Fairphone 2 Tops in Terms of ‘Repairability,’ Low Waste

Repairable phones and tablets can go a long way towards solving the world’s e-waste problem, writes Engadget, and a new study scored those devices, as well as laptops, in terms of their “repairability.”

The Fairphone 2, with its ethically sourced components, was given the best score in a Greenpeace study on mobile devices and how easily they can be repaired. Among all smartphones, the Fairphone 2 was the only one to get full marks, based on its individual parts that can be replaced when needed rather than having to ditch the phone.

In the tablet category, the HP Elite X2 was tops; the Dell Latitude E5270 and HP Elitebook 840 G3 tied in the laptop category.

Phones that have batteries which adhere to the device itself, meaning they can’t be replaced, along with the need for specialized tools in order to repair devices, led to lower scores for Apple, Samsung and Microsoft.

Earlier this year, a study found that e-waste had grown by 63% between 2010 and 2015 in East and Southeast Asia.

Only 12.5% of e-waste is recycled, according to the EPA. The EPA also says that Americans throw out phones containing over $60 million in gold and/or silver every year, wrote Earth911.