Fairphone 5: Buy Once & forget to change for 10 years
Fairphone 5: could this be the first phone to last 10 years?
The most ethical, sustainable, and repairable handset gets a big upgrade with even longer support
The Dutch smartphone
company Fairphone has achieved something remarkable – a handset that could last
a decade.
The ethical pioneer, which
leads the way in repairable devices, has just released the Fairphone 5. It is a
thinner, lighter, and more refined device compared with its predecessors and one
that makes leaps and bounds in terms of longevity, repairability, and quality.
With
a £619 (€699) price tag, it is more expensive than those before it but it offers up to
10 years of software support – unheard of in the smartphone industry and a
significant step in addressing tech waste.
The most noticeable upgrade
in the new device is the screen, now a crisp OLED running at 90Hz for smooth
scrolling and bright enough for most situations, though it struggles a bit in
bright sunlight.
The device feels solid and
durable but looks a little dated compared with the most modern designs. It has
IP55 water resistance, which means it can handle rain, spray or splashes just
fine but not drops into a swimming pool.
The stereo speakers are
fine but cannot match an iPhone or Samsung. The vibration motor is fairly
strong but sounds a bit hollow for keyboard taps and alerts. Call quality is
good and you can use a nano and e-sim at the same time for two lines in one
phone.
Specifications
·
Screen: 6.46in QHD+ OLED
(460ppi)
·
Processor: Qualcomm QCM6490
·
RAM: 8GB
·
Storage: 256GB + microSD card
slot
·
Operating system: Fairphone OS based
on Android 13
·
Camera: dual 50MP rear, 50MP
selfie camera
·
Connectivity: 5G, esim + nanosim,
wifi6E, NFC, Bluetooth 5.2 and GPS
·
Water resistance: IP55 (spray/splash)
·
Dimensions: 161.6 x 75.83 x 9.6mm
·
Weight: 212g
Long-life chip and
removable battery
The
latest Fairphone has an unusual chip at its heart. The Qualcomm QCM6490 is designed primarily
for a wide range of commercial systems, not phones, but works just as well in
the Fairphone, with roughly the same performance as a mid-range Snapdragon 782
phone chip from last year.
That means it won’t win any
performance awards but it is faster than its predecessor, feels snappy for
daily tasks, and is capable of mild gaming. Its big advantage is long-term
support, enabling at least five Android version updates and eight years of
security updates. Fairphone intends to stretch that to a full 10 years
from release – something no other manufacturer offers, the best maxing out at
about six to seven years.
The Fairphone also has a
microSD card slot so you can easily and cheaply add storage.
Battery life is middle of
the road, lasting about 36 hours between charges, including actively using the
screen for more than five hours at 90Hz (the faster of two available speeds)
and two hours spent on 5G. That means it will generally need charging every
night or every other day for lighter usage.
The battery takes 66
minutes to fully recharge using a 30W or more excellent power adaptor (not included),
hitting 50% in 21 minutes. However, you can also swap the battery out in
seconds, so it is possible to carry a spare if you need the phone to last
longer.
Sustainability
Fairphone says the battery
will maintain at least 80% of its original capacity for more than 1,000
full-charge cycles and a replacement or spare costs £36.
The
Fairphone 5 has a five-year warranty. Users can repair the phone themselves
with 10 modular spare parts available, requiring
only a standard screwdriver to install. A replacement display costs £90, the
back £22, while other components range between £18 and £62.
Fairphone
recycles the equivalent weight (212g) of electronics for each phone sold,
making it e-waste-neutral. It uses fair trade gold and silver, ethically sourced lithium
and tungsten, and recycled aluminum, copper, indium, magnesium, nickel,
plastic, rare earth elements, tin, and zinc. The firm also tops up the pay of
its contract manufacturing workers to a living wage.
Fairphone OS
The phone ships with
standard Android 13 without unnecessary elements, beyond a pre-loaded My
Fairphone app for service and support. That means it is pretty fast in
operation, but lacks the bells, whistles, and extensive customization options
you might get on a Google or Samsung phone. It has full access to the Google
Play store and Google’s various services, so it doesn’t want apps and
should be familiar to anyone who has used an Android device in the last five
years.
With eight to 10 years of
security updates, you will be able to safely use Android on the Fairphone for
longer than any other device. But Fairphone also allows users to install
another operating system should they want – such as Linux or other versions of
Android – which may appeal to tinkerers or those looking to free themselves
from Google services.
Camera
The phone has a pair of
50-megapixel cameras on the back and a 50MP selfie camera.
The main camera is the
best, shooting reasonable images in good light, but it can sometimes struggle
with color inconsistency compared with rivals. The ultrawide camera is decent
but lacks detail, particularly around the edges of photos. Both struggle in low
light, producing shots that can be bright enough but blurry and soft on detail.
It is a similar story to
the selfie camera, which captures solid images in good light but can be
bleached out in bright or backlit conditions and struggles in low light.
The phone has a macro
photography mode using the ultrawide camera (which is fun), a pro mode with
manual controls, slow-mo video up to 240 frames a second, and standard video up
to 4K at 30 frames a second. But the camera is the weakest area of the
Fairphone. It is possible to get good shots with it, but generally, it can’t
match mainstream rivals with large leads in the software needed to get the best
out of the hardware.
Price
The
Fairphone 5 costs £649 (€699) and will be in
store on 14 September across Europe.
For
comparison, the Fairphone 4 costs £479, the Nothing Phone 2 costs £579, the Google Pixel 7a costs £449, the Nokia G22 costs £139 and the iPhone 14 costs £849
Verdict
The Fairphone 5 is another
big step forward in addressing the waste of the smartphone industry, with the
Dutch outfit showing other manufacturers that long-term support is possible.
Up to 10 years of software
updates is simply unheard of, gaining it an extra star. The Fairphone is
simple enough to repair that the hardware should be able to last just as long
with an occasional quick and cheap battery swap. It also comes with a five-year
warranty and is made with as many recycled and ethically sourced materials as
possible. Other than a slightly bulkier design and plastic back, it doesn’t
look out of the ordinary.
My main worry is how the
chip at the heart of the Fairphone will fare: something that is fine now may be
achingly slow in a decade. Only time will tell. The camera is also a weak
point. It will be fine for the odd snap but simply cannot match even
significantly cheaper mainstream competitors, which have a massive software
advantage.
The premium associated with
buying the most ethical, repairable, and long-lasting phone on the market is
roughly £200 compared with direct rivals, which cost in the region of £450.
However, if you factor in longevity and the low cost of repairs, the Fairphone is a better value.
The Fairphone 5 is an important device and great for those looking to support the company’s ethical and repairable movement, as long as they are prepared to accept compromises to do so.
Pros: Eight to 10 years of
software support, truly repairable at home, ethical manufacturing, recycled and
sustainable materials, good screen, 5G, microSD card slot, removable battery,
bloat-free, five-year warranty.
Cons: mid-range
performance, a bit chunky, expensive for the specs, average camera, cannot be
submerged in water, the software lacks bells and whistles, no headphone socket,
fingerprint scanner hard to reach left-handed.
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