I was watching a show called Eco Trip on the Sundance Channel tonight. This episode was about cell phones.
Sundance Channel - Eco Trip - Episode 7
Amongst all the details about how bad they are for the environment while they are being made as well as after you dispose of them, one thing caught my attention more than others…
One of the elements needed to make a key element in just about every piece of electronics we use today, is called coltan.
Coltan is the metalic ore from which tantalum is made. Tantalum is what most capacitors are made from.
The show indicated that most of the worlds coltan resides in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). I don’t think I need to explain why reliance on the DRC for such a core element of all electronics is a bad thing. Well, maybe I do, just a little…
An excerpt from Wikipedia on the DRC:
The Second Congo War, beginning in 1998, devastated the country, involved seven foreign armies and is sometimes referred to as the “African World War”.[4] Despite the signing of peace accords in 2003, fighting continues in the east of the country. In eastern Congo, the prevalence of rape and other sexual violence is described as the worst in the world.[5] The war is the world’s deadliest conflict since World War II, killing 5.4 million people.[6][7]
I googled around to see which companies get their coltan from the DRC and which don’t. Most information I found was related to cell phone manufacturers… This website, ethicalconsumer.org, has a buyer’s guide to mobile phones, which talks about the big companies that are ranked by Greenpeace (which should mean, they do everything they can to get their materials in an ethical/green way), it’s a good thing to have a Greenpeace ranking…
- Nokia
- Sony Ericsson
- Samsung
- Motorola
- Apple
The website also indicates that Australia is taking over the market on coltan, which is where the responsible manufacturers should be ensuring their products components are sourced from.
Another point in the episode talked about the e-waste is handled and that the majority of it still ends up in a poverty stricken countries around the world. PBS has a great story about it…
To sum up:
- Be responsible
- Recycle your old cell phones / electronics
- Ask the recycler where the devices end up
- Don’t just throw electronics in the garbage
- Check out Eco Trip, I really enjoyed it
Next time you look at your cell phone or computer, remember that some it probably came from the Congo and might end up Ghana.
UPDATE:
Ran across the makeITfair.org website shortly after posting this… They’ve posted a list of companies that have responded to their list of principles to follow. http://makeitfair.org/companies/company-responses-to-the-makeitfair-list-of
Ever since I’ve been using the HP iPAQ 910c (see http://www.nickmelchi.com/bl0g/2009/01/04/goodbye-iphone-hello-ipaq/), I’ve been trying to not carry an iPod and the iPaq when I commute to Milwaukee.
I had previously only been carrying my iPhone, which served as my music, video, phone, calendar, address book, entertainment and e-mail device. The iPaq takes care of phone, address book calendar, e-mail and music. I’m starting to get videos/movies on it, but its a bit kludgy yet.
I had an FM transmitter that was working just fine with my iPhone and iPod but it was connection specific to those devices. Couldn’t use it with the iPaq. The iPaq 910c only has a mini-USB connection on it, so I had to find an adapter to convert that connection to a 3.5mm audio jack.
If you read one of my other posts (http://www.nickmelchi.com/bl0g/2009/01/15/ipaq-910c-topics/), I reference http://www.repairhppda.com/ as a site to order accessories for iPaqs and other devices. I decided to order the adapter they advertised. Specifically, this is the adapter: http://www.repairhppda.com/35mm-audio-jack-to-usb-converter-p-740.html
USB to 3.5mm converter
I ordered it, paid with a debit card, everything was fine, I thought. Order was processed and everything looked OK, and it was as far as they were concerned.
My bank detected the charge I just made as a fraudulent charge and disabled my debit card. I didn’t know about it until I tried using it several more times while out and about. I called the bank and they explained that the system detected activity outside my normal spending and took preventative action.
After looking more into it, turns out the site is based in Hong Kong and the parts actually ship from Hong Kong. The bank the site uses for credit card transactions, is the royal bank of scotland. Combine me being in the USA, rarely buying things online from outside the country, with a site in Hong Kong that uses a bank in Scotland and you get Nick’s debit card frozen.
It took about a month and a half, but the part did arrive and it works well. I can use any headphones or any FM transmitter that has a 3.5mm connector on it.
They recently sent me an e-mail with a new product they just released. It is an adapter that allows you to charge/sync as well as plug-in a regular 3.5mm connection. They had me hook, line and sinker.
Since I have been using the iPaq as my music source in the car and at work, the battery was draining very quickly and since I could charge while I listened, this new product was just what I was looking for.
After mulling it over for a week, I broke down and ordered it on 5/28/2009. It said shipping is from 7 to 20 days, so who knows when it will arrive and who knows if my bank will freeze my card again, but either way, if it means I can stop carrying two devices with me, I’m in.
An image from their website of the new product. Perhaps I’ll update it with a reallife image when mine arrives. I think I could take a better picture than that anyways.
Overall, I’m happy with the http://www.repairhppda.com website.
Ever since I’ve been using my HP iPaq 910c, which was a change from my iPhone to Windows Mobile, I had been searching for a Twitter application that was as good as the iPhone apps I had used.
I struggled with ceTwit, PockeTwit for a while, I tried Twobile, Tiny Twitter and Twitter’s mobile site and was left with a bad taste in my mouth. Why? Because I had been used to the clean, ease of use applications I got from the iPhone app store and all the Windows Mobile apps were kludgy and underdeveloped in my opinion. They just didn’t have the polish that I was looking for. The web based sites were not as convenient as an actual application.
