Standardized Cell Phone Chargers by 2012
February 17, 2009 1 Comment
I’ve been celebrating the fact that my two cell phones charge from USB (HTC Fuze and Motorola Razr).
I’m happy that I need carry only one AC-to-USB transformer, one car-to-USB charger (with two USB ports) and a USB cable or two. I now have room in my backpack for a paperback book (Fiendish-level Sudoko) .. that I simply didn’t have before.
This trend is catching on, it seems. The AP (via the Mobiledia) reports a mobile phone industry group Tuesday said 17 wireless operators and handset makers have agreed to standardize chargers by 2012 for most cell phones shipped.
The group includes, AT&T, T-Mobile, Nokia, Samsung and others.
Besides the obvious benefit of fewer chargers to the end user, there are significant environmental benefits. Here’s some fun facts from the article:
- A French study estimates that 51 million cell phone chargers go obsolete every 20 months.
- The GSM Association says cast-off chargers generate some 51,000 tons of waste per year (some of this must be hazardous; they are electrical components, after all).
I have a drawer full, I might add. I see that my local AT&T store has a drop box for older phones; I wonder if they take chargers as well.
Read the whole article: “Mobile Phone Makers to Standardize Chargers by 2012”.
Pingback: :: gasp :: are we getting close to audio and power standards for devices? « OpsanBlog