After starring in a handful of leaks, with the most recent coming just last night, the Samsung Replenish for Sprint was finally made official today. Sprint says that the Replenish is the "first eco-friendly Android smartphone" with 34.6 percent recycled plastic casing. Overall, 82 percent of the device is made from recyclable materials, and the recyclable packaging is made up of 80 percent post-consumer waste material and soy inks. Additionally, the Replenish and its charger are both energy efficient. Expect the Replenish to launch in Onyx Black or Arctic Blue on May 8th (with a Raspberry Pink model coming in June) for $49.99, while users interested in taking the "green" aspect of the phone a bit further will be able to pick up a solar charging battery cover on the 8th. Finally, Sprint has said that it'll be waiving the $10 premium data add-on for owners of the Replenish.
So what kind of specs can you expect to find powering Sprint and Samsung's green offering? The Replenish is packing a 2.8-inch 320x240 display, MSM7627-2 600MHz processor, 256MB RAM, 512MB ROM, 2GB microSD card, a 2-megapixel camera, 1160mAh battery, and Android 2.2. Sprint ID will also be making an appearance on the handset, which includes a "Green ID" pack which will provide access to all kinds of "green" news and suggestions on how to become more eco-friendly, including places to buy green products and different things you can do in your life to help the environment. Owners of other Sprint ID-enabled devices can download and install the "Green ID" pack starting today.
The Samsung Replenish looks like a great little smartphone for anyone that lives an eco-friendly life, and the Green ID pack sounds like it'll make a green lifestyle even easier. Of course, with its low cost and the fact that Sprint won't be requiring the $10 premium data fee usually associated with its smartphones, the Replenish looks well-suited for anyone in the market for a low-cost device, as well. So, now that Sprint and Samsung's Android-powered portrait QWERTY handset is finally here, who's interested?
Sprint Expands Environmental Commitment with Launch of Fourth Eco-Friendly Device; Samsung Replenish Packs Android and Sprint ID into $49.99 Smartphone
Sprint makes it easier than ever to go green without sacrificing technology by waiving $10 premium data charge on first green Android smartphone
SAN FRANCISCO & DALLAS (BUSINESS WIRE), April 15, 2011 - Sprint (NYSE:S) today unveiled several progressive initiatives building on Sprint’s environmental leadership in the wireless industry, including upcoming availability of the stylish Samsung Replenish™ from Samsung Telecommunications America (Samsung Mobile), the No. 1 mobile phone provider in the United States.1 Samsung Replenish, an Android touch QWERTY smartphone enabled with Sprint ID, will be available on May 8 at the affordable price of just $49.99 with a two-year service agreement and new-line activation or eligible upgrade.
Sprint is waiving the $10 monthly premium data add-on charge for Samsung Replenish to make it easier for customers to make eco-friendly buying decisions. In addition, the Earth-friendly2 Samsung Restore™, first available from Sprint in 2010, will be offered to Virgin Mobile USA customers without an annual contract beginning on April 18.
“We want to make it as simple as we can for our customers to go green with a robust selection of products and competitive pricing,” said Dan Hesse, Sprint CEO. “Samsung Replenish is as green as we could make it with more than 80 percent recyclable materials, housed in partially recycled plastics, energy efficient and built with fewer environmentally sensitive materials. As if this is not enough incentive, we are also lowering the monthly rate for this phone by $10 for new or existing customers so it pays for itself within just five months.”
With four eco-friendly phones launched to date, Sprint has made available the most green devices and accessories of any U.S. wireless carrier. Marking another U.S. first, an optional solar charging battery cover will be available for Samsung Replenish. The solar battery cover and an Eco-cover made from Naturacell3 will be available for purchase on May 8.
Earth-friendly yet Powerful
Samsung Replenish, Sprint and Samsung Mobile’s first eco-friendly2 Android smartphone boasting access to more than 150,000 apps in Android Market™, is partially built with recycled plastics4 and recyclable packaging5 making it the ideal choice for the environmentally conscious consumer who needs the latest technology. The phone will also be enabled with Sprint ID, which lets customers personalize their device instantly with eco-friendly focused apps and mobile content.
