Maybe you’ve seen the ads online for a new smartphone that will last you 10 years. Maybe you too clicked on one, only to be disappointed that this phone does not exist ... yet. The “10-year phone” is an initiative that has been trying to get your attention, and the EU’s legislative attention, by tempting us with a future in which it becomes the norm for a smartphone to last a decade. In order for this to actually work, there would have to be legislation on repairability, continued software support and availability of parts — especially the battery. Information should be readily available on how to repair your phone yourself along with an official repairability score.

Timing

Somewhere along the journey of increasingly amazing mobile phones, we appear to have accepted that these expensive lifelines are only going to last two to four years (in full working order). I guess we don’t often stop to consider how much time we actually expect from our devices. How long should your 4K flat screen last? What about your washing machine, your wake-up light, or your reflow oven?

The 10-Year Smartphone is an initiative of the European Right to Repair campaign, a coalition of over 80 organisations from across Europe, pushing for longer-lasting and more repairable products.

Giving you two to four years doesn’t seem so bad for most devices as you will probably want something new in this timeframe anyway. Which is a strange notion. Where did this drive to continuously upgrade come from and isn’t it time we got ourselves rid of it? In light of our planet drowning in our stuff, the resources and suffering involved in making many of our devices and our own appreciation of what we have. How about we adjust our devices and our mental models to last longer? 

New Reflex

My smartphone is now around five years old, and I desperately need to have the battery replaced. It drops from 42% to dead in an instant. I found myself browsing for a new phone until I realised that I am still very happy with my phone beyond the suicidal battery. I am not alone in this new reflex; only 11% of people in the EU will repair their phone when it fails them. Would I also immediately browse for a new washing machine if it suddenly refused to spin cycle? I don’t think so. I think my reflex would be to google the problem to see if maybe the internet knows that this happens all the time and I should just unclog the something-nozzle. Maintaining and repairing it myself. Should that fail, I would probably get a repair professional IF the washing machine is not older than 10 years.

Washing machines and smart phones are in the same price range. But we don’t expect our phones to last a decade. It’s time that we smarten up.

Priscilla Haring-Kuipers writes about technology from a social science perspective. She is especially interested in technology supporting the good in humanity and a firm believer in effect research. She has an MSc in Media Psychology and makes This Is Not Rocket Science happen. 

Ethics in Electronics - WEEF 2022 - Smartphone Article

More on WEEF 2022 and Ethics

The 2022 World Ethical Electronics Forum (WEEF 2022), which is slated for November, will build on the momentum from last year's event, where both Priscilla Haring-Kuipers and Margot Cooijmans spoke. Over the next few months, Elektor will be publishing thought-provoking ethics-related articles, polls, and interviews, and polls. Visit the WEEF 2022 website for additional details.