April is Global Earth Month. Designated each spring, the month and Earth Day (4/20) is a time to turn attention to the pressing need to protect our environment.
This year’s focus is on reducing plastic waste and preventing it from reaching landfills. Another equally important focus is tackling the amount of E-Waste such as smartphones, computers, and office equipment.
Recycling electronics certainly helps but the best way to keep E-Waste from building up in landfills is to simply make them last longer.
It is estimated that 416,000 smartphones are thrown in the garbage every day. That’s a mountain of devices (and lithium batteries) in landfills.
Repair shops like uBreakiFix are on the front lines of the e-waste battle by fixing phones that many people assume are beyond saving.
“We see people come in and their batteries are dying quicker or maybe their battery life is 70% or under and they think they just have to replace the phone because they can’t access the battery,” said uBreakiFix’s Amos Sirivejchaphan. “We’re able to get that battery swapped out for them and then they essentially have a brand new phone.”
In time, phones tend to underperform or overheat. Sirivejchaphan says it’s likely a simple fix by looking at the storage you need and cleaning out what you no longer use.
“Imagine climbing up a mountain. The more rocks you put into the bag the more stress you’re putting on. So if you see your phone start to slow down we want to check your storage and make sure you have adequate storage.”
Today’s smartphones are built to last longer than their predecessors. The iPhone X is now six years old and still supports the latest iOS. Even older models like the iPhone 6 and 7 continue to operate effectively with a bit of care, battery replacement, and software updates if possible.
