Yes, yes Apple is one of the two top smartphone manufacturers in the world and has to cater for the needs of millions and millions of customers with its new iPhones every year. But, it also means that it is responsible for thousands of tonnes of IT junk each year with many outdated, broken iPads, iPhones, iMacs and other Apple products ending up in landfills as part of a growing IT junk problem that has plagued us in the recent decade. IT junk is a serious issue as these are all finished products that get outdated and it’s very difficult to recycle them. This iPhone eating machine from Apple is a different dimension towards Apple’s manufacturing as it will allow a smartphone’s parts to be partially salvaged and reused in newer phones.
Liam, the new iPhone destroying machine has an astonishing 29 number of robotic arms to help with the demolition process. It is as soothing to see as one of those weird Youtube videos involving checking the durability of an iPhone and a Samsung by firing live rounds at them. It is a revolutionary step in its own as the manufacturing of iPhones is still largely done by hand rather than robots! Yes, I find it hard to believe but it is actually, so. It wouldn’t have been if the company was too eager to engage poor minimum wage workers in China in its factories. If it had been in USA, it would have been automatized years ago, but here we are still relying on cheap labor to make ends meet.
Apart from that issue, the tech giant is now working its way to make Apple products “green” and pro-environment with the help of this major Product Lifecycle upgrade. There is considerable stuff in an iPhone that can be reused in newer gadgets like Gold, Cobalt and Lithium, the last of which is a serious safety concern in many of our landfills where Lithium batteries are known to explode or catch fire. These disassembled parts and bits from iPhones can be reused but many would argue that it is just a way to get in the good books of people as one machine can only recycle 350 phones an hour while Apple’s products are being churned out in millions. So, is Apple really ready to step up the game on the green initiative or is it just another carefully engineered PR attempt? Only time can tell! You can also send your iPhone to Apple and it will send you a check for anything it is able to extract from it that is of value.
Check out the video below for more details: