Universal phone charger approved

News from the other side of the Atlantic.

A new mobile phone charger that will work with any handset has been approved by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

It is predicted that 51,000 tonnes of redundant chargers are generated each year. Currently most chargers are product or brand specific, so people tend to change them when they upgrade to a new phone. However, the new energy-efficient will last longer than normal chargers.  The new universal mobile chargers are said to be implemented into Europe  during the first half of 2010. 

The GSMA, the company behind the product,  estimates that they will reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions by 13.6m tonnes.

“This is a significant step in reducing the environmental impact of mobile charging,” said Malcolm Johnson, director of ITU’s Telecommunication Standardisation Bureau.

“Universal chargers are a common-sense solution that I look forward to seeing in other areas.”

The charger has a micro-USB port at the connecting end, using similar technology to digital cameras.

Hopefully this system will be turn into a global program, so that everyone does not have to use a different charger each time they switch phones.

Source: BBCNews