European sustainable smartphone model Fairphone is dipping a toe within the US market by making its flagship repairable handset available for purchase there for the primary time by way of one other collaboration with e/OS, a French privacy-focused not-for-profit open supply OS maker that provides a “deGoogled” cellular working system.

The Dutch moral electronics social enterprise stays targeted on promoting modular package in its residence area. However asserting a pilot to promote considered one of its smartphone fashions within the US at the moment — specifically the Murena Fairphone 4 with /e/OS — it stated it’s eager to study extra concerning the market the place it’s seen some curiosity in its units.

The Fairphone 4 was first launched in Europe again in September 2021. And whereas, at a look, it could possibly appear to be a reasonably typical (barely chunky) Android smartphone its superpower is that it’s modular by design — that means it’s repairable and upgradeable with out the necessity to purchase a complete new handset.

Commenting on the pilot in a press release, outgoing CEO Eva Gouwens stated: “We all know based mostly on suggestions now we have obtained that there are lots of folks desirous about Fairphone within the US. Nonetheless, presently our foremost focus is on the European market. This collaboration with e/OS/ is a superb alternative for us to pilot promoting units within the US market with a long-standing associate and study extra concerning the American market.”

Fairphone’s mission is all about boosting system longevity to shrink environmental influence, somewhat than monetizing obsolescence to maintain shoppers shopping for extra new stuff. It’s also very targeted on equity round working situations — therefore the moral side — requiring its manufacturing companions to decide to a residing wage program, as an example.

The Fairphone 4 sometimes runs Google’s Android OS — the handset mannequin ran Android 11 out-of-the-box at launch — however the model of the flagship 5G smartphone that’s been made accessible to US patrons is completely deGoogled. (e/OS is a fork of Android that’s stripped of proprietary Google companies in a bid to lock down consumer privateness.)

The non-de-Googled Android model of the Fairphone 4 (Picture credit: Fairphone)

Gaël Duval, Murena CEO and /e/OS founder, stated the not-for-profit it excited to supply Fairphone’s system to the US market. “We’re excited to deliver high-quality sustainable telephones with superior privateness options to the USA. With the inclusion of our pro-privacy working system /e/OS, we’re proud to supply customers a tool that not solely lasts longer but in addition protects folks’s private information. At Murena, we’re satisfied that that is the proper mixture for a extra moral telephone,” he stated in a press release.

Native pricing for the Fairphone 4 on the Murena on-line store is listed as between $629.90 and $699.90 (transport inside every week) — though Fairphone’s RRP are set just a little decrease: $599 for the 6GB/128GB model and $679 for the 8GB/256GB variant.

Only one wrinkle: It’s solely being advisable to be used with T-Cellular and MVNOs based mostly on the T-Cellular community within the US, with the pair warning that utilizing Fairphone 4 with different US carriers is “not advisable”.

Will probably be attention-grabbing to see how a lot US curiosity there may be in an iPhone and (Google) Android various that packs sustainable and moral smarts.

Whereas Apple has been dipping a toe into repairability — probably with a watch on ‘proper to restore’ rules coming down the pipe — its hermetically sealed units sometimes rating terribly for repairability. Whereas Fairphone’s modular-by-design package, with screwdriver included, is the unrivalled king of the hill on this entrance.