Fairphone, a relatively unknown Dutch startup, has been working on smartphones that have minimal impact on the environment and people. The first phone from the company, the Fairphone, was impressive, but was not as ‘fair’ as the company had hoped for.
Now, the startup is back with the successor to the Fairphone, the Fairphone 2. The handset — which is still in prototype stages — will come with a 5-inch full HD display protected by a 0.7mm thick Gorilla Glass 3, a Snapdragon 801 processor, 2GB RAM, LTE support, Android 5.1, an 8MP rear camera, a microSD card slot and an expansion port at the back for sensors.
What makes the Fairphone 2 impressive is its internal design, which is completely modular. This makes it extremely easy to conduct in-house repairs on the phone. For example, replacing the screen on the handset is as easy as prying open two clips and replacing the display panel. Fairphone will be offering modular parts up for sale through its website, so owners of the handset can order replacement parts directly from them. This will include the chipset, display, camera, microphones and other components used inside the handset.
The ‘fair’ in Fairphone comes from their philosophy of using materials in phones that have minimal impact on the environment. In this regard, the Fairphone 2 is a major step up from its predecessor since it makes use of conflict free tim and tantalum. While not entirely free of conflict materials, the damage from Fairphone 2 to the environment and to humans is comparatively less than other smartphones.
Fairphone 2 does not come with top notch specs or a beautiful design, but it does come with the promise that it has been made in a ‘fair’ manner. If that is something which you really care about, make sure to check out the Fairphone 2, which will go up for sale in Europe for €525 this summer.
