A Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card serves a vital part of your cell phone. As a portable memory chip holding all of your most important information (ie. contacts, personal information, text messages), this tiny plastic chip is essential, as it holds and manages all of the user’s most important data. The only thing is, this vital piece of technology is causing some trouble in the environmental space, and one China-based company was looking to improve upon that as this year’s Mobile World Congress (News - Alert) (MWC) 2013.
Positioned as SIM cards that will help “telcos go green,” Beijing Big Tech has developed recyclable SIM cards that are primarily made out of paper in an effort to make SIM technology more environmentally friendly.
Last week in Barcelona, Spain, the company touted its SIM cards that are mostly made out of paper, where the actual cards are made out of recyclable ABS (News - Alert) plastic and metal (the contact points) and the card’s holder is made from 100 percent fiber paper, according to reports.
Apparently, the company has been manufacturing these paper SIMs for the last five years, and even claims that these paper-based products cost the same as their fully plastic comparisons.
“The next time you get a new SIM card, take note of just how much plastic you're wasting when you pluck the card from it's holder and toss it out into the trash,” notes one review from CNET. “Here's a thought: if your telco had been on board with the green initiative, the whole thing could have been made of paper. Not only would it be much better for the environment, but it wouldn't have cost any extra.”
Indeed, these paper SIMs will surely help strengthen the global environmental technology effort. To check out the review in full, click here.
Edited by Amanda Ciccatelli