Many people feel helpless when their smartphone breaks. Phone makers try to stop consumers from repairing phones themselves. A new company called Fairphone has made a self-repairable mobile phone. It is "the world's first ethical smartphone". It has four basic aims. These are to use raw materials from non-conflict mining areas; and to make a product that was recyclable, durable and repairable.

The Fairphone website outlines the company's philosophy. It wants to get "a massive industry to take responsibility for its impact on the world, by establishing a viable market for ethical electronics". It wants better conditions for tech company workers. It also wants the electronics industry to reduce its waste and greenhouse gas emissions. The plastic used in the Fairphone is 40-per-cent recycled, and the minerals are ethically sourced.