Wave of mutilation ends as Best Buy, Sony and Microsoft take a stab at clamshell-free packaging initiative

It looks like Amazon started a trend last week when they announced their "Frustration Free Packaging" initiative, which boils down to the elimination of clamshell-style packaging for a lot of their top-sellers, and the introduction of more eco-friendly materials, like good old-fashioned (recycled) cardboard. According to The New York Times, a number of other companies, including Best Buy, Sony, and Microsoft are joining the club in eschewing heavy duty materials in favor of less aggressive ones. Anything that reduces our level of annoyance with the retail experience while pitching in to help out our increasingly threatened Mother Earth is something we'll gladly get behind. And we're pretty sure our dentist will agree.

[lowdef @ Nov 15th 2008 9:40PM]

YAAAAYYYY.

[prateeko @ Nov 15th 2008 10:24PM]

Of course, the money saved on plastics (which if I remember correctly are affected by oil prices) is also a good motivator for companies. Personally, I'd love it if I didn't have to hunt down a carpet cutter just to get to my frickin' games. Thanks God Amazon et al are helping me out!

[iEye @ Nov 15th 2008 11:07PM]

Darn it, and I just cut myself opening up one of those $10 iPod shuffle clones...

[Mike10010100 @ Nov 15th 2008 11:16PM]

I wish you would do that more often iEye. Until there is no blood left.

[Fusion Fuzo @ Nov 15th 2008 11:29PM]

my 10$ ipod shuffle broke when i threw it at your face

[rock99rock @ Nov 16th 2008 3:21AM]

I have those blister pack shears, they freaking rock

[Wwhat @ Nov 16th 2008 4:00AM]

With those companies all dong it I'm 100% sure it has an economic reason and not an environmental one, I guess that illusion is burst well and good.

[SITEiNK @ Nov 16th 2008 5:06AM]

This is really great news. Sure sometimes blister packs can make a product look great on the shelf, but every other aspect is a pain. The return process, the restocking process, and yea someone did mention petrol is indeed used in making all sorts of plastics. Cardboard based materials can look just fine on the shelf and are much easier to restock after a simple return, easy to recycle and lower our dependence on foreign oil. http://www.ROCKandREVIEW.com/

[Chris R @ Nov 16th 2008 9:12AM]

Hurrah! At last some more focus on manufacturers to reduce their packaging footprint rather than the onus being on the consumer.
It makes me sick that retailers are preaching to me about using plastic bags while they are wasting thousands in the name of "convenience" with lights on 24 hours a day and refrigerators with no doors, but they look at me like I killed a dolphin should I want a plastic bag. Why don't they just give the option of brown paper like they have in the USA for years?

[kingu @ Nov 16th 2008 2:30PM]

rock99rock: Because blister pack scars dont.

[BananaBoat @ Nov 16th 2008 7:50PM]

I just hope that Amazon doubles the amount of packing material used. Sometimes I get things from Amazon and they are kinda beat up, like they've been through the shipping mill. The blister packs do an excellent job of protecting the contents inside, and I can't imagine that cardboard would allow a product to escape unscathed.


I hate blister packs as much as the next guy, but I'm kind of wary over this...

[Mike10010100 @ Nov 15th 2008 9:40PM]

Thank freaking God! 5th time cutting my hand on the stupid sharp edges.

Not to mention that when i get something from the store and get so excited that I want to try it out....... I have to carry the jaws of life around with me to cut into the packages.

[feffrey @ Nov 15th 2008 11:36PM]

Personally I have never injured myself opening packages. I do find them somewhat annoying, but usually all it requires is some strong scissors and it is opened.
So personally meh, but if the rest of humanity has problems with them, then so be it.

[Valicore @ Nov 16th 2008 1:46AM]

I'm totally with Mike on this one. Every time I get something I really wanna try I'm there with my keys attacking the package for untold seconds of annoyance. Seriously though, the packages have gotten to be ridiculously difficult to open. It's an inconvenience to me, but people like my Mom seriously have issues with opening this kind of stuff.

[Kelmon @ Nov 16th 2008 5:06AM]

I have to agree with Tom on this - Apple's stance on packaging has been damned good over the last few years, even before they started crowing about it. While this has absolutely nothing to do with the plastic packaging that the main article discusses, I do remember making a few trips to the US and buying PC games there where they came in huge cardboard boxes that contained nothing more than a CD and a registration card at the bottom. For the last few years Apple's software has come in boxes that are only as big as the contents that they hold, which is as it should be. In fairness, this has been a bit annoying since I used to use the box that the latest OS came in to hold my other disks so that they'd all be together and I can't do that since Leopard was released.

