Smartphone brands could be forced to bring back removable batteries

[bnew]

Smartphone brands could be forced to bring back removable batteries

After making USB Type-C charging ports mandatory on all smartphones, tablets, and laptops, the European Union (EU) has now agreed ...

www.sammobile.com

BUSINESS

By Sagar Naresh
Last updated: December 20th, 2022 at 07:30 UTC+01:00

After making USB Type-C charging ports mandatory on all smartphones, tablets, and laptops, the European Union (EU) has now agreed on new laws and regulations aimed at making batteries more sustainable and reusable. This new regulation will present a new set of challenges to consumer tech firms and battery manufacturers, as the new laws cover the entire battery life cycle. The entire life cycle of a battery includes material extraction, industrial production, and disposal.

The new EU law will be applicable to all types of batteries sold in the EU, which includes batteries used in electronic devices, industrial batteries, automotive batteries, and batteries used in two-wheelers and electric vehicles (EVs). From early 2024, battery manufacturers in the EU will have to report the product’s total carbon footprint, right from extraction to the recycling process.

This data will then be used to set a maximum CO2 limit for batteries that will come into effect as early as July 2027. They will need to use a set percentage of recycled materials, i.e., 16% cobalt, 85% lead, 6% lithium, and 6% nickel.

The new EU battery regulation requires batteries to be easily replaceable by end consumers​

The new regulation also requires consumer technology brands to design their devices in such a way that their batteries can be easily replaced, either by removing the battery cover or by removing the screws that are easily accessible. Could this mean the return of removable batteries to smartphones? Well, it will at least make electronic devices more sustainable and enhance their life. It will also reduce the companies’ profit margins during the repair and maintenance of devices.

If passed, the new regulations will ensure that the batteries sold in the EU region are more sustainable globally, ultimately setting a standard for the rest of the world. The rules not only assess the carbon footprint, but companies involved in the battery manufacturing process in the EU would also need to identify, prevent, and address human rights and labor issues in their supply chains.

The EU has applied this new law only to key raw materials such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, and graphite. Apart from this, the EU has also set ambitious collection targets. It aims to collect 45% of electronic devices’ recyclable materials by 2023 and 73% by 2030. Furthermore, in the case of EVs, it aims to collect 100% recycled materials.

Well, the new EU battery regulation is pending final approval by the Parliament and the Council, and it will certainly introduce tough challenges to consumer electronic firms like Apple, Google, Samsung, and others as they need to rethink their device designs. Even battery manufacturers such as Panasonic and Samsung SDI.

All firms that deal with batteries would be required to start preparing for the new laws, review their supply chains and operations, and also get into collaborative solutions with the recyclers.

 

[bnew]

crazy to think how American consumers are steadily getting great benefits from European laws.

 

[BaltimoreTwilightMarauder]

This is great for the consumer.

 

[Oatmeal]

Tired of these companies making new versions of phones every season like it's 2K or Madden, time for an overhaul

 

[bnew]

 

[The_Sheff]

The EU really is saving consumer rights because lord knows they don’t give a shyt about that over here.

 

[BaggerofTea]

Without the eu, the western consumer would be fukked

 

[bnew]

https://archive.vn/Q1Rfo

 

[Scustin Bieburr]

The EU showing us what cooperation in good faith can actually achieve

 

[Knowledge]

crazy to think how American consumers are steadily getting great benefits from European laws.

Everything the american dream is supposed to be is over there. The only reason i came back is for the money

 

[jdubnyce]

For the people

We'll absorb the costs

 

[Big Blue]

All I care about is USB-C for real. I hope this doesn't mean the end of waterproof phones

 

[bnew]

 

[bnew]

Everything the american dream is supposed to be is over there. The only reason i came back is for the money

The American Dream is less of a reality today in the United States, compared to other peer nations - Equitable Growth

The rate of upward absolute income mobility in the United States has declined substantially over the past 50 years.

equitablegrowth.org

snippet:

The hope that children will grow up to have higher standards of living than their parents is widespread around the world. In the United States, this concept is considered by many to be a core component of the American Dream—the idea of a “better life for your children” is a major part of what has drawn immigrants to this country for generations.

Recent research, however, shows that in the United States, the rate of upward absolute income mobility—the fraction of children who grow up to earn more than their parents, after adjusting for inflation—declined substantially over the past 50 years. More than 90 percent of U.S. children born in 1940 had higher real incomes at age 30 than their parents did, but only about 50 percent of children born in 1980 can say the same. This raises the question: Was this decline part of a global trend, or is the United States alone in its low rates of upward mobility?

In short, does the American Dream live on, but in other countries?

There are reasons to expect this may be the case. Many features of the U.S. economic system are unusual among high-income countries. Levels of economic inequality—a key driver of declining absolute mobility in the United States—are higher in the United States than in virtually any other country of its income level.

Contrary to the self-conception that the United States is the “land of opportunity,” relative social mobility—the likelihood of a child born to low-income parents climbing to the top of the income distribution as an adult—is low in the United States, compared to many European countries. The United States also has a distinctive welfare state, with less social insurance and lower labor union penetration than most other high-income countries. Instead, the United States relies on consumer credit for many expenses that other countries cover through social insurance programs.

In our new working paper, I and my 13 co-authors (listed in the tagline at the end of this column) compare rates of absolute income mobility in the United States to seven other high-income countries in North America and Europe: Canada, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. As Figure 1 shows, the variation in upward mobility rates among these countries is striking. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1

 

[Orbital-Fetus]

All I care about is USB-C for real. I hope this doesn't mean the end of waterproof phones