, it has launched a new mobile phone eco rating service, covering around 90% of the mobile phones you can buy from it.
Unlike Greenpeace’s annual regular manufacturer ratings, the retailer and network provider has benchmarked specific mobile phone handsets in terms of their impact on the environment.
So what should earth-loving greensters steer clear of? LG has six of the ten worst phones, with the LG Etna tying for first place in the planet-killing list with the Palm Pre Plus.
Sony Ericsson’s Elm handset, intended to be as eco-friendly as possible, failed to surprise by coming top of the class. But some manufacturers weren’t included in the rundown at all – Apple declined to be associated with this sort of riff-raff and BlackBerry is also a no-show.
O2’s research into each handset took into account the manufacturer’s entire supply chain as well as use of natural resources and energy usage.
Do environmental concerns make you think twice when buying a new handset? Since mobile have developed quite a reputation for being almost disposable, they really should. But the sad truth is that the environmental impact of a handset will usually take second place behind specifications and looks.
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