Fairphone announces first ‘waste neutral’ smartphone – Tablets and phones – News

The Dutch smartphone maker Fairphone has announced the Fairphone 4. According to the manufacturer, it is the first ‘waste neutral’ phone on the market, because the manufacturer also recycles a smartphone for every unit sold.

Fairphone not only promises to recycle a smartphone for every unit sold, but also for parts that users buy afterwards; the manufacturer promises to recycle an equal amount of e-waste for this. It is the first time that a smartphone maker promises that with the introduction of a new model.

According to the Dutch manufacturer, the Fairphone 4 is also the first smartphone with a polycarbonate back that is completely recycled from material used by consumers. The use of recycled material is already common in the tech market, but this often involves other materials such as aluminum.

In addition, Fairphone 4 again contains six additional materials that have been obtained in a ‘fairer’ way than before. For example, the gold used is Fairtrade certified and the tin is recycled. The manufacturer prides itself on the use of materials and production processes that should be fairer.

The Fairphone 4 has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 750G soc and 5G support. There is a single nano-sim slot and an e-sim. It is the first model from Fairphone to support the new network standard. The screen has a notch and is an LCD with a diagonal of 6.3″, aspect ratio of 19.5:9, resolution of 2340×1080 pixels and refresh rate of 60Hz.

The cameras are a Sony IMX586, a 1/2″ sensor with an area of ​​around 31 square millimeters and a resolution of 48 megapixels. In addition, there is an ultra-wide-angle camera that has autofocus for macro photos. It also has a resolution of 48 megapixels. The third opening is for a time-of-flight sensor.

The exchangeable battery has a capacity of 3905mAh and can be charged with 30W. There is no 3.5mm jack; audio output is via the USB-C port or bluetooth. According to Fairphone, the lack of that port improves longevity and the removal was necessary to get an ip54 rating; the case is protected against dust and resistant to water when sprayed on phone.

Fairphone calls the removal of the 3.5mm jack ‘a difficult decision’ in an explanation. “At the end of the day, it’s about making a product that will last five years. We had to remove as many vulnerable parts as possible, and a 3.5mm jack gets a lot of dust over time. Plus, the phone with an audio jack was too wide. We don’t want users to throw away their working wired headphones, and we’re making sure that a USB-C adapter is available for purchase through our sales channels.”

The fingerprint scanner is located in the Power button on the side. Eight parts are available for repair after purchase. This includes the screen, the cameras, the USB port and the battery. The Fairphone 4 will be released on October 25 and costs 579 euros in the Netherlands and Belgium for the version with 6GB of memory and 128GB of storage. The variant with 8GB of memory and 256GB of storage costs 649 euros. That’s slightly more expensive than the Fairphone 3 models; the Fairphone 3 and 3+ came out for 450 euros.