Say goodbye to the default charger that comes with a smartphone

Billions of chargers, still in working order, are today abandoned, thrown away or lying unused in drawers. — AFP Relaxnews

More and more smartphones, mainly high-end, are now sold without a new charger, in a move that makes sense from both an economical and ecological viewpoint. The trend was started in 2020 by Apple, followed by Samsung, Xiaomi and Google in 2021.

In the future, more models from manufacturers already applying this policy, including many more affordable phones, will be sold in this condition.

Samsung is therefore considering not furnishing any more chargers with its next models of smartphones. The new Galaxy A13, A23, M23 and M33, all expected in spring, should be the first ones concerned, at least on the European market. At this rate, Samsung, like others, may never again provide a new charger free of charge and instead sell them only at retail, if necessary.

The idea is to be able to reuse the charger of your old smartphone with your new model, if they are compatible, of course. With the exception of switching from an iPhone to an Android device, and vice versa, it’s quite simple. Without the charger included, consumers can expect to pay a little less for their smartphones, and for the manufacturers, the lighter packaging will also be a source of significant savings.

This decision also comes with an environmental logic. In recent years, far too many chargers have been distributed in vain and, unused, they now lie unused in drawers. The manufacturers involved can thus boast of reducing their carbon footprint while decreasing production of waste. With over a billion smartphones sold each year worldwide, this type of decision could have genuine environmental benefits. – AFP Relaxnews