We need to talk about sustainability. [Apple pencil]

[Joe Dohn]

Hi, everyone,

in the recent years, Apple has advertised being a green company, going as far as not using plastic in their cables.

However, not allowing batteries to be replaced in their Apple Pencils strikes me as a terrible move,
which makes their discourse seem very superficial.

We need to discuss this. Currently, Apple has designed the Apple Pencil in such a way that any attempt to replace the battery would destroy the case, forcing you to buy a new one.

Do you think it's acceptable to throw away perfectly good circuitry just because the battery died?

Don't get me wrong: especially for drawing, the Apple Pencil is a wonderful product. But a company that advocates for a green world, really makes my day gray when they don't design their products to be used with rechargeable AAA or lithium CMOS batteries.

Also, what happens if your iPad gets old and Apple decides to chop down compatibility of old Apple Pencils, not manufacturing them anymore?

Shouldn't we question them about this, and ask them to reconsider, and make a model with replaceable batteries?

 

[Sheepish-Lord]

Same with their Watches I believe as well and obviously a lot of their peripherals. It’s all a marketing ploy, nothing Apple has done or claims to do for the environment is easily provable to the basic consumer. Apple could claim they use fairy dust and we wouldn’t have a way to do anything about it.

 

[fwmireault]

It's definitely a valid point, and something we could ask about other products as well. Apple is producing a ton of e-waste, and it's clear that non-replaceable batteries and throwing away the whole device is not sustainable. Apple could definitely do more, but I think that it's a very complex problem from an engineer and a consumer perspective. As products are more and more miniaturized and integrated, reparation is more and more difficult, and companies like Apple have to find a balance between consumers that want smaller and lighter products, and sustainable practices.

Replacable batteries do have tradeoffs, they generally need a larger housing, which can mean a bulkier device. I don't think that an Apple Pencil that is a bit more bulky would be an issue. But for a product like AirPods, it's much more difficult to engineer replaceable batteries, and even if it's possible, it could come with tradeoffs on the internal space to accommodate other features, or to accomodate an even larger non removable battery.

So, to answer your question, I think that for Apple Pencil specifically, it should not be a major issue. But I would be way more skeptic for, say, AirPods, MagSafe battery Pack, or Magic Keyboard, where there is not much space to put a replaceable battery. But I think that even if Apple is throwing the whole product when its battery is used, they should find a way to reuse more components than what they do now, if it's technically possible.

Also, I doubt Apple would ever chop the compatibility of Apple Pencil, it would be very controversial. They could discontinue Apple Pencil 1, for example, but I don't see them pushing a software update that remove compatibility for the Apple Pencil. If product is discontinued, people could look for aftermarket Apple Pencil, or third parties smart pencil, there are many options there.

 

[Joe Dohn]

But for a product like AirPods, it's much more difficult to engineer replaceable batteries, and even if it's possible, it could come with tradeoffs on the internal space to accommodate other features, or to accomodate an even larger non removable battery.

I would just like to add that I have seen someone replacing AirPod batteries, so it can be done:

I'm not sure why no one has dared doing this with the Apple Pencil, but my guess is that it's not as popular as the AirPods, and also maybe because trying to open the Apple Pencil destroys the case. I've seen a guy destroying it and doing a shell with 3d printing that can be easily swapped, but it's quite an ordeal. Also, he didn't have much success replacing the batteries of the Apple Pencil, so far.