Cell phone manufacturers and wireless carriers are dabbling with the idea of selling green-themed cell phones to eco-conscious consumers, regardless of the fact that it’s not so clear that these green-marketed phones are actually finding an audience. Most of these phones are still in the pipeline and haven’t reached consumers yet in the U.S., but Sprint is taking a risk and says it will start selling Samsung’s Reclaim phone next week at Sprint Stores and Best Buy. Now the bigger question (beyond whether or not consumers will embrace theses phones) is this: Are the devices really more energy-efficient, responsible for less carbon emissions, and at the end of the day, better for the planet? Well, not if they’re being built out of corn like the Reclaim. Here’s eight green phones that could be coming to a store near you:
| Name | Available | Eco Features | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reclaim, Samsung | Sprint, August 16 | 80 percent recyclable materials, 40 percent of outer casing bioplastic made from corn (yuck), PVC free, and “nearly” BFR free, charger Energy Star qualified | 3G, slider QWERTY, GPS, one click button for Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube |
| F268, Samsung | China | Contains no PVCs or BFRs | Slider |
| BlueEarth, Samsung | UK market | Recycled plastic from water bottles, a pedometer, software to track your reduced carbon emissions, free from beryllium and phthalates, solar panel on the back, one touch Eco-mode. | Pebble shaped |
| GreenHeart, C901, Sony Ericsson | NA | Claims to have a 15 percent smaller carbon footprint than standard phones, online manual, smaller packaging, and made of at least 50 percent recycled plastics. | Candy bar |
| GreenHeart, Naite, Sony Ericsson | NA | Claims to have 15 percent smaller carbon footprint than standard phones, online manual, smaller packaging, and made of at least 50 percent recycled plastics, Ecomate application with Carbon Footprint Calculator. | GPRS/EDGE/UMTS, candy bar |
| Evolve, 3110, Nokia | Europe | Made from biomaterials, charger only uses electricity when charging, | Candybar style, tri-band GSM radio, GPRS/EDGE 1.3 megapixel cam, FM radio |
| Renew, W233, Motorola | T-Mobile, Best Buy | Says it’s the first carbon-free cell phone on the market, works with Carbonfund.org to offset the carbon emitted to make and operate the phone. Made from recycled water bottles and is 100 percent recyclable. | Candy bar, dual-band GSM, GPRS |
| ZTE Coral-200-Solar | Jamaica’s Digicel Group | The first mass-market solar cell phone, being sold where there is limited access to the power grid. | Candy bar |
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