The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the leading United Nations agency for informational and communication technology issues, has approved a new mobile phone charger that will work with any handset. Currently, most chargers are product or brand specific, so most people discard old chargers when they upgrade to a new phone. Studies suggest that about 57,000 tons of chargers are discarded each year.
Industry group GSMA predicts the universal charger could also reduce as much as 15 million tons of greenhouse gases a year.
“This is a significant step in reducing the environmental impact of mobile charging,” said Malcolm Johnson, director of ITU’s Telecommunication Standardisation Bureau. “Universal chargers are a common-sense solution that I look forward to seeing in other areas.”
The real question is: how many manufacturers will go along with the ITU’s recommendation? Sony Ericsson, for one, plans to launch the universal charger internationally during the first half of 2010. Aldo Liguori, spokesperson for Sony Ericcson, said, “we will roll it out with new products as they launch.”
[Source: BBC]