Still, going back to the main topic, this really isn't copying of Apple. There are, thankfully, still quite a few companies that don't use these horrible types of plastic cases, so what makes anyone think it is Apple that is being copied? The suggestion is quite preposterous.

[Quikboy @ Nov 16th 2008 10:10AM]

@tom : Yes, but plastic is still plastic. Most people don't recycle plastic. Even though I'm an advocate of recycling, I only (commonly) recycle paper material and aluminum cans. Plastic recycling isn't convenient in my area, and I'm quite sure not everybody has access to plastic recycling. Also, the iMac uses quite a lot of plastic itself.

Also, those links don't mean much considering:

- iPod Nano is already smaller than most iPods (except Shuffle) thus as Apple made it smaller in 2006, the packaging is smaller.
- MacBook Air is one of the slimmest laptops out there, thus the slimmer packaging.
- OS X Tiger is not the only CD to ever come in packages like that. Also, Microsoft allows you to buy and download Windows Vista straight from either Windows Marketplace or Microsoft Store. Apple doesn't allow you to buy and download straight from the site, thus reducing the need for shipping and packaging.

I'm not saying Apple isn't green, but Apple's packaging happens to just be practical, as well as saying to Greenpeace, "I'm green too!". Sure, they can have environmental reasons, but the smaller the device, the smaller the packaging. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out. So those links didn't really mean much to me.

[Leindurstit @ Nov 15th 2008 9:41PM]

Wow, copying Apple some more, are they?

[EricC @ Nov 15th 2008 9:44PM]

That comment would only make sense if...no, wait...never mind. That comment has no chance of ever making any sense.

[striggity @ Nov 15th 2008 10:02PM]

that was a dumb thing to say.

[Quikboy @ Nov 15th 2008 10:15PM]

Are you kidding me? The iPod Touch (2G) comes in those nasty plastic "clamshell" cases. My Zune came in a slim and sturdy cardboard packaging, and packs a lot in one space. I don't see how this is another one of those "Microsoft-copies-Apple" things.

[Mike10010100 @ Nov 15th 2008 10:20PM]

Wow. Could someone up there please ip ban this new clak and iEye? That would make my year. Or the next 10 years.

[JerkfacedFed @ Nov 15th 2008 10:35PM]

I wish you were right in front of me because I would beat the s*** out of u for saying a comment like that

[SteveJr_Ri @ Nov 15th 2008 10:37PM]

apparently you didn't learn from the other 19 times

[Adderz @ Nov 15th 2008 10:40PM]

I LOVE Apple and all its products, but even I'm not dumb enough to be brainwashed into thinking THEY are environmentally friendly.

They are (were) one of the worst companies, its only because they put so much effort into TELLING everyone theyve made changes, other companies just do it and you hear barely a thing.

[Mike10010100 @ Nov 15th 2008 11:11PM]

@clak

My question is, why do trolls do it? Is it for the same reason that those ADD children in the 2nd grade run around screaming their heads off? Do they need attention?

Maybe you weren't hugged or loved enough as a child.

Don't you realize that you'd probably win over more people if you screamed your statements to an ant pile? And then rolled around in it? With honey all over your body?

Even Zak is better than this guy. He backs up his inane statements with "facts".

Oh, and finally, successful troll is non-existent troll.

[Mike10010100 @ Nov 15th 2008 11:35PM]

.....says the person who just replied to two different posts by the same person, one that didn't even have anything to do with the other.

That would be the definition of a troll.

[wako @ Nov 16th 2008 12:16AM]

fuck mother earth, its not going to be my problem when it becomes a problem. Its going to be kids problem. let them deal with it. Until then ill continue throwing mercury and lead in the sea and lakes! WOOHOO!

[Zeus.:God @ Nov 16th 2008 1:34AM]

I don't get this... I've had my accounts banned before, and I've never done anything wrong... Yet these idiots get away with the world.

[tom @ Nov 16th 2008 2:57AM]

Look, it's just a fact that Apple has done this for years. They don't have clamshell packaging, the boxes are easy to open and they get smaller and smaller every year, be it for Macs, Mac software, iPods or other Apple devices an accessories.

