What you should know
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- Apple decided not to proceed with a lawsuit against GEEP, a contractor it pays to scrap more than 250,000 iPhone units each year, despite discovering that nearly 100,000 of these iPhones were sold in the used device market in China.
- The breach of contract suit against GEEP, filed by Apple in 2020, will be automatically dropped in January 2025 if Apple does not move forward with its legal action, alongside a lawsuit filed by GEEP against three former employees for theft.
- Apple’s decision not to pursue legal action might be influenced by its desire to avoid public knowledge that it scrapped hundreds of thousands of working iPhone units, potentially to prevent these phones from competing with sales of new models.
- Despite Apple’s public statements prioritizing reuse and its goal to achieve 100% carbon neutrality by 2030, actions such as scrapping devices that could be refurbished contradict these statements, raising questions about the company’s commitment to environmental sustainability.
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Full Story
So, Apple’s got itself into a bit of a pickle, or so it seems. They were all set to take GEEP to court, a contractor they’d been paying to get rid of over a quarter-million iPhones every year. Yeah, you heard that right. These weren’t just any old iPhones; many were in tip-top shape, ready for a second life in the bustling used smartphone markets. But here’s the kicker: Bloomberg spilled the beans, revealing that a whopping 99,975 of these gadgets found their way to China. Sold. Just like that.
In 2020, Apple was all guns blazing, filing a breach of contract suit against GEEP. But then, nothing. Radio silence. If Apple doesn’t pick up the pace, this lawsuit’s gonna vanish into thin air by January 2025. And get this – GEEP’s own legal drama with three ex-employees, accused of nicking the iPhones, will also disappear come August 2024.
Why, though? Why would Apple, after dumping over half a million iPhones, plus iPads and Apple Watches, into GEEP’s lap for disposal, suddenly go quiet? Some reckon Apple’s playing it cool, avoiding a public outcry over scrapping perfectly good iPhones that could’ve clashed with sales of their latest, pricier models.
Bloomberg’s got an interesting point. They say loads of these doomed iPhones were ripe for a makeover. But here’s where it gets juicy – Apple’s been preaching “reuse is our first choice,” all while aiming for this grand vision of being 100% carbon neutral by 2030. Sounds noble, doesn’t it?
Remember Daisy? Apple’s recycling robot, famous for tearing apart old iPhones by the hour, salvaging what it can. Turns out, Daisy’s big reveal was perhaps more of a PR stunt than a genuine eco-crusade. Around the same time Daisy was charming the press in the Netherlands, a worker from Re-Teck, another Apple recycling buddy, claimed to have seen perfectly fine AirPods, Apple Watches, and Macs getting the hammer treatment. Literally.
It’s a tough look for Apple, no doubt. Tossing out gadgets that could’ve been spruced up and given a second shot isn’t exactly a crime, according to iFixit co-founder Kyle Wiens. But maybe, just maybe, it oughta be.