Side note: Twinkle was my favorite iPhone Twitter app because of the location (who’s twittering around me) functionality.
Then, I found Twikini (http://www.trinketsoftware.com/Twikini/) by using Twitter’s search page to find windows mobile apps. I’ve been using it since release .5 (I think) and each release has been an improvement on the previous. The latest release, version 1.1 fixed some of the ‘bugs’ that were in 1.0 and since then, it’s been great. Twikini is a very well written and has the polished look and feel that reminds me of what I miss about the Apple applications I used to use. Customer support (via @twikini on twitter) is very good about getting back to users and posting updates on the program/functionality.
The GPS integration isn’t working on my device yet, but according to their FAQ, they are working on improving GPS functionality. In the meantime, they allow you to manually update your location (see screenshot).
Screenshot of tweet
One thing I’d really like to see in a future release is the “who’s twittering around me” functionality, like Twinkle on the iPhone.
If you’re looking for a Twitter application for Windows Mobile, Twikini is the best around, as far as I’m concerned.
Get it here: http://www.trinketsoftware.com/twikini/
The iPAQ 910c device has a mini-USB port that charges it and also used for the wired headset they send with the unit. There is no standard 3.5mm audio jack on board.
I searched the interwebs for any kind of adapter that would allow me to use my regular headphones to listen to music. I’m trying to not to carry two devices with me, so if I can get rid the headphone requirement, that’s a step in the right direction in leaving my iPod/iPhone at home.
The only site I came across that has an adapter that says it works with the device is http://www.repairhppda.com/. I haven’t ordered it yet, but plan to shortly if I can’t find anything else.
I also tried dissecting the wired headset that I got with it and didn’t have much luck in putting a female 3.5mm audio jack on one end of it. Not sure why not, but the phone doesn’t even recognize it when it’s plugged in.
Here are some pictures of the wired headset, dissected…
For my car mount, I had previously purchased a dashboard mount setup from http://www.proclipusa.com that you choose custom for your car and device. I simply unscrewed my iPhone holder and ordered the iPAQ 900 series holder from them. Should be here in a few days. Very happy with ProClip USA.
That’s all for now…
About a month ago, the company I work for announced that it was changing remote worker policies and part of the policy changes included standard phone plan, phone hardware enforcements. The policies are strict and if the company was to continue to pay for the device/service, I (along with the rest of the company) had to comply.
If you don’t know already, I work for HP, so it makes sense that they ask that employees use HP hardware as a mobile device. The only viable mobile device available at the time I ordered was the HP iPAQ 910c.
The device itself is pretty nice looking, looks similar to a blackberry or other qwerty keyboard device on the market and with the blue shifted keys on the keyboard, I think it looks nice.
Since I was one of the people who stood in line for 12 hours to get an iPhone when they first came out, you can imagine that I have become very attached and used to it. I held off on the upgrade to the new 3G iPhone (since there isn’t 3G service at my house, hard to justify), so I’d been using the original iPhone since day 1. My iPhone has been good to me, turned me on to the joys of ‘hacking’ it, installing third party apps and using some pretty nice twitter applications, such as Twinkle. I feel it opened me up the community of other iPhone users, and it was a nice community to reside in.
When the iPAQ arrived I popped my iPhone SIM into it and tried it out. Like any device, it will take some getting used to. It does everything it is supposed to do for me. Setting up my Exchange PUSH mail/calendar/contacts was a breeze, setting up all my other little customizations was also easy. The biggest physical change is the stylus. The device has a touch screen, albeit very small compared to the gorgeous iPhone screen. I had gotten used to the finger touchable screen of the iPhone and now, back to using a stylus, felt like a Handspring I had years ago. There are some aspects of the screen that are finger touchable, some parts of the phone app and the home screen. It’s a good thing I don’t have sausage fingers though.
I’m new to the Windows Mobile OS world, so I’m still looking for some great applications to make this device awesome. ceTwit, MS Communicator Mobile, Google Maps, Skyfire and The Weather Channel widget are some applications I’ve installed and used. Looking for a better Twitter app and perhaps a better web browser. I’ve heard Opera for Windows Mobile is the best, so I’ll be checking that out soon.
Without my iPhone, I haven’t been watching video podcasts as much, twittering as much or listening to music as much. Since I spend 90% of my day either in the car or in front of a desk, I came to rely on it as my avenue into the other parts of my life.
Things the iPAQ does that the iPhone did not do for me… Real GPS, not the ‘fake GPS’ on the iPhone. Expandable memory in the form of micro SD. Replaceable battery. Navigation antenna port. Video capturing. 3MP camera with flash. 3G (my original iPhone wasn’t 3G). While in Milwaukee, I get super fast data service.
I’ve been using the iPAQ 910c for about 3 weeks now and it is still holding strong in functionality and usability. It’s name is the Business Communications Messenger and I agree that it does just that. As for the other, media related things I’m into, I might have to keep my iPhone or iPod in my bag.
Links:
http://reviews.cnet.com/smartphones/hp-ipaq-910c-business/4505-6452_7-33064927.html
http://h18000.www1.hp.com/products/quickspecs/12784_na/12784_na.html