If you don't believe that, just google it. Look at all the unboxing galleries, read the reviews that mention how the box got smaller again compared to last year's release.

http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2008/01/31/macbook-air-box-way-smaller-than-other-apple-boxes
http://www.tuaw.com/2006/04/28/smaller-box-for-tiger/
http://www.tuaw.com/2006/09/12/a-look-at-the-nanos-new-packaging/

Quikboy:
"The iPod Touch (2G) comes in those nasty plastic "clamshell" cases. My Zune came in a slim and sturdy cardboard packaging, and packs a lot in one space."

It's a plastic box which is both sturdier and smaller than the Zune's box and it's not clamshell. It's very easy to open. Actually the iPod Classic (which is the direct competitor to the Zune) is coming in the same kind of cardboard box, and Apple had these boxes for the original iPod/iPod classic and the iPod mini long before the Zune was even announced.

[Quikboy @ Nov 16th 2008 10:41AM]

@tom : Yes, but plastic is still plastic. Most people don't recycle plastic. Even though I'm an advocate of recycling, I only (commonly) recycle paper material and aluminum cans. Plastic recycling isn't convenient in my area, and I'm quite sure not everybody has access to plastic recycling. Also, the iMac uses quite a lot of plastic itself.

Also, those links don't mean much considering:

- iPod Nano is already smaller than most iPods (except Shuffle) thus as Apple made it smaller in 2006, the packaging is smaller.
- MacBook Air is one of the slimmest laptops out there, thus the slimmer packaging.
- OS X Tiger is not the only CD to ever come in packages like that. Also, Microsoft allows you to buy and download Windows Vista straight from either Windows Marketplace or Microsoft Store. Apple doesn't allow you to buy and download straight from the site, thus reducing the need for shipping and packaging.

I'm not saying Apple isn't green, but Apple's packaging happens to just be practical, as well as saying to Greenpeace, "I'm green too!". Sure, they can have environmental reasons, but the smaller the device, the smaller the packaging. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out. So those links didn't really mean much to me.

[nohone @ Nov 16th 2008 6:34PM]

Apple being Environmentally friendly? This is a description of the creation of the new MacBooks, and the waste it generates, from treehugger.com:

"Basically, a jet of water pressurized as high as 60,000 psi, and often mixed with an abrasive like garnet, is aimed at a chunk of material such as stainless steel, aluminum, ceramics, or even titanium, and it carves away at the material in a highly precise manner.

It generates a whole lot of noise, is a very dangerous process, and all that material carved away becomes waste, which would have to be collected and reprocessed to be used again, or, more likely, tossed. In fact, it is a very wasteful process as a big percentage of the material is carved away and mixes with the water and abrasives. All that would have to go through some sort of (likely energy-intensive) processing if any of it were to be re-used.

As for energy use of the cutting process itself, if a 20 kW pump is used, it would consume 22-35 kW of electricity, and about 2.6 gallons of water per hour. Not really a big deal. The big deal comes with the fact that it is wasteful of raw material."

Compare this to traditional ways, where plastic or metal is molded. It consumes energy (not as much as the new Apple way) and raw materials, but there is much less waste as what is taken out can easily be recycled.

But continue on believing that Apple has "cleaned" up their act.

[tom @ Nov 17th 2008 1:06PM]

Quikboy:
The iPod nano box is plastic because customers want to see the product. Apple has to sell 10-20 Million iPods per quarter, that doesn't work with paperbags. The New York Times story will tell you the same: You can't skip plastic yet, but you can make it easier to open than those clamshells. Did you read the NYT story?

It's obvious that Macs didn't shrink 75 % over the last years so the boxes were clearly shrinking faster than the products, and they were also shrinking when the products didn't shrink. Apple's software boxes also got smaller (by about 75 %), even though CDs and DVDs are still the same size they were 10 years ago.

Engadget only allows me to put 3 links into one message, that's why I suggested you to google it yourself. There's a lot of stuff about Apple boxes out there.

nohone:
treehugger.com has changed their stance on the new Macbook. You are citing their initial doubts based on the rumours before the unveiling. One week later, treehugger.com posted a generally positive assessment:

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/10/new-macbook-pro-whats-the-eco-impact-of-building-a-laptop-from-a-single-piece-of-aluminum.php?daylife=1

"It looks like this process, despite flaws, has some real improvements for the notebook in the big picture of its lifetime and total footprint."

But again, this story is about packaging. I don't know we keep talking about other stuff instead.

[John @ Nov 15th 2008 9:46PM]

Death to the Pixies!

[Neebs @ Nov 15th 2008 11:57PM]

Vamos a jugar por la playa.

[Samboini @ Nov 16th 2008 4:34AM]

^ What he said!

