Friday, June 16th 2023
EU Approves New Regulation for Smartphone Batteries - Must be User-Replaceable by 2027
The European Parliament has greenlit new rules relating to battery technologies that are likely to cause headaches for smartphone manufacturers (in particular). The organization published their summary of this environmentally conscious and sustainable strategy on June 14: "Parliament approved new rules for the design (on Wednesday), production and waste management of all types of batteries (including non-replaceable types) sold in the EU. With 587 votes in favor, nine against and 20 abstentions, MEPs endorsed a deal reached with the Council to overhaul EU rules on batteries and waste batteries. The new law takes into account technological developments and future challenges in the sector and will cover the entire battery life cycle, from design to end-of-life."
The section for portable device batteries (for smartphones, tablets and cameras) outlines new consumer rights, with a demand for easily removable and replaceable (DIY) cells. Smartphone manufacturers including market leaders Apple and Samsung will have to go back to the drawing board and figure out ways to reformat how their batteries are mounted and connected internally. Plenty of devices have their units sealed behind protective layers, requiring specialist tools and varying levels of user expertise to access and remove in a safe manner. The European Council has more work to do following their starter announcement: "(We) will now have to formally endorse the text before its publication in the EU Official Journal shortly after and its entry into force." News outlets have interpreted that these provisional rulings will go into effect by early 2027, but they also anticipate that big time players could appeal for extensions beyond that window.
Sources:
Android Police, PC Magazine UK, European Parliament
The section for portable device batteries (for smartphones, tablets and cameras) outlines new consumer rights, with a demand for easily removable and replaceable (DIY) cells. Smartphone manufacturers including market leaders Apple and Samsung will have to go back to the drawing board and figure out ways to reformat how their batteries are mounted and connected internally. Plenty of devices have their units sealed behind protective layers, requiring specialist tools and varying levels of user expertise to access and remove in a safe manner. The European Council has more work to do following their starter announcement: "(We) will now have to formally endorse the text before its publication in the EU Official Journal shortly after and its entry into force." News outlets have interpreted that these provisional rulings will go into effect by early 2027, but they also anticipate that big time players could appeal for extensions beyond that window.
125 Comments on EU Approves New Regulation for Smartphone Batteries - Must be User-Replaceable by 2027
Ooof that sounds like an Android problem you are trying to extrapolate over to Apple smartphones, maybe you should try owning one instead of committing regular E-waste. I've only had two smartphones (iPhones) in the last 9 years.
If you have such a burning onus to make a smartphone with a removeable battery, start a company and build your own, don't tell others how to build their products. Yes 60% means roughly for two Iphone sales for one Android purchase. Apple has a 3 Trillion dollar market cap. I work directly with people who come to the US to work on J1 visas, without fault almost all show up to work with a new Iphone after their first paycheck.
The iPhone 14 sells for almost a 1000 USD in India, so no using them as a metric would be incorrect because that is a major luxury item in a mostly third world country.
There is not a single smartphone with a replaceable battery that I could get right now brand new, with a UK warranty. Not one. So tell me, how do I vote with my wallet? Hm? $150? That's the price of a new phone! Wait, I forgot you were talking about iPhones! Of course your iBattery must cost way more than my shitty regular phone that's only good for everything yours is good for! :rolleyes: How is your iPhone less of an e-waste than my Android one? It's gonna end up on a trash heap when its battery goes just like mine.
Edit: Anyway, no, thank you. I don't like the lack of compatibility with other products, I don't like the ecosystem, I don't like the lack of customizability, and I very much don't like the arrogant fanbase. Sure, give me the money for it, and I'll start one. Until then, I tell these companies whatever I want. I'm their customer, after all, not the other way around.
Edit: The question still stands. Why are you defending a company whose only interest in the matter is to take your money?
You vote with your wallet by not buying a smartphone, if your first world privilege is too much to give up then that's your problem and no one else, literally no one forces anyone to buy smartphones.
I'm confused with your issue with how much battery replacements cost, I'm not sure you understand how basic economics work in terms of producing a product, the cost of said production, and the price needed to be sold at to be profitable. A $150 smartphone or dumbphone cant do the same things or have anywhere near the build quality as an expensive smartphone so not sure your point on that either.
iPhones are less of e-waste than Android phones because they all have 5 years minimum of committed software and security updates. I have friends still rocking iPhone 6's and XR's due to this feature.
No thank you I wouldnt give my money to someone who complains about stuff and takes zero action. Companies dont care about your words either, the only color they see is green.