“We are excited to expand our portfolio of eco-friendly devices to now include the Samsung Replenish with Sprint, Samsung’s first Android-powered eco-friendly phone, and the Samsung Restore with Virgin Mobile,” said Dale Sohn, president of Samsung Telecommunications America. “Both the Replenish and Restore offer an impressive feature set with hardware made from recycled materials and eco-centric2 packaging, giving customers the option to have an eco-friendly phone without having to compromise features and functionality.”
The stylish, full-featured Samsung Replenish includes:
Touch QWERTY bar phone with 2.8-inch QVGA main display
Android 2.2, Froyo, with access to more than 150,000 apps on the Android Market
Special access to Sprint ID Pack, including Green ID pack
Solar door charging accessory (sold separately)
2MP camera and camcorder – upload, share and store pictures with Photobucket, Facebook®, MySpace® and upload video to YouTube™
Wi-Fi® and GPS capable
MicroSD card slot that supports up to a 32GB memory card
Three color options – Onyx Black, Arctic Blue and Raspberry Pink (in June)
It has the following impressive eco-credentials:
Reduced environmentally sensitive materials (RoHS compliant6, free of intentionally added polyvinyl chloride (PVC), brominated flame retardants (BFRs), phthalates and beryllium)
Energy efficient, with a charger that meets the EC Code of Conduct on Energy Efficiency of External Power Supplies, Version 4, as well as a visual alert for full charge
Casing includes 34.6 percent post-consumer recycled plastic content (the highest level in our eco-portfolio) and 82 percent of the device is made from recyclable materials
Fully recyclable packaging that incorporates 80 percent post-consumer waste material and uses soy inks
Includes a postage-paid envelope to recycle your old phone and promotes a virtual user guide available on the Sprint website – www.sprint.com
Samsung Replenish requires activation on one of Sprint’s Everything Data plans. The Everything Data plan with Any Mobile, AnytimeSM includes unlimited text, Web and calling to and from any mobile in America while on the Sprint network, starting at just $69.99 per month – a savings of $39.99 per month vs. Verizon’s comparable plan with unlimited talk, text and Web (pricing excludes surcharges and taxes).
As the first green2 device from Virgin Mobile, Samsung Restore will cost just $79.99 (taxes and surcharges excluded) with no annual contract. Virgin Mobile offers Beyond Talk™ unlimited data plans starting at $25 per month.
Samsung Restore is a full-featured messaging whiz, offering access to Sprint’s 3G Network, a slide-out, four-row QWERTY keyboard, 2MP camera and camcorder, Stereo Bluetooth® wireless technology and social networking shortcuts to Facebook, MySpace and Twitter. It boasts a 2.4-inch LCD screen with portrait and landscape orientation, built-in media player and easy navigation with Google Maps and Virgin Navigator. Samsung Restore meets Sprint Eco-Criteria, including reduced environmentally sensitive materials, energy efficiency and use of recycled materials.
Sprint also recently announced the availability of the newest Sprint ID pack, the Green ID pack. This ID pack offers Sprint customers using select Android devices, including Samsung Replenish, the opportunity to personalize their phone with an unmatched eco-focused Android experience that provides mobile content to live green, shop green, recycle and more.
Sprint’s new Green Sprint ID pack provides instant personalization in a single download with apps, widgets and mobile shortcuts on the user’s device, and it features apps from eco-conscious favorites such as TreeHugger.com, Earth911.com, Green America and the National Audubon Society. Starting today owners of select Sprint devices, including Samsung Transform™, Samsung Epic™ 4G* and Samsung Galaxy Tab™, can load the Green ID pack onto their device. Samsung Replenish will offer the Green ID pack when it launches on May 8. Like all other Sprint ID packs, the Green ID pack is free to download with Sprint’s Everything Data plan.
Leading in Sustainability
Sprint is committed to helping customers protect the environment. In addition to advancing its sustainable product goals, which include launching iconic “green” devices, Sprint is working to manage the environmental impacts of devices using a full life-cycle view, whether it be working with Underwriter’s Laboratory Environment to develop a global green phone standard or enhancing our industry-leading phone recycling efforts.
