Ethical & designed to last: Change the game with the Fairphone 2

Fairphone, the Amsterdam-based social enterprise behind the new phone, captured the world’s imagination when it launched the original Fairphone in 2013, with its commitment to tracing materials directly to their source from conflict-free mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo, improving working conditions for factory staff in China and reducing e-waste with the collection of scrap phones in Ghana.

Featuring a 5", full HD Gorilla Glass LCD display and running Android 5.1 (Lollipop), with 32GB of internal storage, the Fairphone 2 has been co-designed ‘from the inside out’ with London firm Seymourpowell, one of the UK’s leading design and innovation agencies.

The modular architecture is easy to open and repair, resulting in a longer lasting device that encourages owners to take more responsibility for keeping their phones in working order. With 41m tonnes of electronic waste being produced worldwide, the Fairphone 2 aims to challenge the ‘throwaway’ nature of consumer electronics and ever-shorter product cycles.

Fairphone’s aim is to shake up the electronics industry by demonstrating that it is possible to make social and environmental improvements at each stage of the production process. It has published a detailed cost breakdown of the Fairphone 2 on its website, to give consumers greater insight into what it costs to make, sell and service a phone, to bring more transparency to the industry.

It works directly with suppliers that trace materials back to conflict-free validated mines, starting with tin and tantalum from the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country infamous for instability and, in the near future, tungsten and gold. In addition, it is setting up a worker welfare fund at the factory in Suzhou, China, where the phones are manufactured, with a contribution from every Fairphone 2 sale going directly to the fund.

Thanks to the support of the 60,000 buyers of the first Fairphone, the company has been able to develop the new model without relying on external investment.

Fairphone is continuing to partner with The Phone Co-op, the UK’s only customer-owned mobile network, which is democratically controlled and growing the co-operative business model by helping other co-operatives to start and expand. The partnership between Fairphone and The Phone Co-op is based around shared values of openness and ‘people power’ and allows UK customers to get the Fairphone 2 on a monthly contract.

In the UK, customers can pre-order the Fairphone 2 from The Phone Co-op, either to buy the phone outright for £395 or included as part of a bundle with minutes, texts and data starting at £25 per month. Customers can also pre-order directly from Fairphone for €525, including 20% VAT. Based on the current production and development schedule, delivery is expected to start from November. 

Bas van Abel, Founder and CEO of Fairphone said: “We are excited about the potential this phone has to change the electronics industry and the way products are made - and to finally be able to present it to the world!  Almost 14,000 Fairphone 2 buyers have already voted with their wallets for a fairer, more sustainable economy and with the phone starting delivery in the next month and becoming more widely available through partners like The Phone Co-op, we believe the movement will grow.”

Vivian Woodell, Chief Executive, The Phone Co-op, said: “UK customers looking to combine the ethical credentials of the Fairphone 2 with fair pricing, low call rates and a commitment to building a different kind of economy based on human values and environmental sustainability will find the perfect fit at The Phone Co-op. We’re the only mobile network owned by our customers, giving them real influence over the way we operate and ensuring that profits are reinvested in projects that make a real difference to the world around us.”