After Apple Controversy, EPEAT Looks Into Thin and Light Laptops

After Apple’s recent withdrawal (and subsequent re-entry) of its products from the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) registry, the organization has decided to reevaluate its standards with a focus on ultra-thin and light laptops.

“Recent discussions have included a focus on construction and disassembly techniques for ultralight/ultrathin laptops. (…) We have launched a surveillance investigation into the relevant criteria across an array of registered products that fall into this category,” said EPEAT on its website.

Though Apple didn’t explain its decision to pull its products from EPEAT, it’s likely that the company’s latest batch of ultra-thin Retina MacBook Pros don’t qualify for EPEAT’s standards, which demands laptops to be relatively easy to disassemble and repair.

However, this is just as much EPEAT’s problem as it is Apple’s, since ultra-thin laptops are currently a big trend in computing. When you need to save every millimeter of space, it’s harder to make a laptop that’s easy to disassemble.

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EPEAT will specifically focus on use of adhesive in laptops, and will communicate its findings after the investigation is complete, which will likely be in four weeks.