Rumors are going around regarding iPhone12 that Apple is planning to launch it without a charging device. And now, talks are revolving around Samsung that it might also ditch the charging kit in its new Samsung Galaxy S30.
Apple has already excluded the earphone socket from its iPhone, forcing the buyers to buy Apple iPods or other compatible devices. And trust me, they aren’t cheap. But now, excluding charging block or cable from the box is a new way of marketing strategy that these companies are planning to implement. The goal here is to make users buy a separate charger or use existing mobile charging tech that users already have in their homes.
According to me, it’s about time that technology manufacturers and users take responsibility for the e-waste generated by the average person every year. Dropping the unnecessary parts or accessories from the box is a bold and big decision to prevent e-waste from expanding.
Facts about iPhone 12 & S30
- ‘iPhone12 box will not have EarPods, low-cost wired headsets, and charger set when it lands later this year,’ – says Ming-Chi Kuo.
- Apple iPhone could be the first portless smartphone, which will change the technology world completely.
- Samsung will be following the footsteps of Apple to launch its S30 device without a charging block and wire. It might sound frustrating, but it’s true.
- Ditching the charging set from the box doesn’t mean that the price of the smartphone will also drop. We all have seen that regular flagship phones now cost around $1000 and over. Chargers are not an expensive component here.
- Samsung Galaxy S30 will not appear until February 2021. The company will wait and see Apple’s iPhone12 performance chart before finalizing its decision.
- Galaxy Note 20 & Galaxy Fold 2 would release on August 5. They both come with 25W chargers, so you don’t have to worry about not having a mean to power them up.
Potential Issues with No Charging Kit Policy
Most of the users around the world already use smartphones with USB-C charging type. The only difference is the variation in fast-charging speed that depends on manufacturers. Every manufacturer has its charging speed numbers. That’s why it is recommended to use the company’s chargers to get the best charging performance. It means that the new customers will have to pay up for optimal charging speeds. Let’s understand it with an example:
Suppose you are an iPhone user and want to shift to Samsung S series. You decided to buy the Galaxy S30 model, which comes without a charging kit. At home, you have an iPhone USB-C type charging kit, which you might use to charge your S30. As a drawback, you will not get optimal charging performance because Apple’s Fast charging speed is different from Samsung’s FCS. As a result, you end up buying a separate charging kit for your new Galaxy S30. The same case will be with Apple iPhone12. If you are a Samsung user from the start and want to shift to iPhone12, you probably have to buy a separate charging kit, along with expensive Apple EarPods, etc..
Apple already has a plan in motion to move to a wireless-only charging type with the new iPhone 13. Also, Qi wireless standard is universal on 1st and 3rd party chargers now. So, any issues related to wired charging can be solved by implementing wireless charging in next-generation smartphone models.
Stats related to e-waste
- According to European Parliament stats, people around the globe generate over 50 million metric tonnes of e-waste per year. It includes everything from your laptop’s wasted parts to the broken charging port, etc..
- In 2016, the International Telecommunications Union said, ‘it believes that every year, around 1 million tons of external power supplies get manufactured.’ It’s 2020 now, imagine how much e-waste we might be generating right now.
- Around 2% of all the e-waste comprises of the chargers alone.
- According to Environmental Protection Agency, only 15 to 20 percent of e-waste gets recycled in the United States every year.
If we go deeper into the numbers, it would be a horrifying picture to know how much e-waste every country generates around the globe. So, according to ‘The Business Inside‘ point-of-view, removing the charging kit from the box is a good move. It will help in reducing e-waste, which is helpful for our environment. Although many people will be disappointed with the fact that they have to buy a new smartphone charger if they want to shift to iPhone12 or Galaxy S30, for our environmental health, it’s a good move.
One section of smartphone users thinks that it could be a fatal move for the company’s sales rate and image. Well, we all saw what happened when Apple ditched audio jack from its iPhone. The sales skyrocketed. So, we have to wait and see what will happen when iPhone12 officially launches. We can’t make speculations regarding how manufacturers will implement a lack of charger strategy. There might be a brought in as an option, which would be free if you are buying a new device. Probably, you have to request for a charger rather than getting it by default.
The Business Inside 