How green is your laptop?

The world's most sophisticated ethical ranking site publishes new laptops buyers' guide

Ethical Consumer magazine has published the world's most comprehensive green and ethical buyers' guide to laptops and netbooks.

The buyers' guide ranks 26 leading IT brands across 23 ethical and environmental categories and presents them in a simple ranking format. The unique twist is that web users can customise the rankings to accurately reflect the issues that they personally feel passionate about.

The result is that for the first time consumers can easily identify and support those companies whose green credentials they agree with and avoid the companies that are falling behind on the green agenda.

The buyers' guide key findings are:

  • Only two companies score top marks for environmental reporting (Sony and Toshiba)

  • Only one company scores best in the habitats and resources category (Dell)

  • All companies score negatively in the pollution and toxics category

  • Thanks to the work of NGO's and civil society groups, the overall transparency and reporting on social responsibility issues is improving, albeit inconsistently, across the sector

All companies score negatively in the pollution and toxics category.

Thanks to the work of NGO's and civil society groups, the overall transparency and reporting on social responsibility issues is improving, albeit inconsistently, across the sector.

Tim Hunt from Ethical Consumer said: “This buyers' guide shows that the market for laptops and netbooks is littered with serious problems both environmental and social. Consumers need to let IT companies know that they must do better. Ultimately we need to see far more action from the companies themselves to improve their ethical performance.”

To celebrate the launch of their new website Ethical Consumer is giving away this new buyers' guide free of charge including detailed access to the research that underpins the data.

The buyers' guide includes information on all the major current issues in the IT market: conflict minerals; toxic chemicals and supply chain and environmental policies.

The newly re-launched Ethical Consumer website is now the UK's biggest online resource for people wanting to reduce the environmental and human impact of their shopping.

It has over 180 free online buyers' guides on a wide range of everyday products and services from bread to banks.

The new site also has the UK's most comprehensive consumer boycotts resource including the only available online list of current consumer boycotts.

Ethical Consumer Rob Harrison editor said: “At Ethical Consumer we understand that different people bring different values to the market. Some people are heavily involved in animal rights issues whilst other are not. That's why we've developed a number of cutting-edge website tools which we believe make for the world's most sophisticated on-line ethical rating system.”

The laptop buyers' guide features new research from Ethical Consumer as well as research from a number of key NGO's including Greenpeace and the Enough Project.

The buyers' guide to laptops and netbooks is available here: www.ethicalconsumer.org/Laptops

Launched in 1989 Ethical Consumer is the UK's leading ethical and environmental magazine. In each issue Ethical Consumer examines the ethical and environmental record of the companies behind everyday products and services from bread to banks. For more information visit the Ethical Consumer website: www.ethicalconsumer.org 

This press release is presented without editing for your information only.

Full Disclosure Statement: The GREEN (LIVING) REVIEW received no compensation for any component of this article.