Why don't you question phone companies' motives for not letting you replace your battery? Where is your faith placed? What a brilliant idea! I've just got to tell all my co-workers and my boss to f**k right off, as I won't be able to respond to WhatsApp group announcements anymore. How did I not think about this before? :rolleyes:
Smartphones can also be work tools and actual communication devices, not just shiny things in your hand to feel smug about, you know. It has a CPU that runs apps, a 5G transceiver, it has a screen with Gorilla glass, a speaker, a microphone, and even a camera or two. What more do you want?
My point is, I'm not paying the amount of money that my phone costs for a battery replacement, when I could just buy a battery for 20 quid. Oh wait, I can't! There's the problem that this regulation aims to solve. Because a phone won't even start without software updates for sure. ;)
Anyway, you still haven't answered my question: Why are you defending a for-profit company that wants your money? Also, how do replaceable batteries harm you?
Before you reply to my comments, answer these two questions, please. I'm really curious.
You are clearly proving my point that your crusade for "replaceable batteries" falls apart when your first world privilege gets stripped away by actually voting with your wallet, not just saying you will and doing the opposite. I know practicing what you preach and setting examples is tough when group think has you and most of the internet paralyzed
I mean if you cant understand why someone would pay $500 for a flagship smartphone as opposed to one costing $150 then you will never understand why you can't escape the e-waste you create.
If you put a new battery in a phone the updates start though so I'm not sure what you're getting at with that? This is why you pay a shop to do the service for you.
Also no one is defending Apple, this is a defense for a free market economy.
Heck, I would still use my 11 year-old Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro if it wasn't severely restricted by RAM and storage. Or my Galaxy S6 if its battery hadn't died.
What do you mean "battery replacements are cheap"? If you consider $150 cheap, when ideally, you could do the process yourself for 20, then I believe I'm not the one speaking with first world privilege. Shame on me for having to stay in contact with my co-workers and my boss and having no chance of doing it on a phone that I'd consider ideal. What a terrible human being I am, really! :kookoo:
Edit: You misunderstand my argument. I firmly believe that there's a lot to improve on modern smartphones in certain aspects (for example, replaceable batteries). This does not mean that I oppose the idea of smartphones in general. If you can prove how a $500 phone is less of an e-waste than a $150 one, then I'll give you the point on this one. Don't bring up software updates, we all know they're not strictly necessary to use a phone. What updates? Why would I pay a shop if I could do it myself for free? Again, you're not making sense. Fair enough. And mine is a defense of customer rights against corporate greed. If government intervention is needed to let customers exercise a higher degree of freedom to maintain their own devices (which is objectively a good thing), then so be it.
Since when is software not necessary to use a computer? iPhones have continued software support 5 years minimum so after replacing the battery in them, you turn it back on and your phone continues updates. I dont know why you would pay a shop to update your phone either after they replace the battery in it Government intervention is not needed though. You just refuse to vote with your wallet and expect to have your cake and eat it too. As such companies will do what they please because the consumer (you) continues to give them money and thusly they have zero implication to change the product because you keep buying it.
it’s the consumer’s responsibility to pressure corporations but they should not appeal to fellow consumers or even engage in social exchange with those that disagree with them!
Apple is awesome because of their lts but android is dumb even though you can install a different os on it and receive updates after the terms of licensed support!
it’s a consumers choice how much they invest in repairs therefore your choice is bad!
replacing a replaceable battery requires technical knowledge like getting your car repaired!
Individual choices are totally autonomous and have no effect on others! Get a new job you Luddite!
What is most profitable for a corporation is also the pinnacle of innovation!
A $500 GPU will become e-waste in less time than a similarly supported product at a lower price! This obviously correlated with my iPhone argument about support!
You continue to exist and question the nature of your existence! If you really wanted autonomy you’d just kill yourself lol! Talk about based hahaha
/amateur hour
I'm tempted to change my honor 9 with a fairphone during this year, i hope they will release a fairphone 5 before 2024.
You've got your head so far up Apple's backside that you haven't got a clue how Android phones work, or what software updates are about. No. It's like saying you don't take your car to a mechanic to fill up your windscreen washer fluid, or to check your oil level. If car manufacturers invented a sealable washer tank cap that only a mechanic could open, and they charged $50 for a top-up, would you consider it "progress"?
