On The Radar: Eco-Electronics

May 07, 2008

Being someone who totes around assorted electronics in my handbag, I've noticed that electronic devices and the environment haven't been the best of friends. For starters, there are the tricky-to-recycle materials, toxic fire-retardants in the plastic, lead in monitors, and giant carbon footprints if the electronics were shipped from far away. Then there's all the electricity required to run them.

So I cheer efforts to make electronics less toxic and more recyclable, as well as more energy-efficient. Happily, it looks like the big guys are getting the hint. Sony's Graphic Splash Eco Edition VAIOs got slammed by Engadget for not being green enough, but the laptops were "RoHS-compliant." RoHS is a stringent directive in the European Union that restricts the use of hazardous substances in electronics. It goes a step further than Energy Star ratings in the U.S., which focus on electricity. Speaking of electricity, Philips made waves with its Eco TV, which is lead-free and only uses the same energy as a lightbulb when its low-power settings are turned on. (I think my old hand-me-down TV actually does run on a lightbulb.)

Greenpeace has long been pushing Apple to eliminate heavy metals  and other toxic materials from its products and ramp up its recycling, which the company appears to be doing now. Dell just made the news with an announcement that it's going to start selling a small PC made with bamboo casing later this year (bamboo grows quickly, making it rapidly renewable and green). And, last but not least, a 19-inch bamboo LCD TV monitor has been selling out all over the place in the United Kingdom. It's only a matter of time before someone in the U.S. smells a bright green opportunity.

Photo: Philips Eco TV, credit: Philips