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Nokia's Eco-Phone Isn't Really All That Eco  E-mail
Written by Hank Green   
Thursday, 10 April 2008

We've been wondering how Eco Nokia's "eco-minded" 3110 Evolve really is. Our first impression was "not very," and it turns out that's pretty accurate.

Smart Planet did a quick review of the phone and, based on their assessment, I'll give you the same advice I give everyone else...the greenest phone is the one you're already using.

The Evolve's green cred comes from a few places, all of which should be included in every single phone being sold today. These features include: Less packaging, more recycled content in the packaging, bio-plastic keys, and a charger that eats less power when the phone isn't plugged into it.

None of these things are going to have a significant impact on the world unless they're used in all of the billion phones out there. Why are they still using overblown packaging for the rest of their phones? Why don't they use recycled paper in all of their packaging. Why do the vast majority of their chargers suck power from the wall even when nothing's plugged into them?

So your best choice? Don't get a new phone every year...my LG VX9800 continues to be the only cell phone I've ever owned...and having a phone that lives twice as long is basically a phone that is twice as green.


Comments (5)add
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written by Jess , April 10, 2008
do you think it's worth it to go for this phone if you *have* to buy a new one? my current phone is 3yrs old & has pretty much kicked the bucket, so i'm going to be purchasing a new one in the next month or so.
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written by Jess , April 10, 2008
do you think it's worth it to go for this phone if you *have* to buy a new one? my current phone is 3yrs old & has pretty much kicked the bucket, so i'm in the market for a new one over the next month or so...
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written by julia , April 10, 2008
jess- I would recommend buying a phone via craigslist or getting a phone through freecycle. stay local. use phones that have already met consumer "need" rather than create more (it's unnecessary).
Buying an Evolve
written by Adam Vaughan , April 11, 2008
Hi Jess, I'm the guy at SmartPlanet who reviewed it. I think it is worth buying if you really want to buy a *new* phone. As Hank points out, Nokia should really be doing all this stuff with all its phones, but it's not yet -- and at least buying this might encourage Nokia that's there money in greening up its act. Alternatively, Julia has a good point -- you could always get a refurbed/second hand phone.
Discerning Consumers
written by Martin , April 11, 2008
If we are more discerning when making purchases companies would put more thought into their products. At the moment people are happy to upgrade their phone just because it comes in a different casing.
Unnecessary upgrades lead to unnecessary landfill.
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Hank Green
About the author:

Hank Green is the founder and chief geek at EcoGeek.org. Aside from being obsessed with saving the planet with technology, he loves to write and make videos. If you want to find out more about him, visit hankgreen.com

 
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