Everyone has had the feeling at some point; that warm, fuzzy feeling you get when you purchase a new cell phone and finally get the new toy you've been wanting for some time.  Often times, the feeling goes away when you realize that you have to buy all new chargers in order to accommodate the device - in some cases, the chargers work out to cost more than the phone itself.  Though there are universal charging solutions out there, the frustration still remains.  That's why, should the GSMA (GSM Association) get their way, chargers will be standardized to Micro-USB by 2012.

Although the most exciting benefit would be reducing the amount of chargers bought yearly (or weekly/monthly, if you?re me), the GSMA also claims that the transformation would reduce raw materials.  Rob Conway, CEO and board member of the association, expressed the company's interest in being eco-friendly:

?The mobile industry has a pivotal role to play in tackling environmental issues and this program is an important step that could lead to huge savings in resources, not to mention convenience for consumers.?

According to GSMA and University of Southern Queensland data, an estimated 1.2 billion cell phones were sold last year alone, accounting for 51,000 and 82,000 tons of cell phone chargers.  Without question, standardizing to one charger option would certainly cut down on the number of chargers produced and purchased.  At this time, 3 Group, AT&T, KTF, LG, mobilkom austria, Motorola, Nokia, Orange, Qualcomm, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Telecom Italia, Telefónica, Telenor, Telstra, T-Mobile and Vodafone have all pledged to the program.

Source: CNN