When it comes to consumer electronics batteries and their charging, the European Union has been trying to make life easier for users and nature for the past few years. In order to reduce the amount of waste, for example, it was released mandatory for USB-C connector in smartphones, tablets, speakers and other devices of this type by 2024. Within four years, manufacturers will have to adapt to the next rule.
Older smartphones were slower, took worse photos and didn’t offer as many features as today’s, but at the same time they had a lot of advantages. For example, she went to them. easy to replace batteries – the back cover could be removed very easily, and the battery could be removed beautifully, without any DIY skills or detailed knowledge of the anatomy of the phone.
However, today you will face several obstacles. – the back cover is held on by strong glue, so it is more difficult to get rid of it, it is no less difficult to remove the battery. Today, doing what used to be a simple operation is often impossible without visiting an authorized service center, or at least you don’t want to do it twice.
Replacing a device’s battery can often be costly and especially if it’s an old, budget phone, for example, in many cases it doesn’t make sense to invest in it any further – it is more profitable to buy a new one, which creates additional electrical waste. However, the European Council adopted a regulation imposing an obligation on manufacturers of electronic devices. Start using such batteries by 2027 at the latest so that the end user can remove and replace them themselves.
I’ve spent most of my time here talking about phones, but those are far from the only devices subject to regulation. If nothing has changed by then, which is unlikely, manufacturers of handheld game consoles, for example, will also have to comply. In practice, this means that such a Steam Deck or third-generation Nintendo Switch will need to have a replaceable battery.
One might argue that the document published by the European Union does not mention portable devices verbatim, so they can be avoided in the regulation. But Overkill was able to connect directly with an unnamed EU source who confirmed that “Batteries for handheld game consoles are subject to the Batteries and Waste Batteries Ordinance..
Battery life can be a long-term issue for portable devices as well as phones, laptops and other products. But since this type of device is not one of the things that the consumer would immediately exchange for a new one due to the worst battery condition, the possibility of an exchange will definitely be appreciated. It just creates another potential hurdle for manufacturers…
Source :Indian TV
