Durable phones 🍃

At first glance, buying a new mobile does not seem like the most sustainable thing you can do but sometimes you cannot escape it.

Please consider refurbished phone

The most sustainable phone is the one you already have. After all, it doesn't need to be made anymore, no extra raw materials are needed for that. However, should your trusted companion be broken or in need of replacement, there is little choice but to buy another one. Consider getting a refurbished phone. This is a second-hand phone that has been checked and therefore has a second life.

Sustainability programmes

The best way for a consumer to see how sustainable (or not) a phone is is by a the certificate. There are several bodies and organisations that issue certificates to show whether products are sustainable or not. Here are the main ones:

• B Corp
• Blue Angel
• EcoVadis
• TCO Certified

When a product on this website has a sustainability certificate from the above organisation, we mention it in the specifications.

Sustainable materials

Phones are rarely sustainable because they are made of rare metals and minerals. Think lithium, cobalt and tungsten. Many of these materials are scarce, difficult to extract or associated with human rights violations. Cobalt, for instance, is known to often involve child labour. Finding alternatives is not always possible. It is therefore best to use as few of these materials as possible and make agreements with the mines on good working conditions.

A brief overview of what is in your phone and what it is for:

Specialised brands

As mentioned, an average phone contains quite a lot of rare metals and minerals. However, the less the better. And if nothing else, as much as possible recycled or with good agreements with the mines where these are mined. A good example of a company that does exactly that is Fairphone.

This Dutch company has been operating since 2013 and not only makes sustainable smartphones, it also tries to improve the entire chain around them. The company's phones are made from conflict-free materials and largely self-repairable.

Repairability

Should your phone break down, it is a lot more sustainable to repair it. This is now much more difficult because batteries are built in and almost the entire front is glass. There are repair services and companies where you can get the screen replaced and a battery swap done. This is usually more economical than buying a new mobile.

Doing repairs yourself is difficult because phones are usually glued down. Companies don't make it easy for you either, for example by using non-standard screws. Apple is a wary example of this. Moreover, the warranty usually expires if you try to open your phone yourself. Many large manufacturers even actively lobby against this "Right To Repair". They would rather you buy a new product than have one repaired.

Those who are not afraid to pry open glued phones can get started themselves. iFixit has many repair guides available (in many languages) to fix a wide variety of phones and problems. Note that these often require specialised tools. The company also awards scores on how easy a repair is to carry out. As far as these are relevant, we show them in the specifications. You can also visit the Dutch Fixje for manuals, parts and tools.

Committed software support

The lifespan of a phone depends not only on its hardware, but increasingly on its software as well. For instance, security problems can make it advisable to stop using a phone. Or a phone no longer works because software is outdated. It is therefore important that manufacturers make commitments on how long they maintain a phone with software and security updates.

The rule here is; the longer the better. Apple currently scores best in this regard. An average iPhone gets 7 years of iOS and security updates. That is much longer than manufacturers of Android smartphones. Google, for instance, promises at least 5 years of updates for its Pixel phones and Samsung up to 4 to 5 years for selected Galaxy A, S and Z series models. Phones under the Android One programme, such as Nokia's, also score reasonably well as they are required to release updates for at least 2 years.

It is advisable to check in advance what a manufacturer has committed to about its update policy before buying. The longer a phone is supported, the longer it will last. And the longer it lasts, the more durable it is.