Greener Technology

Greener technology is being developed by most large manufacturers of electronic wizardry!

Here are some examples of greener technology which you may find interesting.

Cell phones or mobile phones

Most people these days want to have the use of a mobile. Cell phones have swept the world since they became small enough and cheap enough to be objects of desire to millions! Some of the latest generation smart phones enable the user to cut down on kit. Hopefully, this will become a minimalist trend. Phones such as the Vodaphone HTC Desire and the Apple iPhone enable us to browse the net, take decent photographs and play games as well as keep in touch with friends and family.

Although in theory this could lead to less use of different pieces of equipment, in practice, most people want to have an iPhone and an iPod and maybe a Mac Book as well!

Nevertheless, the best modern technology lets us be more effective in our lives and offers us the potential to be a little bit greener, too.

Some of the greenest mobile phones are recyclable to a large degree. Motorola's MOTO W233 Renew is made from recycled plastics and the company promises to offset all the enrgy used in its manufacture. Not only that, they off-set the carbon emissions from the buyer's usage of the phone for the first two years.

Sony Ericsson's GreenHeart, which has not yet gone to the market, is not only recyclable but the phone charger draws very little power - far less than comparable models.

Chinese and South American companies are collaborating to produce a solar powered cell phone. This will be a wonderful advance for everyone who needs to work away from electricity supply lines.

Computers

Some of the latest computers are very savvy when it comes to energy use. Apple have made it their business to develop computers which can go into sleep mode very easily and which use very little electricity to keep them going. The new Mac mini, for example, uses less than 10 watts power to keep it going. Apple supplies environmental information on all its products, from manufacture to recycling. You can not only check energy use but also check which materials are used during manufacture. http://www.apple.com/uk/environment/reports/

Dell computers has made it their mission to solve the legacy of redundant computers: "environmentally-responsible product recovery and recycling program". They provide a world wide service,recycling old computers, not just of their own make. You can see where they recycle here: http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/corp/environment/en/warsmap?c=us&l=en&s=gen They will even pick up their own computers for recycling for free.

Toshiba is also getting involved with recycling in a big way. They host and participate in recycling events across the US and they offer discounts on new equipment when you bring old equipment to be recycled. They are also developing a PC which uses fewer toxic metals in construction.

At present a large percentage of computers and other obsolete electronic waste is shipped out to Africa, where young children trawl the waste heaps for recyclable parts. This tragic trade results in a lot of ill health and misery. The favoured way of recovering copper wire for resale, for instance, is by burning the waste, which releases pollutants into the air in toxic concentrations.

Hopefully far more examples of greener technology will emerge as the demand for a cleaner and more sustainable world swells.

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