Reading a report on e-waste and the number of phones thrown out each year is crazy

I found a study from the UN that said over 5 billion phones were just sitting in drawers or thrown away in 2022. That's a huge amount of work we could be doing if more people knew repair was an option. Has anyone else seen a big change in what people bring in to fix versus just replace?

3 comments

3 Comments

gavinm8917h ago

Battery swaps are probably 40% of what comes through my local shop now actually. Had a guy last week with a phone from 2019, just wanted the battery done and a new screen protector. Told me he finally broke down and upgraded his car though lol. That UN report is wild when you think about all those phones just sitting in junk drawers with perfectly fixable batteries.

the_max1mo ago

I saw that same UN report and the five billion number really got me. I used to just swap my old phone for a new one every two years without a second thought. Now I'm holding onto my current model for a fourth year after just getting the battery replaced. Are you seeing more people ask about battery swaps instead of upgrades?

daniel5521mo ago

Yeah, battery swaps are way more common now. I got mine done at a local shop for like sixty bucks and it feels brand new. Honestly, most people don't need a new phone every year anymore.