Edit: Have you had a phone with a changeable battery in your life? Or any battery operated device at all? A TV remote, or wireless mouse, maybe? Doing the change takes less than a minute and requires no skill. It's half a page in any manual, with diagrams. Don't tell me that the time it takes you to go to the repair shop and waiting for the work to be done instead is worth paying for. I was being sarcastic, but I guess it wasn't obvious. I don't expect anyone to do anything. Like I said, I need a smartphone, and I have one. I like the idea of replaceable batteries, but not having it is not a dealbreaker. This new EU law is a welcome plus. That's all. They did happen on literally every single phone until circa 2015. Profit doesn't equal progress, far from it. That's what free market capitalism got wrong.
Edit: Do you like the idea of paying up to $70 for a game and then $5 for every single one of the tens and hundreds of small DLCs that come after it? Or subscription plans for offline games? Because some people call that progress, too. I don't apply the same thought process on GPUs. The longevity of your computer parts is down to the same factor as the longevity of your phone: what you use it for. A GPU from 2016 will play games from 2016 just like it did in 2016. You don't need up to date software for that. I don't pay a shop for software updates. My phone does it on its own. If I can replace my battery myself (just like I could until 2015), then I don't need to pay for that, either. How is that not a win? Like I said, I buy it because I don't have another choice. Having a dumb phone isn't very practical these days, is it? Why do I have to explain myself twice?
Staying with the game analogy, you seem to be thinking that sealed smartphones are like a shit game to me that I bought and now I'm complaining. In fact, they're more like a fine game with a not so pleasing ending, that I enjoyed playing, but now that they're making a new ending, I'm even happier. I have a 1030 that I use for playing videos in a HTPC, and it's doing just fine, thanks. ;) See my point above: how well a part ages is hugely determined by what you use it for. Whose loss is it? Yours? I also have a choice of jumping out of the window, that I'd rather not exercise if possible. You're very funny, indeed. (sarcasm - see my point above for a normal answer)
Edit: I'm not blaming anyone for anything. I'm just welcoming a new regulation that will make phone maintenance as easy as it used to be merely a decade ago. That's all.
Or the US government mandating the use of reverse cameras because the average American obviously can't drive. Except that business model is not that simple. When a product is great, but comes with certain pre-designed flaws, 99% of consumers will buy it and disregard the flaws. If you only have to buy a new phone every 5 or so years (instead of just a new battery), your mind doesn't think about it as overspending because you don't usually think 5 years ahead. It's all psychology. Most business models of these megacorporations are designed around exploiting the flaws of human psychology, not around giving you something more every year like they'd like you to believe. Thinking that the consumer has the ultimate voice, and they're not gullible enough not to exercise it, is a very naïve standpoint.
You put far too much faith in corporate goodwill (which doesn't exist), and the mental capabilities of the average consumer. Because you know what I believe in, obviously. So do tell me, please. What do I believe in that I'm failing at? What I'm saying is that I'm not against smartphones. If I have to buy one that's sealed, I'm okay with that, as I don't overspend on my phones anyway. But if a new regulation mandates replaceable batteries, that's even better for me. With low to mid-range phones, I win anyway, but with replaceable batteries, I win even more. I'm not fighting a crusade for or against anything. I'm just happy for the new law. Fair enough. All I'm saying is, replaceable batteries extend the possible lifetime of your phone. You're not losing anything. What action? Like I said, I'm not fighting for anything or blaming anyone. I'm just happy for the new law because it makes my life (and that of millions of others) easier. Is this really so hard to comprehend?
Edit: I've just timed how long it takes to do a battery swap on my Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro, including taking off the back panel, taking the battery out, putting it back in, and replacing the back panel. Guess what? 11 seconds. "Under section 571.216 of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, all covered vehicles must be tested for roof structure integrity. In such a test, the left and right sides of the roof must each be able to handle 1.5 times the weight of the unloaded vehicle." - written by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Department of Transportation. That is, politicians. US politicians. Except for 99% of consumers, myself included, don't care enough to boycott smartphones over the issue of battery changes. I'm just happy for the new regulation. You're free to believe in whatever you want. I believe in customer rights and the common good. I also believe that a completely free market ends up with the total exploitation of the consumer. I also believe that this is Europe, and if our politicians decide to make some law to curb corporate greed for the interest of common European people, then they're damn f**king right to do so! I only wish they did it a bit more often. Then don't comment on it. Yes it is. So what? If it's fairly obvious, then why is it a problem? Why are you so butthurt by the fact that you will have more chance to maintain your phone and keep it longer if you want to? No, it's not. The ability to replace your battery will make phone maintenance easier for you as well. If you don't want to live with this option, you're still free to throw your phone away whenever you feel like.
I'm not even sure if saying anything else would make any difference at this point. If someone thinks having more consumer freedom is a bad thing, then they're either delusional, or hold too many shares in Apple.