Apple’s press release about the release of iOS 16 mentioned an iPhone charging feature that hadn’t been announced before. This feature will intelligently charge the phone when the grid uses cleaner energy sources. The quality won’t be in the first version of iOS 16 and will only be available in the US at first. Apple has only said that the feature exists so far; it hasn’t said anything about how it will work.
The company says, “Clean Energy Charging is designed to reduce the iPhone’s carbon footprint by adjusting charging times so they happen when the grid is using cleaner energy sources.”
Trusted Reviews has asked Apple how the feature works; if they respond, this report will be updated. But a report from 9to5Mac says it might be possible if the iPhone could get a forecast of carbon emissions from the local power grid. You could wait to charge your iPhone until the weather forecast is less harmful and cleaner energy is available. Apple already charges the iPhone in a way that protects the battery’s health, so it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to think that it could do the same thing here if it had access to other outside information. At the beginning of this year, Trusted Reviews added criteria for sustainability to reviews. This means that we ask the manufacturer for information about the use of sustainable materials, repairability, and recycling. We’ll be paying close attention to what Apple does next with this.
One of the biggest problems we face is global warming and how it affects the planet. Alastair Stevenson, Editor-in-Chief of Trusted Reviews, said in July, “As a publication, it’s important to take this into account and help readers understand how each device they buy and we review affects the environment.”
