HazardousChemicals
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iPhone 5 chemical study shows a green Apple, leaves room for improvement
Eventually, that shiny new iPhone 5 will have to meet its untimely end, whether it's in a landfill or (preferably) a recycling company's machinery. When it does, you'll at least be glad to know that Apple has kept the toxin levels down. HealthyStuff and iFixit have dissected the extra skinny smartphone and put it in the same "low concern" category for potential harm that's normally occupied by phones wearing their green credentials on their sleeves. Lest anyone rush to tell Greenpeace about the feat, just remember that there's a difference between proficiency at excising dangerous chemicals and getting rid of them completely: HealthyStuff still found small traces of bromine, chlorine, lead and mercury in the iPhone 5's construction, which could pose risks if the handset is ever broken apart or melted for scrap. Some concern also exists that the x-ray fluorescence spectrometer doesn't reveal the full extent of any toxic materials. Whether or not these remain sore points for you, the new iPhone is at least easier on the eco-friendly conscience than most of its peers.
Greenpeace and Apple: Can you feel the love tonight?
Environmental activist group Greenpeace and Apple haven't exactly been good buddies in the past. For example, in the past Greenpeace slammed Apple with a mock Apple website, had fig-leaf clad representatives visit the first Apple Store in continental Europe, and "greened" the flagship Apple Store in San Francisco. Radical representatives of the group had been ejected from MacExpo London in 2006 for being disruptive, and Greenpeace had assigned Apple low scores in a 2006 e-waste report. Apparently, the greens and the geeks have kissed and made up, since Apple was ranked #1 in the top 18 consumer electronics company in terms of reduction or elimination of hazardous chemicals in the manufacture of its products. As seen in the Greenpeace table on the next page, Apple was squeaky-clean across its product line, including desktop and laptop computers, phones, and monitors:
