Smartphones are a major investment for a lot of us, but it seems like a new one with new gadgets comes out every year. As consumers, we’re used to the idea that we need the latest thing, and many of us spend hundreds buying a cell phone that we won’t use for very long before it is sitting in a drawer with its likewise “obsolete” counterparts. Most people really don’t consider prolonging the life of their phones because upgrading is inevitable and after all, cell phones have a certain life expectancy.However, there are actually a lot of good reasons to prolong the life of your phone, even if you stop using it yourself. Saving money by using a phone longer is one reason, but some people just have to have the latest tech and replace their phones every time a new one comes out. So why prolong the life of a phone that is just going to be replaced?
It used to seem as though every week, a new gadget was coming out for cell phones. These devices are no longer merely phones - they are cameras, personal assistants, and for many, a much more powerful social connection than simple phone calls can supply.With social media, the web, games, books, and even programs to help users meditate or do yoga, our cell phones went through a major evolution. However, that has now plateaued. Sure, improvements to camera or speaker quality are still being developed, but the urgency that was there as little as a year or two ago is gone as new developments are now more incremental.
Sustainability is about consumers. When consumers buy things and throw them away, that stuff goes somewhere - into our environment. Production, packaging, and disposal remove resources from our planet and generate more pollution.Prolonging the life of your cell phone means demand for phones decreases and thus fewer are produced. Recycling the phone rather than throwing it away is a much better option for the environment as well, because even broken phones can be used for spare parts, and working phones can be traded in and resold, usually for a discount on the new one.
The resale of phones is an important point for a lot of reasons. Refurbished phones are sold for lower prices, and there are even initiatives to provide cell phones for free to people in impoverished areas all over the world. Often, providers offer a discount for trading in a phone for refurbishment, which saves you money, too. Phones are wiped of data when they are traded in this way, but there are also ways users can do this themselves if they are really unsure. The better condition the phone is in, the higher the trade in value and the more likely you can trade your old phone in.
Industry insiders say that phone batteries are only meant to last a year, but this is under extreme conditions. There are definite ways users can take care of their cell phone batteries and prolong their lives. Batteries are the most easily replaced part of a cell phone, but the components which make them are not so environmentally friendly, so the longer they can be used, the better it is for the environment. How you charge your battery and how much you drain it plays a big part in its longevity.The same way you can preserve your battery through wise use, you can preserve an entire phone! Check out this infographic for other strategies to prolong the life of your phone, whether for longer use or resale.