Earlier this month, Sprint and Samsung Mobile provided a $500,000 grant to the Green Education Foundation (GEF) to help launch their K12 “Sustainability Education Teaching Methods” professional development course. It was first made available during the National Association of Elementary School Principles (NAESP) 2011 annual convention and exposition in Tampa, Fla. With the grant, GEF was able to offer the course to each of the thousands of NAESP conference attendees to educate the next generation about environmental sustainability.
Sprint’s industry-leading role in corporate responsibility and environmental sustainability continues to receive recognition:
For the second year in a row, Sprint ranked highest among all U.S. telecom companies on Newsweek’s 2010 Rankings of America’s Greenest Companies at No. 6, up from No. 15 in 2009.
Sprint was ranked highest among the wireless carrier industry on the Carbon Disclosure Project’s “Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index.”
Sprint recently received Frost & Sullivan’s 2010 North American Green Excellence of the Year Award in Mobile & Wireless for its demonstrated leadership and commitment to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, proactive approach to the deployment of renewable energy and aggressive cell-phone recycling efforts.
In 2008, Sprint and Samsung partnered to launch the award-winning Samsung Reclaim™, the nation’s first feature-rich device made of corn-based bioplastic.
Sprint’s take-back programs – Sprint Buyback and Sprint Project ConnectSM programs – help ensure that old or unused mobile devices are handled responsibly and kept out of the waste stream. More than 90 percent of the devices Sprint collected in 2010 were reused. Since 2001, Sprint’s wireless reuse and recycling take-back programs have kept more than 24 million wireless devices out of landfills.
Since 2007, Sprint has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 9.5 percent.
Wind power supplies more than 90 percent of the electricity needed to operate Sprint’s Overland Park, Kan., corporate headquarters.
Sprint’s sustainability website, www.sprint.com/green, details Sprint’s green mobile applications and helps customers learn about the company’s sustainability initiatives, including online bill pay, wireless recycling programs and acquiring green tips, such as using mobile GPS to calculate the quickest route to save gas. To learn more about Sprint programs that protect the environment, go to www.sprint.com/responsibility or follow @SprintGreenNews on Twitter.
The Samsung Mobile Take Back Program™ allows consumers to send in their cell phones to be properly disposed of free of charge.
Samsung Mobile supports Samsung’s overall Eco-Management 2013 Plan announced in July 2009. The plan details a comprehensive set of sustainability goals to be achieved by Samsung in 2013, which include the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from manufacturing and product, the development of eco-friendly product, financial investment in eco-management initiatives, and enhanced green partnerships with suppliers and partners. To find out more information on the Samsung Recycling Direct and Samsung Mobile Take-Back Program please visit, www.samsung.com/recyclingdirect.
Sprint Launches Mobility Solution for a Better Planet
Green ID pack provides customers mobile content that enables them to live green, shop green, recycle and take action – including content from TreeHugger.com and Earth911.com available for the first time to all Android users
SAN FRANCISCO & OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (BUSINESS WIRE), April 15, 2011 - For those who are dedicated environmentalists or just interested in finding some simple yet meaningful ways to begin living a greener life, Sprint (NYSE: S) has a new mobile solution built just for them. Sprint today announced its newest Sprint ID pack – the Green ID pack – which offers an unmatched eco-friendly Android™ experience, delivered right to one’s fingertips, on select Sprint devices.
With mobile content from eco-friendly favorites like TreeHugger.com, Earth911.com, Green America and the National Audubon Society, the Green ID pack automatically loads apps, widgets and shortcuts tailor-made for users who want to live a more environmentally sustainable life and help others to do the same. Starting today, owners of Sprint ID-capable devices like the LG Optimus S™, Samsung Epic™ 4G* and Samsung Galaxy Tab™, can load the Green ID pack onto their device in one simple click. Sprint’s newest eco-friendly phone, the Samsung Replenish™, also will offer the Green ID pack when it becomes available on May 8.
Sprint’s Green ID pack includes access to the following content on four screens – each with its own theme – which is easily accessed by swiping one’s finger to the left or right on their screen:
Green Now: The home screen for the ID pack provides the latest in green news from TreeHugger.com, Earth911.com and GreenBiz.com and direct access to video shorts from TreeHugger TV. Earth911.com’s iRecycle app also makes it easy to locate recycling drop-off sites anywhere across the country, for materials ranging from computers and compact fluorescent bulbs to paper and paint. Users can search by ZIP code or GPS.
