Juniper Research predicts a strong growth in green handset shipments, from 31 million this year (estimate) to 392 million by 2017, more than a half of which will be smartphones. By green handsets, Juniper thinks of those devices that contain 50% or more recyclable materials and are free of certain hazardous chemicals.
The new “Green Handset & Tablet” report forecasts that handset vendors will increasingly follow the Samsung Replenish approach, currently available through Sprint, which offers an eco-friendly Android smartphone, made with 82% recyclable materials.
However, the research company also points that strong environmental credentials go far beyond eco designs, with different stages within the life cycle having relatively more/less environmental impact. Moreover, it’s not just about devices per se, as mobile operators can also have a role as green champions due to their unique customer-facing position, unveiling some recycling initiatives and providing eco-ratings at point-of-sale.
Then there are cloud-based services which allow vendors to make their data centres more environmentally friends…
Finally, convergence in smart devices was found to have a positive impact on the environment by reducing the number of devices owned, and therefore charged…