Anyone around in the late 90s will have nightmarish memories of the first generation of mobile phone cases, all ugly fake leather, cheap velcro strips that never actually stayed stuck down and flimsy plastic films covering the keys.
Thankfully they went the way of pop song ringtones where you had to enter a long string of digits correctly else there was a bum note somewhere in the tune.
Phone case design has come a long way since then. And it’s a good job, because we really do need them.
Help your pocket – and the planet
One survey found that Brits spend a whopping £680 million per year on repairing smartphone screens alone, with damage usually caused by the phone being dropped. In 10% of cases, the phone ends up in the toilet. Nice.
The cost and inconvenience of repairs is one reason to invest in a phone case, and sharpish. There are also sound environmental reasons. As the UN has reported, electronic waste is a big problem. It is already the fastest growing waste stream, with the world generating 53.6 Mt in 2019. This figure is predicted to rise to 74.7 Mt by 2030, a figure twice what it was in 2015.
We all shoulder a level of responsibility for this. The same UN survey found that the UK generates more e-waste per person than any country in the world with the exception of Norway.
One easy way to make a difference is to extend the lifespan of all our electronic devices. We need to keep our tech in use for as long as possible. If you get your phone to last three years instead of two, or four years instead of three, far fewer handsets will end up in landfill or going abroad for poorly regulated recycling.
How do we do this? One easy solution is to get a protective case that will reduce the likelihood of damage. And with a reboxed eco phone case, it’s better for your pocket and better for our planet.
Support the environment
There are other environmental reasons for choosing a reboxed eco phone case, available for all iPhone models. For a start, they are plastic free – unlike the majority of phone cases on the market.
A plastic case will protect a phone and help extend its longevity, but at the end of its life, it then contributes to another environmental problem: the plastic pollution crisis. We’ve all seen images of marine life choking on bits of plastic floating in the sea or heard of sea animals dying because they’ve ingested invisible particles of microplastics.
Plastic phone cases contribute to this rising tide of plastics in our waterways and oceans. Over 1 billion are purchased every year, but what happens to these once the phone is upgraded and it no longer fits? They probably end up in landfill or on some other rubbish pile, given that’s where 79% of all the plastic ever produced ends up. And from there, plastic phone cases can become microplastics contaminating the environment.
Instead of plastic, our eco phone cases are engineered from plant-based polymers and reclaimed wheat fibres. This means the cases are 100% compostable in home composting.
Unfortunately, local authorities probably won’t realise that they are compostable and will label them a contaminant, so we don’t recommend putting them in kerbside food waste collections at the end of their life. But in a home composter along with a healthy variety of other organic matter, the cases will start to break down over the course of six to 12 months, depending on temperature and humidity.
Although reboxed eco phone cases will leave no trace at the end of their lifespan, like every product, they do generate emissions during manufacture. But to keep that impact to a minimum, we plant a tree for every one sold. This complements the ten trees we plant for every phone sold – and since our launch, we have already created a forest of over 1,000 trees.
We don’t stop there. As with all of our products, 1% of our sales support vital environmental projects through our partner organisation 1% for the Planet and we are B Corp status pending.
Do good, look good
Thinking all these environmental benefits must come at a price? Not at all. Our eco cases are included for no extra charge with every reboxed phone purchased or cost just £15.00 to buy separately if you’re looking for a plastic-free and sustainable alternative to the standard phone case.
Not only do our eco phone cases do good, they look good. You get to choose from a range of colours including Eco-Yellow, Eco-Black and Eco-Green. Simply clip the slim one piece design on the back of your device to provide protection when dropped – and it’s wireless charging compatible, so you don’t need to remove your phone when it needs some juice.
Customers who have bought a reboxed eco phone case have been impressed. On Trustpilot, Andrew gave five stars and commented “Ordered a case from reboxed. It arrived very quickly and was nicely packaged. I am really pleased with the quality of the case, it looks great. Highly recommend!”.
Sarah also gave five stars, saying “Finally a stylish phone case that won’t harm the planet! It’s really good quality and looks great, and I love the fact that it’s 100% biodegradable.”
Don’t have a reboxed eco phone case? Order one now – just try not to drop your phone before it’s delivered.
