Green is the new colour of the phone industry. You may not have noticed that as most mobile phones are rather black or silver, but that is just what you see from the outside. What is really happening is something that happens on the inside: new phones are supposed to use less enegry and being made from recycled materials. Is that a good development? Yes, it is.

So when it comes to mobile phone development the industry now becomes in some parts a little bit like the car industry: They try out new things in strange and extreme concepts that already carry technologies to be implemented into future mass market products. Like Formula 1 develops a lot of useful tech for the street cars. At least that is what they keep telling us.

Samsung is a bit over the edge when it comes to implementing Green Tech, because a phone like the S7550 Blue Earth not only looks weird but carries a solar panel on the back which is rather for the quiet conscience but for real energy usage. On the other hand, an affordable handset like the Sony Ericsson Naite also comes with a eco concept, but it makes sense: No toxic materials, water-born paint, smaller boxes and many others.

But you should not go so far to ignore these developments or take them not serious, as Engadget just did:

We’re not sure if the recent trend for greener gadgets comes from a wish to save the planet, assuage consumer’s guilt, cash in on a trend, or some combination of the three, but we’ll tell you one thing: it’s not going anywhere.

Is getting us anywhere, which is reused materials, better engineered chargers, the use of non-toxic materials, and who needs a manual or big boxing for his phone anyway?