Photos: Making the world’s first fair trade smartphone
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The pieces of a Fairphone
The pieces of a Fairphone
The Fairphone uses two conflict-free minerals out of a possible four, uses open design and software, and safe factory conditions for workers.
SEE:The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Comparing to an iPhone
Comparing to an iPhone
A Fairphone employee holds up an iPhone in comparison to Fairphone prototype during a design challenge bootcamp the company held.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Dual SIM
Dual SIM
The Fairphone, which was created in the Netherlands, has dual SIM cards.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
The Fairphone
The Fairphone
Someone holds a prototype of a Fairphone. To date, Fairphone has shipped over 25,000 phones.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Old phones
Old phones
A pile of old phones that were thrown out, whose parts can be used for pieces in Fairphone production.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Recycling old phones
Recycling old phones
Fairphone partnered with Closing the Loop, a Dutch foundation which aims to solve the problems with electronic waste disposal policies in developing countries.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Valuable piecef of old phones
Valuable piecef of old phones
The Fairphone team went to Ghana to inspect how phone collection was managed and how community outreach is done by local partners.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Design challenge
Design challenge
People who competed in the bootcamp design challenge in Amsterdam last year had three days to design a DIY phone that could last.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
GuoHong factory workers
GuoHong factory workers
At the GuoHong factory in China, Fairphone and the factory both pay $2.50 each on top of production costs to put toward a worker’s welfare fund, and workers vote what to spend it on.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Testing out the Fairphone
Testing out the Fairphone
GuoHong is the manufacturer for Fairphone. The manufacturer wanted to break into the international market, even if it was with a few thousand phones made.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Testing Fairphone
Testing Fairphone
Workers at the GuoHong factory in China test out the Fairphone.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Mobile World Congress
Mobile World Congress
Fairphone sets up at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona earlier this year.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Fairphone visits mines in Congo
Fairphone visits mines in Congo
Fairphone employees visited mines in the Congo to see where minerals for phones come from.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Fairphone team
Fairphone team
The Fairphone team visited mines in the Congo and learned about the life cycle of our smartphones.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Local partners in e-waste reduction
Local partners in e-waste reduction
Fairphone team members talk to local partners in Accra, the capital of Ghana.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Urban mining workshops
Urban mining workshops
Fairphone hosts workshops and posts videos about how to disassemble old phones and utilize the parts inside, hoping to reduce e-waste.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Urban mining
Urban mining
Fairphone team members meet throughout Europe to practice “urban mining,” which allows them to use parts of old phones people have thrown away or donated.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Precious minerals
Precious minerals
At the Fairphone opening night, a display of precious minerals is shown to drive home the importance of conflict-free minerals and fair trade policies.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
Fairphone prototypes
Fairphone prototypes
A shelf of Fairphone prototypes sits on display at opening night in the office.
SEE: The gadget with a conscience: How Fairphone crowdfunded its way to an industry-changing smartphone
