“Environmentalists are targeting the iPod, Apple Computer’s phenomenally successful digital music player, as a symbol of the growing problem of electronic waste. The Computer Take Back Campaign, an umbrella organization for dozens of environmental groups, is trying to force Apple to beef up its recycling program and to redesign the iPod, which has a battery that can wear out in just 18 months and is not easily replaced,” Joan Lowy reports for Scripps Howard News Service.
“Last month, protesters gathered outside the company’s Cupertino, Calif., headquarters carrying signs that read ‘from iPod to iWaste – toxic trash in your pocket;’ ‘take back your rotten Apples;’ and ‘Dell and HP do, why don’t you?’ Protesters also turned up at the company’s recent Macworld Expo in San Francisco. They have generated thousands of letters to Apple CEO Steve Jobs. And they are vowing to bring their complaints to shareholders at the company’s annual meeting in April,” Lowy reports.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: We have iPods with much longer than 18 months use on them that have original batteries that are still going strong. Apple has a battery information page here which explains: Apple rechargeable batteries provide a better solution for both your pocketbook and the planet. For instance, if your iPod were powered by 4-AA Alkaline batteries and you used one pack per week (which is conservative), after two years you would have spent over $200 (buying in bulk) and piled up 400 dead batteries for your local recycling center.
BSOD: Spoken like a true Mac pansy. You are such a pathetic Mac homer! I don’t know why you even bother to post your bullshit – “…majority of iPod owners actually use Windows…” – yeah, right, Einstein. Did you just make that up or what?
Someone on this planet had thrown away an iPod? I-AM-ASTONISHED!
All you tree-hugging, man-pudding-gobbling Mac throat-sausage-lovers will wake up someday, forget about hairy man ass and discover Windows XP goodness and the pleasure of a real woman. If you’re lucky.
Amen, ron. Amen.
I sent a note off to the svtc stating that everyone that needs to replace a battery knows that it can be. In additon I pointed out that the iPod has helped to drive the iTunes service which has sold over 250 million songs to date. (est.) At 10 songs an album that is 25 million jewel cases and discs that didn’t have to be manufactured to say nothing of the liner notes. (which I miss so could you please include those with the download Apple). The iPod and devices like it are a huge BENEFIT to the environment so I asked them to please change their position on this rather than give environmentalism a bad name.
Mac fags’ number one problem? Drinking too much baby batter. Lay off the Man Goo, stop huggin trees and driving volvos and voting for Dean. Forget about “cool” case designs and get a real computer with a real GHz number and real expansion options and a real operating system: Windows XP Professional.
Let me get this strait, they are protesting a product that uses (and ONLY uses) rechargeable batteries?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!
Hey, how about protesting the thousand or so other music devices that can be bought at the local drug store that uses AA and AAA batteries?
Dell has got to be secretly behind this one.
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Seems like we can always count on ron, Ben, lisa, and NoMacForYou to raise the level of the discussion with their insightful comments. Thanks.
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Conservatives for years have been telling us that global warming is a sham – and this year will be the hottest year globally ON RECORD. (not to mention shitloads of evidence of this happening, from Greenland ice caps to Antarctica’s) It’s plain to see that conservatives care only about their own interests, and lack the ability to consider long term investments. Yep that’s a conservative for ya these days – Fuck the environment, let’s make money. Is it because the religious right thinks the end times are near so who even cares about mother earth?
As far as these idiots protesting Apple, well, they need to be putting their efforts elsewhere. Apple’s iPod is the least of their worries. Sounds to me like they just want some of the attention that the iPod has been recieveing. The ironic aspect is that thier stupidity is empowering the assholes that don’t care about the Earth – the Neo Cons.
And the 1,000 CDs & Jewel cases each iPod potentially eliminates from production is, by volume, a FAAAAAR bigger waste!
