RIM BlackBerry scored the worst in GoodGuide’s list of green cell phone manufacturers. According to an article by Wendy Koch, USA Today, BlackBerry only earned a 3.3 rating, mostly for the company’s environmental record. Nokia took top honors, with Samsung coming in second. Apple’s iPhone also scored in the lower half of the manufacturers, again not because the material in the iPhone is toxic, but because Apple itself has problems with its “ethical policies and performance.” Nokia scored as the top green manufacturer. 26 of 30 of the top cell phones scored were made by Nokia, each scoring 7.7 or 7.6 out of a possible 10 points. Nokia C6 scored best overall. This is pretty impressive.

Did Your Cell Phone Make the Green List?

“Our highest-rated cellphones have energy-efficient chargers and are made of environmentally preferable materials,” says a scorecard of 596 cellphones from 16 manufacturers by Good Guide, a company that rates products for their health, environmental and social impacts. The ranking says the top scorers are made by companies “implementing green production practices and takeback recycling programs.”

IDC (International Data Corporation) has its own list of good and bad manufacturers. The IDC study analyzes the sustainability efforts of 10 manufacturers. It ranks these manufacturers by their overall sustainability strategy, packaging, materials, energy, and end-of-life programs.

“Mobile operators play an important role in handset sustainability,” says Stephen Drake, program VP, Mobility and Telecom. “While they do not produce mobile phones, they are instrumental in driving the design, packaging, and materials used in handsets and are in the forefront in device lifecycle management from procurement to takeback. As the connection to the end customers, they can also influence end-user purchasing and are therefore critical players in the sustainable handset ecosystem.” IDC had this to say about the top 5 manufacturers on their list (alphabetically):

AT&T, for its broad focus on trying to pick sustainable handsets
Deutsche Telekom, for is focus on the raw materials in the mobile phones on its network
Sprint Nextel, for its efforts to develop eco-criteria that have been used to develop a specific line of green mobile phones
Telefonica, which has developed an eco-rating system for handset being sold in the United Kingdom
Vodafone, which is focused on materials sourcing for mobile phones on its network

How important is it to you that you support “green” manufacturers? Do you recycle your old cell phones? According IDC, only 10% of cell phones are recycled. In a world that is filling up with e-waste, it is important to consider alternatives. See my blog Give Your Gadgets a Green Burial. Perhaps you will decide to donate your cell phone to a charitable cause. Working together, we can make a difference.

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Wonder what impact your cell phone has on the environment? GoodGuide has just published a report rating the top 5 “virtuous” cell phones. The ratings are based upon not only environmentally safe practices, but also takes into consideration the social attributes as well? “Social attributes?” you may ask. This rating has to do with the safety and labor policies of the company manufacturing the cell phones. GoodGuide ranks individual models and manufacturers on 3 levels: health, environment, and social attributes. 576 phone models were rated.

GoodGuide Lists Top “Virtuous” Cell Phones

Which phones were rated highest by GoodGuide? According to an article posted by Martin LaMonica, GreenTech, “Nokia phones hold the top spot with a model that contributes to a score of 7.7 out of 10. That’s followed by phones from Samsung, Motorola, Palm, and Sony Ericsson. BlackBerry and its phones are at the bottom, with the lowest score a 3.3 out of 10. Phones from LG, Garmin-Asus, Casio, and Sharp contribute to scores that are largely between 4 and 5.” Apple’s iPhone came in just about middle of the ratings.

How are the ratings derived? Rating the environmental attributes, GoodGuide took into consideration the cell phone’s standby power consumption, as well as the use of recyclable materials used in the packaging and the phone itself. Those products not using bromide flame retardants and PVC are rated higher. Cell phone radiation emissions are not factored in, as there is no consensus about the amount of radiation allowable.

The social attributes rating is based on several factors. Compliance with labor laws is only one aspect. Another consideration is how a manufacturer rates on policies and practices related to conflict minerals, according to the Enough Project. Employee safety is another big concern affecting the ratings. The ratings even include the ethics of the manufacturer.

Are consumers concerned with how their cell phone rates by GoodGuide? I’m not sure too many people are even aware there is a rating like GoodGuide’s. However, as more awareness grows, consumers may make their cell phone purchases based not only on the features the cell phone offers, but also may take into consideration some of the issues rated by GoodGuide. What’s your take on the cell phone ratings? Do you see yourself consulting the ratings by GoodGuide before purchasing another cell phone?

Samsung is set to release its P1000 Galaxy Tab device at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin next month. This “phone” is really a 7 inch tablet PC in direct competition with Apple’s iPad. The tablet is said to feature a 7-inch touch screen and offer live video chat capabilities.

Samsung to Release its Tablet Phone

The Samsung Tab is based on Samsung’s Galaxy S line of phones. The Tab may run on a 1.2-GHz processor, although some reports say it will only run on the 1-GHz processor. Samsung declined to comment. With both front and rear facing cameras, which make it possible to engage in video chats, the Tab could have an advantage over the iPad.

“Basing the Tab on the Galaxy line of phones is not much of a stretch for Samsung,” said Jack Gold, principal analyst at J.Gold Associates, who has predicted that a number of Android tablets from several manufacturers will appear before the end of the year. “But the real question is how well an Android tablet will sell?” Gold asked. Gold said the Android tablet would have a significantly brighter future if sold by Best Buy.

Dell’s Streak, the 5 inch Android tablet, was released this week, with tepid reviews. If it was meant to compete with the iPad, which has sold over 3 million units so far, the Streak needs to step up to the plate. The Streak runs on the Android 1.6 OS, while the Samsung’s Tab will run on the Android 2.2 OS. Seems like the Streak can’t compare to the Samsung Tab either.

Will the tablet phone be the latest and greatest technology? It isn’t very comfortable as a hand held cell phone, but if you want to use it with a headset or a Bluetooth device, it seems like it may offer the best of all worlds. Do you think you will want one?