PSA: You Can Now Buy a Bluetooth Speaker Made from Non-Recyclable Plastic
By now we all know that plastics are a huge detriment to the environment. Plastics being singled out as the worst offenders are single-use plastics that cannot be recycled, like straws or packaging for food as well as flexible plastics (LDPE) like bubble wrap, pallet wrapping, etc. The issue with non-recyclable plastics is that they’re more likely to do long-term harm to the environment. Luckily, innovative start-ups are coming together to re-purpose non-recyclable plastics, in a fun and useful way. Like the UK’s Gomi, who is turning non-recyclable plastic into Bluetooth speakers. Brilliant!
To make these planet-friendly speakers, Gomi takes bubble wrap or plastic bags, sourced from local retailers in England, and melts them into a liquid. This liquid is then compressed and set in the shape of the speaker housing case. In keeping with its green design philosophy, Gomi even uses recycled denim to function as the sound insulation, thereby contributing to multiple recycling chains simultaneously.
Gomi has partnered with a host of retailers in Sussex, England, who have large stores of non-recyclable plastics and other plastic waste for the start-up to use in its manufacturing process.
The start-up has also collaborated with audio and electronic engineers to make sure the speakers don’t only look good and help the environment, but are also great to listen to. A combination of traditional and digital craft techniques are used to utilise more non-recyclable plastic for other functional components, too — and the speaker is good for up to 18 hours of continuous listening.
The Gomi speaker is available online now for £195 (roughly R3,800) from the Gomi website.
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