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#apple#more#recycling#com#https#don#should#iphone#www#battery
Discussion (62 Comments)Read Original on HackerNews
https://images.apple.com/environment/pdf/Apple_Environmental...
As opposed to what? trashing it? You'd rather throw your iPhone in the trash than just hand it to them when you're in the store already?
It's the throwing it away that is the problem.
Not having a phone in the first place is the best for the environment. Failing that, having someone else reuse that phone is best. Only if all else fails is recycling the preferred option.
So of course people are going to concentrate on the problem of people just throwing these things away. And that's for anything. Not just phones.
Though the cost of responsibly recycle and dispose of an old computer might make the $0 offer actually a decent one.
Google do similar, as do most electronics retailers.
Is that not not a thing in the US? Perhaps it ought to be.
If they offer even anything, you'll get a lot more pickup - everyone will learn "get a discount at the Apple Store if you bring in an old PC" and reduce the amount of electronic waste.
However, done too well or for too much, and you could greatly reduce the availability of older still-working machines.
I expect most of that 30% recycled material is from other sources than traded in devices.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. *In that priority*
Reduce & Reuse by making it repairable!
See: https://www.epa.gov/recycle
But the Reuse part is definitely served, at least in part, through repair.
Every device they take for "recycling" is a failure of the first 3 "R"s, especially if it is still working or it is just a dead battery, but is good for their business, so no wonder they insist on recycling.
I really like their work on packaging though. Not just because it reduces the plastic waste produced by Apple, it is not much in the grand scheme of things, but it also sets an example. Apple has always been a trendsetter when it comes to design, and their packaging is given a lot of attention.
Good job Apple. Now more to do.
https://www.apple.com/environment/pdf/Apple_Environmental_Pr...
To see previous ones, simply change the year in the URL.
You can get to that from apple.com/environment or apple.com/2030 (which redirects to the former). Near the end, right before and in the appendix you can find third-party independent reviews and assessments.
Now, are those trustworthy? I don’t know. But it gives you the context to start looking. The broader document will also probably help answer the other specific questions.
Do you also distrust those?
I suspect the OP made a mistake and forgot the word “not” in “I'm accusing Apple of lying, but I'd like to get more context than” (otherwise the “but” makes little sense).
I expect they are asking in good faith if there are audits, not accusing the auditors of being corrupt.
And this kind of thing can be hard to independently verify.
Given Apple’s track record I suspect they actually do care about this internally and spend the effort to make sure it is “real”.
Framework has proven that it is possible to make a great machine that is modular as well as forward and backward compatible, and they’ve done it with a comparatively tiny group of employees.
Same deal with Fairphone. Apple can brag about sustainability the day they ship a phone, wireless earbuds, or smartwatch with a battery that the user can replace with a basic screwdriver or less.
If tiny companies like Fairphone and Framework can manage to put out products like this, imagine what a company with the kind of resources Apple has could do with the same concept.
For a laptop, nearly everything should be modular.
Tell that to iFixit.
https://www.ifixit.com/repairability/smartphone-repairabilit...
I’d trust their assessment more than a vague “everyone knows”. There’s nothing “everyone knows”.
Should Apple be better at repairability? Absolutely! But let’s criticise accurately and in good faith. When we don’t, points are easily dismissed and no one takes the valid parts seriously.
iPhone Air - 7/10 (Provisional)
iPhone 17 Pro - 7/10 (Provisional)
Fairphone 6 - 10/10
HMD Fusion/Skyline - 9/10
> But let’s criticise accurately and in good faith.
Isn't that what the scores above tell (which I brought up in my original comment)?
Plus, this is only for their smartphone line up. What about their headphones and other products? Airpods Pro Max is a 6/10, for example:
https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/AirPods+Max+Teardown/139369
Polite reminder that companies don't care about us if we love them or support them or not. Especially online.
Also in the link I shared:
* Google Pixel 10: 6
* Nothing Phone 3: 3
* Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7: 3
* Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge: 5 (Provisional)
And many more.
So clearly Apple does not “score the lowest”.
> Isn't that what the scores above tell
So no, it’s not what the above scores tell, because you were actively selective. If you scroll down the list in good faith (with is sorted from Newest to Oldest) what you see is that Apple is not the worst and has been getting better starting with the 15.
> Polite reminder that companies don't care about us if we love them or support them or not. Especially online.
You don’t have to tell me that, I’m an active critic of Tim Cook and the current state of Apple.
https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&qu...
I’m also pretty vocal about not shilling for corporations and billionaires which would sell your nuts in a heartbeat. But I do care about criticism being valid, because when it’s not people ignore the valid points.
Again, Apple should absolutely do better and so should other companies. But lets call them out on what they actually do (or don’t), false accusations don’t help.
Apple pioneered some huge anti-repairability measures like e.g. soldered-in RAM.
Wasn't always that way though. I recall repairing a late 2011 MBP, so contemporary to the first soldered MBAs. Really easy to work on, with the battery held in place with just two triangular screws. That was four years ago and the user is still using it.
https://www.ifixit.com/News/82493/we-are-retroactively-dropp...
(I'm a happy Apple user across all of their products, but I have no illusion that they're easily repairable)
I have machine washed my Airpods multiple times and they still work, and I use them for 3+ years. Seems like a good enough product, based on the alternatives available in the market.
True, Apple is no more no less guilty of this than the competition, but they are also not shifting the needle while pretending to do so, with so many untaped opportunities.
Not true at all. I have a close friend (not an electronics or programming nerd in any way) which has replaced the battery (and a screen) on multiple iPhones with nothing more than iFixit instructions.
> you can't safely expand their life
Again, not true. See above.
> with so many untaped opportunities.
Which is obvious I agree with, since I said they absolutely should be better at repairability. But consider the dismissive tone of the original comment, which is justified with false information.
To give you an exaggerated example, let’s say someone is telling you about all the awful practices Nestlé engages in. All of them are true, but then they end with “and their CEO is literally Hitler, who survived and changed his face due to an agreement with the Beelzebub, and is going to control humanity through chocolate”. At that point most people would dismiss them as a nut job and ignore the other true valid points as fabrications too.
Which is why we should criticise, yes, but based on truth, not lies and rage bait.
AppleCare is extremely cheap and comprehensive. I have had one Apple product fail in at least fifteen years and it was replaced without hesitation. It’s been nearly a decade since I’ve had an iPhone screen crack from dropping, and that used to be a regular occurrence. And if I do, again, it’s covered under AppleCare.
There are many harsh criticisms to be leveled against the company. This is not one of them.
I gave my old iPhone X to my father who's still using it, 9 years later, with software updates to iOS.
Compare that to the Google Pixel 2 (which came out in the same year), got it's last software update 3 years later.
Also, Apple repair prices are high, but not outrageous. There will always be someone claiming they can do it for less, but not many that will give the same guarantees Apple does.