This portable speaker is made from waste plastic and batteries
While most tech brands talk up their sustainability credentials, it’s tricky to know which companies take their responsibilities seriously and which are engaging in some PR-friendly greenwashing.
But if you’re in the market for a high-end speaker which wears its green credentials on its figurative sleeve, then you’ll be interested in the “collection one” speaker from Brighton-based sustainable design studio gomi.
The limited-edition, handmade run of speakers aims to give new life to more than six tonnes of waste material destined for landfill. Each speaker contains the equivalent of 44 plastic bags, powered by batteries sourced from end-of-life e-bikes.
While some may question the longevity of repurposed batteries, gomi says that the “collection one” is good for 32 hours of use. That’s comparable to other portable speakers, while avoiding the humanitarian and environmental issues surrounding the extraction of cobalt and lithium required to make new cells.
“We believe that design is a force for change that can inspire equitable solutions to our throwaway culture, by acknowledging the value of waste and our responsibility towards all the stakeholders of our planet,” says Rishi Gupta, CEO of gomi.
Rounding off its more environmentally friendly credentials is the collection one’s modular design. This means that each of its 29 components can be easily separated for replacement or repair. Said repairs are free for the first two years after purchase.
The speakers are available in three different colour designs, all with a distinct, funky marbled pattern. No two are exactly the same, with subtly different patterns even within the same colour grouping. Each is numbered, highlighting the limited-edition nature of the run.
“We think of our aesthetic as a collision between Dieter Rams and Picasso and it’s the fine balance between the two that can be seen in ‘collection one’,” says Tom Meades, Chief Design Officer at gomi.
“Our obsession with circularity underpins this, taking the lead at every step in our design process. Every material and design decision is filtered through our thinking ‘can it be repaired easily, can it be recycled easily’ — this is why we’re anti-glue, pro-modularity, and proudly repair-for-life.”
If you like the look of the collection one, you can buy it from the gomi website.
Each speaker costs £299.99, and you can combine two for a surround-sound experience, should you have enough for a pair.
