Change mobile phone every year?

Did you know that the impact that the production of a mobile phone has on the environment is equivalent to that of making a 400-kilometre car trip? And now just multiply: more than 1.5 billion are sold every year!

The price of a mobile phone can range from 100 euros for a low-end model to nearly 2000 euros for the most advanced ones. According to Apple, the largest smartphone seller worldwide, each new iPhone has a carbon footprint between 70 and 85 kilograms of CO2. In a world where about 1.5 billion phones are sold per year, the rate of production and consumption is becoming increasingly unsustainable. A radical change in the industry is urgent.

On average, phones last about two and a half years in the hands of each user, before being replaced by a more recent model, often while the old ones still work. According to the news reported by the newspaper PÚBLICO, broken screens, worn-out batteries, and social pressure are the main factors that lead consumers to change their phones more often than necessary.

The problem worsens when we know that most smartphones are not properly recycled, thus contributing to electronic waste landfills, usually in underdeveloped countries. "The main challenge is to make devices last a little longer," summarizes Eva Gouwens, CEO of Fairphone - a sustainable smartphone production brand. By keeping the same equipment for at least five years, the carbon footprint is already reduced by 30% and electronic waste produced by 50 percent. In other words, if we use them twice as long, we produce half the waste.

Everything is related to how the industry works, always with the goal of selling phones. For manufacturers, the best way to make money is when the consumer decides to buy a new one. So, most brands create that need, even when the current phone is in good condition or could benefit from a repair.

One of the solutions to this problem is for manufacturers to start producing more repairable equipment and to facilitate the repair process by creating more certified service centers. It is also important to encourage the development of new software that older models can support, ensuring their proper functioning.

Buying a Refurbished equipment emerges as another way to encourage the shift in the mobile phone industry paradigm, betting on a more conscious consumption with companies that have sustainable values and that your electronic devices do not cause a high carbon footprint.

Following these steps can lead to the ideal scenario for the industry: maximizing the mobile phone's lifespan and, when it ends, encouraging the proper recycling of the equipment.

THE Digiplanet offers low-priced, high-performance refurbished professional computers.

From our commitment to promote a more responsible consumption the platform is born Digiplanet that presents you with a set of refurbished equipment, top of the range, high performance and low price, which allow you to perform your tasks professional, academic or leisure, with the same quality that you would find in a similar device, in new condition and purchased from a traditional retailer. 

THE Digiplanet counts on the high technical expertise, highly specialized from Digiconta that, since 1976, operates in the technological solutions market, working for demanding institutions, particularly the most important ones banks nationals. 

THE experience and the technical rigor, accumulated over more than 40 years of activity, make Digiconta the natural institution and more prepared to provide you with a safe choice and a diverse offer in refurbished computers with guarantee, which you can now find on the new platform DIgiplanet.