[Joseph @ Nov 16th 2008 10:41AM]

He said "let's go play on the beach."

Hooray for rational, on-topic discussion!

[SpydaKat 17 @ Nov 16th 2008 2:10PM]

For Sparta!!

[EricC @ Nov 15th 2008 9:47PM]

"Increasingly threatened Mother Earth?" Yeah...ask anyone who's ever been the victim of a hurricane, tornado, volcano, tsunami, blizzard, flood, mudslide, wild fire, earthquake or any other natural disaster if they feel like a threat to Mother Nature. Somehow I don't think you'd get the answer you might be expecting.

[The Walrus @ Nov 15th 2008 10:13PM]

Yeah, because there is no evidence that warmer oceans lead to stronger hurricanes and the like.

[Valicore @ Nov 15th 2008 10:31PM]

Dude, you don't build on the ocean in a hurricane area without knowing about it. Just like I live in the SF Bay Area and I know that eventually there will be an earthquake. You should jump on the green bandwagon too if you care for, well, any human being. Mother Nature will recover if we disappear, I can't say we will survive without Mother Nature.

[JR @ Nov 15th 2008 10:35PM]

So... we should overpackage items in order to get back at mother nature for natural disasters?

[RikF @ Nov 15th 2008 10:36PM]

You've obviously never encountered a cornered, threatened animal before.

[EricC @ Nov 15th 2008 10:40PM]

I'm guessing those that low ranked me have never been in a natural disaster, or ever heard of one for that matter. Probably think "Katrina" was just some angry woman that went berserk in New Orleans.

[The Walrus @ Nov 15th 2008 11:00PM]

I sympathize with Katrina victims that couldn't leave. That being said however, New Orleans isn't the smartest place to live if you have the choice

[Tom @ Nov 15th 2008 11:12PM]

Your lack of logic truly baffles me. Mother Earth is threatened, and we feel the results (floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, etc.). Granted, these things happen naturally, but our actions certainly have had an effect on severity and period of these natural disasters. So, think of it like RikF mentioned: Mother nature is a cute cuddly pet dog. Sometimes the dog pisses on your floor and craps in the driveway, but we all still love it. Eventually we get lazy and start feeding it food from the dollar store and brushing it with a fork instead of a proper brush. We call it "fuckhead" rather than it's proper name, and pick up smoking so the puppy gets second hand smoke.

As retaliation the dog starts pissing in your slippers and crapping in your underwear drawer every other day. The natural actions that did occur become more frequent and more severe, because we mistreated it and took advantage of it's good nature.

So yes, we are a threat to Mother Earth - it simply retaliates. Take better care of Earth, and it will take better care of us. 'Nuff said.

[EricC @ Nov 16th 2008 1:48PM]

My lack of logic also baffles me, because I wasn't aware that I had one.

You can continue to drink the global warming Kool-Aid if it helps you sleep better at night, but the evidence to the contrary stacks up on a daily basis. There are plenty of people (myself included) who didn't need the evidence to see that it was all just a big pile of crap, but to those of you who buy whatever Algore tells you without questioning it, the proof is out there.

Not only is man-made global warming completely and utterly false (seriously...how much of a god complex do you need to think you can affect the environment in any significant way?), but now there's even evidence stacking up that points towards global cooling over the last 20-30 years, instead of the warming they've been crying about for decades.

Anyhow...I've said my piece. I know I'll get low-ranked on this one. The ignorant retaliate when their beliefs are challenged. I guess I can understand that...no one likes to be told they're stupid. Engadget readers are no exception.

[Xultar @ Nov 15th 2008 9:48PM]

Who thought that crap was a good idea anyway? That annoying packaging should have been nixed from the get.

[shibathedog @ Nov 16th 2008 12:03AM]

The original idea behind this packaging was to prevent theft in retail stores actually, It works pretty well for that purpose (its pretty hard to open one quickly and steal an item and be sneaky about it) but all the other terrible aspects about it outweigh this purpose.

[Juaquin @ Nov 15th 2008 11:58PM]

The whole point of the hard to open packaging was that it was hard to open - preventing thiefs from opening it in the store, stuffing the small item inside their pocket, and walking out with the goods. While less frustrating package would be nice, you have to balance that with the losses due to theft.

[Kai @ Nov 16th 2008 5:32AM]

In some local stores I've seen them put small items (e.g. high capacity flash drives) inside large (and hard) transparent plastic boxes that are locked - and when you bring the item to the casher they remove the plastic box for you and reuse it for future items. Thus you prevent theft and waste at the same time.