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How does a company sell more cell phones in a cutthroat, competitive market? Launch new so-called "green" models. This morning Korean consumer electronics giant Samsung said at the World IT Show in Seoul that it will start selling two eco-friendly handsets this month. The first is the W510 (pictured on the left) which is made out of a corn-based bioplastic and doesn't contain any heavy metals, like lead, mercury and cadmium. This is Samsung's first bioplastic phone, but Samsung is not the first big-name consumer electronics maker to work with the alt-material - in January Fujitsu touted a laptop with a bioplastic case at CES. And Nokia has the 3310 Evolve , which is made partly out of biomaterials .

Samsung LCD Televisions

South Korea's Samsung Electronics has said it will invest $4.3B (£2.6B) as part of an initiative to develop new energy-efficient products and halve carbon emissions from its factories by 2013. The consumer electronics giant today unveiled its Eco-Management 2013 plan, under which it will spend $2.5B on improving the energy efficiency of its products -- including TVs, refrigerators and air conditioning systems -- with a goal of delivering the highest levels of efficiency in the consumer electronics industry. Under the plan, standby power consumption on many products will also be halved from 1W to just half a watt, while the company has said it will work to identify new recyclable and organic materials that could be used in the manufacture of consumer products such as laptops and mobile phones. Meanwhile, $1.8B will be invested in halving greenhouse gas emissions from Samsung manufacturing plants. Article by Yvonne Chan, Greener Computing, 7/20/09.

From energy efficiency to toxics used in manufacturing to end-of-life issues, the road to truly green electronics faces a steep climb. Although most companies are taking these issues very seriously, it will surely be a slow process. Every three months, the international environmental group Greenpeace rates these companies on how well they're doing -- and raises the bar a little higher. In this, the tenth quarterly Guide to Greener Electronics, Greenpeace calls on manufacturers to up their company-wide commitments to steep and rapid cuts in overall greenhouse gas emissions. Nokia maintains its top score in the ranking, earning 6.9 points out of 10 possible for its takeback program and reducing the use of toxic chemicals like PVC, brominated flame retardants and antimony trioxide. Rounding out the top four is a three-way tie between Sony Ericsson, Toshiba and Samsung, all with 5.9 points. Sony earned high marks for its new environmental warranty for responsible takeback, Toshiba gains ground with its reporting of and goals toward renewable energy use and emissions reductions, and Samsung earned praise for reducing toxic chemical use and building energy-efficient products.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Major manufacturers and retailers recycled more than 66.5 million pounds of used consumer electronics last year in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 's Plug-In To eCycling program. In reporting the tally yesterday, the EPA said the haul for 2008 is 30 percent greater than the amount recycled in 2007. The EPA program, launched in 2003, now involves more than two dozen firms . Several companies were recognized for their recycling efforts in the EPA's announcement of the program's progress. The firms singled out for mention included Dell, Staples, Best Buy, Sony, LG, Samsung, Wal-Mart, Panasonic, Sharp and Toshiba. The goods recycled in the agency program last year prevented the release of greenhouse gases equivalent to the annual emissions of an estimated 15,500 cars, the EPA said.