These people are morons, easily incited by special interest group hiding in the background. Just think how many CDs all the iPod can save given all the songs are sold and stored on the HDD instead of CDs. These stupid ” environmentalists” don’t think, their brains should be treated as human toxic waste!!!!!
Hey NoMacForYou,go get a life instead of stocking a web site that you hate. Go give Bill a b#ow job or something!
Hey, botox. That’s not what your mom said while she was giving me a BJ.
That last post wasn’t from me. I’d never let your nasty mom give me a BJ.
fish in sucker!!! Ha Ha Ha!
It’s trendy to dump on environmentalists… the selfish jerks!
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”wink” style=”border:0;” /> Thank you, George, for making hate so popular again.
It’s amusing to read the bashing by people who haven’t put any thought into these things at all. The world must be a simple place for you
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iPods WILL be a problem–one of many. They aren’t yet because they aren’t being thrown out in large numbers yet. And looking ahead to that, using a popular product as an example, is a good way to bring REAL issues to attention that they do need.
This isn’t “Apple bashing,” this is Apple’s turn to get attention about something that will become important.
The truth is, you can have your lifestyle AND be environmentally aware. But people don’t want to hear that.
Wonder how many trees it took to send those letters…
Wonder how much gas it took to assemble at Apple…
Wonder if they cleaned up their stuff…
Environmentalists have a way of being hypocrites.
And let us not forget that macs have a longer lifespan than most PC…
Less change over means less materials ending up in a land fill. Durability is part of the sustainable equation.
That said, i too would like to see apple implement a recycling plan at it’s stores….
So mature, there are 10 millions iPods out there. There are also over 10 Billion computers out there with bigger HDDs. Which one is the Bigger problem? iPod can potentially save billions of non-recyclable CDs, did it ever occur to you ?
Five points :
1. Rechargeable batteries are of course much more ecological than disposable batteries.
2. it makes no sense to compare batteries to CDs since you might play your CDs on a portable CD Player which… use batteries as well.
It makes sense to compare CDs to hard-drives or flash-memories.
3. By the way, a rechargeable battery is likely much more toxic than even 1000 CDs
4. Apple is not providing a way to recycle their products.
5. Apple is not (unlike e.g. Sony) using substitution substances to several well-known hazardous substances (e.g. Brominated Flame Retardants). However, they said that they are going to phase out those substances in their products but they didn’t say which ones and when.
Those Enviro whimps just want attention. This is such secondary s*** compared to the outright rape of the environment the Bush Administration is allowing. So we got some more silicon chips and logic boards in the trash. That is much better than chopping down trees anyday. Those people should focus on getting the US to ratify the Kyoto Protocol. Next they’ll be complaining that humans poop too much.
It’s 10-12% installed base.
When will these idiots realize marketshare is not the same as installed base. Geez….
How about an iPod trade-in program at Apple. Trade-in your iPod and receive 10% off the purchase of a new iPod. This would allow Apple to properly receycle the iPods and give the consumer a nice bonus for doing so. Apple takes active responsibility and the enviromentalists look like fools for complaining. It’s a win win situation all around. The enviromentalists need to stop whining and provide real solutions, if they are really concerned. If they provide no solution then they are worst part of America, complaining in order to get their 15 minutes of fame.
All the iPods currently in use could be stacked in a 50 foot by 60 foot, two story warehouse. *THIS* is a global environmental problem? All these protest groups should form an umbrella group so that we can easily catalog all of their concerns in one location. I’d suggest an acronym for the new group; S.W.I.N.E. (Socialists Wildly Indignant about Nearly Everything).
As for Ben and the rest of the MS apologists, your ad hominem attacks say much more about you than they do about your opponents. If you want to be taken seriously you need to get beyond high school locker room posturing and pointless name calling.
Zeke,
You’re going to have to use smaller words to get your point across to the like of me and Ben.
Oh, and you are a pole-smoking Mac zealot who doesn’t know shit about shit. Suck my balls, eh?