Motorola on Tuesday announced two new mobile devices with social responsibility and social connectivity in mind. The Moto W233 Renew is made of plastic from recycled water bottles, while the Motosurf A3100 is a high-speed touch tablet with a customizable home screen. Both devices are debuting at the Consumer Electronics Show.
“Increasingly, we are seeing more tech vendors deciding not to talk about things like feeds and speeds but rather about how eco-friendly their devices are,” said Michael Gartenberg, vice president of mobile strategy for Jupitermedia. “As long as it remains a concern for consumers, we are going to continue to see vendors use it as a marketing tool to differentiate their products.”
An Environmentally Responsible Design
Motorola is touting the Moto W233 Renew as a device that reduces your carbon footprint without sacrificing quality. The plastic housing is made from recycled water bottles and is itself 100 percent recyclable. Motorola claims it is the world’s first carbon-neutral phone.
Through an alliance with Carbonfund.org, Motorola offsets the carbon dioxide required to manufacture, distribute and operate the phone through investments in renewable energy sources and reforestation. The phone has earned Carbonfund.org’s CarbonFree Product Certification after an extensive product life-cycle assessment.
“Today, natural resources, energy and time are more precious than ever before,” said Jeremy Dale, corporate vice president of global marketing at Motorola Mobile Devices. “From the product’s design, to the packaging, to our partnership with Carbonfund.org, we wanted to ensure that this device makes the right impact with consumers and the environment.”
Standing Out from the Crowd
Motorola also addressed environmental concerns with the packaging. Motorola reduced packaging size by 22 percent and the box and all the materials inside are printed on 100 percent recycled paper. The handset maker includes a postage-paid recycling envelope that encourages consumers to return their previous mobile phone for recycling…