While big smartphone makers, like Apple, are actively trying to reduce the amount of conflict materials used in their devices, others pride themselves on being 100 percent ethical. Fairphone is a prime example. After a successful crowdfunding campaign allowed it to develop a new smartphone that meets both ethical and environmental standards, the company is bringing the device to the UK. It’ll be exclusively offered by The Phone Co-op, the UK’s only consumer-owned mobile carrier, starting at £22 per month with no upfront cost or £250 to buy outright. The Fairphone itself features a quad-core Mediatek 6589 chipset, Android 4.2 (with a custom Fairphone launcher), 8-megapixel rear and 1.3-megapixel front cameras, 16GB internal storage, and a 4.3-inch qHD display protected by scratch-resistant Dragontrail glass. While it’s not going to win awards for the best smartphone, it’ll meet the requirements of most users. Although it might be impossible to be totally conflict-free, Fairphone works with manufacturers to ensure better working conditions and fairer wages. It also donates three euros from each phone sold to a program that attempts to reduce electronic waste in Ghana.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIR3VW5DQ_o?wmode=opaque]
[Image credit: Fairphone]
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
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Source: The Phone Co-op