The e-waste problem is one of the biggest challenges the world must face, and a good part of the responsibility lies with the companies that sell us products locked to the core, abandoned for lack of support, and very difficult to repair. Samsung is one of those companies, and it has been criticized more than once for its poor management of e-waste. That led to the creation of the Galaxy Upcycling platform, which aims to reuse Samsung devices to extend their useful life, and one of the examples is a Bitcoin mining tower built with Galaxy S5 smartphones.
Fighting Planned Obsolescence
Our relationship with mobile devices can be very frustrating, and the reasons aren't limited to technical issues or compatibility details. The vision of manufacturers is quite clear: if you buy a smartphone or a tablet, the idea is that you replace that gadget (in the worst case) within the next 36 months. Whether it's a repair cost that's too high or the lack of software updates, the point is that planned obsolescence is always there. One way to combat it is to reuse the device in some way, but once again, companies become an obstacle by not providing the necessary tools, and all DIY efforts have limits.
Galaxy Upcycling: Reuse Over Recycling
Fortunately, the situation is changing. Apple has the Renew program, which allows customers to send in unused devices and, in some cases, receive gift cards in return. Now it's Samsung's turn with its new Galaxy Upcycling platform, but unlike Cupertino, the South Korean manufacturer's proposal isn't so focused on recycling, but on reuse. Samsung presented several examples during its latest Developer Conference 2017, including a Galaxy tablet with Ubuntu installed, a Galaxy S3 monitoring the condition of a fish tank, and what stole the show: a tower with 40 Galaxy S5 phones mining Bitcoin.
The Numbers Behind the Tower
According to Samsung, eight S5 phones have the same mining power as an Intel Core i7-2600. That's an interesting comparison, though at the end of the day not so relevant, because no one in their right mind is mining Bitcoin today using smartphones or traditional processors. However, there are other cryptocurrencies that would probably be much more friendly to the tower — Monero is the first that comes to mind. Samsung confirmed its plans to publish the software used to unlock the devices and share the blueprints for all Upcycling projects, free of charge.
