Many like us, do feel that Apple in a way is using India as a market to get rid of its older products. Older iPhones are re-launched and sold at unreasonable prices with hardware that is at times almost 5 years old. The problem with these older devices is not that they can be used for one or two years until they need to be discarded, but the fact they have to be discarded so early, leading to mounds of electronic waste in the country.
According to a report in the Indian Express, Apple is trying to set up a factory to rebuild and sell its refurbished iPhones coming from China, in the country. The Cupertino giant had approached the government with a proposal a few years ago, but was quickly rejected for reasons related to e-waste by the Environment Ministry’s Technical Review Committee.
Apple according to the new filing mentions that its refurbished devices should not be considered as “second hand” since the units that will be sold through official channels will be quality checked and also come with the standard one year warranty; something that is also available with a newer device.
However, in its defense, Apple made it clear that its devices are good quality ones and it is the low-cost ones that the government needs to be worried about when it comes to e-waste. In the same filing, the San Francisco based company specified that it has plans to begin its refurbishing operations in low numbers, but that it would ramp up depending on the availability of units coming from China.