The Fairphone 6 Plus costs $650 and ships with Android 16 as its operating system.<\/p>\n
A smartphone that\u2019s modular, easy to repair and more sustainable than competitors? That\u2019s how the Dutch electronics-maker Fairphone markets its latest device, which is now available in the US.<\/p>\n
The Fairphone 6 Plus with Android 16, which works on AT&T and T-Mobile\u2019s cell networks and costs $650 through the company\u2019s website and on Amazon, comes in cobalt blue, horizon black and forest green.<\/p>\n
The 6 Plus is a modest hardware upgrade from the original 6 model released last year. It has a new Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 chip and 12GB of RAM, up from the previous 8GB, but the same 6.31-inch OLED screen, 50MP main camera and 256GB capacity.<\/p>\n
The big selling point of Fairphone\u2019s devices is that they are easier to repair and more sustainably built. A screwdriver can be used to swap out 12 parts of the phone, including the display, battery, cameras and SIM tray. The phone has a five-year warranty, and the Android software is supported until 2033, according to its website. Highlighting its sustainability efforts, Fairphone says it is 100% e-waste neutral and that its phones are made with 50% recycled or fair factory-made materials.<\/p>\n
Flagship smartphones from top phone-makers, including Apple and Samsung, are typically difficult, if not impossible, for most consumers to repair or replace parts on, and doing so can void product warranties. A cottage industry of repair stores, in addition to repair services that hardware makers offer themselves, can fix problems such as failing batteries or broken screens, but repairs can be costly.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s also an environmental component: Having the ability to repair your own device could extend its lifecycle. That\u2019s one of the reasons consumer advocates have\u00a0pushed for right-to-repair laws in all 50 states.<\/p>\n
Gay Gordon-Byrne, executive director of\u00a0The Repair Association, was pleased to hear the hear that the 6 Plus would be available in the US. \u201cI\u2019m sure there will be a lot of consumer interest and interest\u00a0in teardowns and evaluations.\u201d<\/p>\n
A year ago, the teardown site iFixit gave the Fairphone 6 its highest repairability rating, 10 out of 10.<\/p>\n