Live Green: Want to live a more eco-friendly lifestyle, but not sure where to start? The "Live Green" screen includes a widget that delivers weekly tips from Green America right to the customer’s device, a link to Saasmob's Green You app – a personal carbon footprint calculator – and shortcuts to green ideas for nearly every aspect of one’s life from TreeHugger’s “How to Go Green” index.
Shop Green: Buy sustainably and save money with the “Shop Green” screen. It includes a widget from GreenDeals.org – an eco-alternative to Groupon and Living Social that offers daily discounts on green goods and services. Users can also link to eBay Green to shop a wide selection of sustainable home products, eco fashion, green gadgets and more. Choose a boutique experience with EcoEtsy.com, which offers handcrafted items made from natural, sustainable, recycled and/or repurposed materials, from a team of Etsy sellers. Apps on the screen include Seasonal Harvest Lite, which shares what locally grown produce is in season, recipes and directions to nearby farmers markets, and the Light Bulb Finder, which makes it easy to switch from conventional light bulbs to energy-saving equivalents that help to lower consumers’ electricity bills.
Take Action: For those who are ready to volunteer their time and resources to help the environment, the "Take Action" screen makes it easy to access several worthy causes, including the National Audubon Society, the Environmental Defense Fund, and the Green Education Foundation.
“Sprint is striving every day to become more environmentally sustainable,” said Ralph Reid, vice president of Corporate Social Responsibility for Sprint. “We want to help our customers to do the same. From the Green ID pack to the Samsung Replenish, the latest device to meet Sprint’s Device Eco Criteria, we are committed to providing mobility products and solutions for a better planet.”
Among the many resources in the Green ID pack are two mobile apps now available to all Android users for the first time – TreeHugger from Discovery Communications and iRecycle from Earth911. From science and technology to culture and celebrity, the TreeHugger app offers access to green news, solutions and product information. Users can read the latest TreeHugger.com articles, check out TreeHugger’s tweets, and share content via email, Facebook or Twitter.
Earth911.com’s iRecycle app provides access to more than 800,000 recycling and disposal resources for more than 240 materials. It also streams the latest articles covering the trends and ideas in product stewardship and recycling that matter most, in both the application and an on-screen content widget. In addition to their inclusion the Green ID pack, each app is being released into Android Market™ today. Both are available to download for free by anyone with an Android device.
“Leveraging mobile technology is a major focus for us,” said Raquel Fagan, vice president of media, advertising and partnerships for Earth911.com. “The ease and convenience of finding local recycling information anywhere, anytime helps wireless consumers reduce waste and make more informed decisions. Collaborating with Sprint has given us the perfect opportunity to bring iRecycle to a wider audience. We’re excited about including it in the Green ID pack and sharing it with others through Android Market.”
The Green ID pack is free to download with Sprint’s Everything Data plan. Customers with Sprint ID-capable devices can download up to five ID packs onto their phone or tablet and easily switch between them or swap them out for new ones. More than a dozen consumer lifestyle ID packs targeting specific interests are available, including Home Base, Health & Fitness, Fashion & Beauty, Socially Connected, Business Pro and Entertainment, as well as branded ID packs from MTV, ESPN, Yahoo! and HSN, among others. To see all Sprint ID packs, visit www.sprint.com/sprintid. For more information about the Green ID pack or to watch a video highlight of its features, visit www.sprint.com/greenid.
Sprint’s leadership in environmental sustainability continues to receive accolades. For the second year in a row, Sprint ranked highest among all U.S. telecom companies on Newsweek’s 2010 Rankings of America’s Greenest Companies at No. 6. Sprint was also ranked highest among the wireless carrier industry on the Carbon Disclosure Project’s “Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index.” In addition, Sprint received the “Sustainability Leadership Award” at the 2010 International Electronics Recycling Conference and Expo for its leadership among wireless carriers in the recycling of mobile handsets.
To learn more about Sprint initiatives that protect the environment, go to www.sprint.com/responsibility or follow @SprintGreenNews on Twitter.
* 4G used in connection with the Samsung Epic product name refers to the fact that the Epic is capable of operating on Sprint’s WiMax network.
