Are there environmentally friendly, fair or sustainable power banks/external batteries?

Hey there!

I have wondered if there are power banks (do you them that in English, idk) or external batteries out there that are in any way “sustainable” or produced fairly. Many of the products available seem to be aimed at a low price or special features only.

I can imagine that the way they are produced is not too environmentally friendly, not to speak of the conditions under which they are manufactured. I know that batteries are less complex and demanding than, for example, a mobile device, still the production of them uses metals and other possibly hazarderous substances.

Do you know any such external batteries that would somehow fit this? Any suggestions or manufacturers would be awesome, if there are any.
I know that there already have been posts regarding this, but I haven’t seen any specifically on the environmental/social aspects.

Cheers,
Kestrels

You might find those topics to be of interest:

Waka Waka at least is a social responsible business.

EDIT:
I leave this topic open and don’t move it to one of those threads, as the question is a bit different.
And I - ouf course - would like to know as well, if somenone knows of another powerbank solution (e.g. some kickstarter project or the like).

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Hello! Thanks for your reply!
That sounds really interesting! I will definitely check them out soon.

Kestrels

If you have any questions, fire away (forum or PM).
As I have the old Power+ (with 2,200 mAh) and the Base 10 with solar panel, I might be able to answer one or the other. :slight_smile:

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If you have any questions, fire away (forum or PM).
As I have the old Power+ (with 2,200 mAh) and the Base 10 with solar panel, I might be able to answer one or the other. :slight_smile:

Thanks a lot!

Do you know the business practices of the company? I had a look at their “Share the Sun” initiative and that sounds totally incredible! But how are their products manufactured? I was not able to find any detailed information on their practices. :grinning:

Regarding the products… What are your experiences with the Base 10 so far? Does it work well with your Fairphone?

I just do know what they offer in their Q&A:

[quote] Where are the WakaWakas made?

It’s an absolute priority for us to guarantee that the WakaWakas are made in safe working conditions and in an environmentally responsible manner. WakaWakas are produced in China at a factory which also produces for Philips, Panasonic, Hayer and many other international brands. They are under strict government control regarding environmental regulations and hardly produce any waste water. The factory would lose its export license if it used child labour. We regularly check the manufacturing locations ourselves.

[/quote]

So, no sprecial agreement with the manufacturer on using materials like Fairphone or special salary. But still a responsible choosing and controlling of the manufacturer (so it seems).

The Base 10 works really fine for me and fully charged it offers enought power to charge the FP2 a few times.
It has a rubber cover, that protects it against water and that can be taken off, reducing the powerbank in size and weight. The solar-panel of course is for really sunny conditions only, if you want to rely on it as only power source. But the Base 10 can be charged on the line as well; and as I am on Greenpeace energy, that’s an acceptable ecological solution to me ;).

And … I really love the design. They have some very neat and special boxing for their products as well.

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Okay, thanks for the information! I will definitely check their products out, the Base10/Power10 sounds neat.
I suppose that this is at good it gets when it comes to electronics accessories in terms of sustainability and fair working conditions.

I guess you are right.
Fairphone is a pioneer in this regard as well as in many others.

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https://www.bestadvisers.co.uk/power-banks Look through those manufacturers. In general they are the same, just look to output and capacity. I have Anker, they are pretty reliable. Just do not purchase anything from Mi they have awfull powerbanks wich loose their output after 1-2 months.

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