Fairphone 2

Fairphone 2
Brand Fairphone
Manufacturer Hi-P
Units shipped 40,000 (as of May 26, 2016)
Predecessor Fairphone 1
Type smartphone
Form factor slate
Dimensions 143.0 mm (5.63 in) H
73 mm (2.9 in) W
11 mm (0.43 in) D
Weight 168 g (5.9 oz)
Operating system Android 5.1
System on chip Qualcomm MSM8974AB-AB
CPU Snapdragon 801 (quad-core) 2.26 GHz
GPU Qualcomm Adreno 330 GPU 578 MHz
Memory 2 GB LPDDR3
Storage 32 GB eMMC5
Removable storage microSD
Battery Lithium-ion 2420 mAh
Display 5 in (130 mm) diagonal IPS LCD 1080×1920 px HD 446 ppi
External display Gorilla 3 glass
Rear camera 8 MP CMOS sensor with f=2.2
Front camera 2 MP
Connectivity 2G (GSM/GPRS/EDGE): 850/900/1,800/1,900 MHz
3G (UMTS/HSPA/HSPA+): 900/1,900/2,100 MHz
LTE: 800/1,800/2,600 MHz
Wi-Fi: 2.4/5.0 GHz, 802.11b/g/n/ac
Bluetooth: 4.0 LE
Wi-Fi Hotspot
microUSB 2.0 with support for USB OTG
Expansion Port on the backside for connectivity to external case
Other accelerometer, gyrometer, digital compass, proximity sensor, ambient light sensor
SAR 0.288 W/kg (head) 0.426W/kg (body)
Website www.fairphone.com
References Specification of FP2 [1]

The Fairphone 2 is a touchscreen-based, dual-SIM smartphone first released in December 2015.[2] It is the first modular smartphone to be available for purchase[3] and is designed to be easily repaired by the user.[4] The phone runs Android 5.1. It is the second phone from the social enterprise Fairphone and the first one completely designed by them.[5]

Design

Hardware choice

The phone is designed to have a higher life expectancy (5 years) than other phones.

The main problem on the Fairphone 1 was a SoC (Mediatek MT6589) that wasn't widely used and thus didn't receive long-term software support from its manufacturer. For the Fairphone 2 the choice settled on the widely used Snapdragon 801 platform (a high-end, early 2014 platform); the popularity of this SoC should help maintain the Fairphone 2 for a long time.

Fairphone deliberately didn't include some recent innovations like wireless charging or USB Type-C port, ensuring a lower price and fewer compatibility issues, but the modular design of the phone will allow Fairphone team to develop newer modules with updated components in the future (most probable component upgrades are USB Type-C port and better camera).

Also, the Fairphone 2 back is equipped with a USB pin-out and charging input, allowing aftermarket back covers with extended capabilities.

Environmental impact

The phone is designed to have a lower environmental impact than comparable mass-market smartphones with an expected lifespan of 5 years. Fairphone aim to have a lower impact through responsibly sourced conflict-free minerals, increasing the use of recycled materials, reducing coatings and using modular design making repairing and upgrading the phone possible.[6]

Modular design

Front and back of the phone with a transparent case, showing the modular design.

The phone is the first modular smartphone available to the general public.[3] The modular, repairable design to increase longevity and through a focus on increasing the recyclability of the product.[7] The phone components are designed to be replaceable using only a screwdriver by the end user, in addition it is possible to replace individual components within each module.[8] The phone received the highest ever score for a smartphone for repairability (10/10) from iFixit.[9] The phone consists of 7 removable parts; the main chassis, the removable battery, the display assembly, rear camera module, receiver module, the speaker module and back protective cover.[8]

Costs

The phone was primarily funded through pre-orders and is mostly being sold directly,[10] though in some markets the phone is available through resellers such as The Phone Co-op in the UK.[11] The pre-order campaign started on July 16, 2015 and ended on September 30, with 17,418 phones pre-ordered (the objective was 15,000).

As for the Fairphone 1, the company released the detail of the costs.[12] Despite its relatively high-price (a similarly equipped "normal" phone cost about 250 to 300 USD) the margin on each phone sold is only €9, principally due to low sales volume and higher manufacturing costs. The price also include a wide range of initiative launched by Fairphone to make the phone more ethical, including recycling programs and partnerships for less "blood minerals" usage [13]

Sales

On July 16, 2015, pre-orders for Fairphone 2 were opened. To order the components to assemble the first devices and to generate the revenue needed to ensure continuous production, Fairphone initiated a crowdfunding campaign by setting the goal to achieve 15,000 pre-orders by the end of September.[14] The goal was finally exceeded, reaching a total of 17,418 pre-orders until September 30. Production started in December 2015, with the aim of shipping all phones ordered during the crowdfunding campaign during that month. However, issues in ramping up production caused a delay. The last pre-ordered device was shipped on February 8, 2016.[15] On May 26, 2016, Fairphone reported that the milestone of 40,000 Fairphone 2 sold has been reached and all phones ordered until this date have been shipped. The device would henceforth be in stock.[16]

See also

References

External links

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