Samsung goes after Apple and will no longer provide a charger in the package
According to the usually well-informed SamMobile, Samsung will start delivering smartphones without a charger in the packaging starting in 2021. In doing so, they are following the example of its doomed competitor Apple, presumably to save costs and do something about the surplus of electronic waste.
The same news is also provided by ETNews, the Korean website claims to have spoken with sources within Samsung. First, Samsung would start delivering smartphones without chargers in order to reduce packaging size. This obviously saves a lot of shipping costs, as proportionally more smartphones can then be shipped.
Second, Samsung would have made the decision to stop supplying chargers from an environmental point of view. The growing mountain of electronic waste in the world would be the main reason, Samsung would like to do something about this. The fact that many people already have a charger at home is another argument from Samsung; not everyone needs to keep getting new chargers. Exactly which models are involved, the Korean website does not write, although it is expected that it will happen with all new models starting in 2021.
Of course, the timing of this reporting is striking; it recently came out that Apple is planning the same thing. So it seems that Samsung is going after Apple in this case and also has the same motivations as Apple. Since Apple and Samsung are the two largest phone manufacturers in the world, not including a charger as standard would obviously save a lot of electronic waste. Political pressure is also a factor; for example, the European Commission wants all manufacturers to use one type of charger instead of several in the future.
Whether this will also be beneficial for consumers remains to be seen. One would say that by saving on packaging and parts, less can be charged for the phones. Of course, it could also be a tactic to increase profit margins on the phones. Time will tell!
[SOURCE]
Image: © Apple
