Anyone planning to buy a new smartphone or tablet for Christmas or in the New Year sales will notice new labelling rating the energy efficiency, durability and repairability of the device.
The new mandatory labelling initiative is part of new Ecodesign and Energy Labelling Regulations introduced in June 2025 across the EU. The intent is that it will empower consumers to make informed choices beyond the price tag.
Research shows that consumers consistently rank longevity and reliability of appliances and electronic goods among their top decision factors when purchasing smartphones or tablets. This is alongside price, brand, and warranty, according to a UK study published by Nottingham Trent University.
The new labels on phones and tablets in-store or online will provide clear and comparable information for shoppers on the energy efficiency of the devices. Similar to bigger electrical appliances, this will rate the phone or tablet computer from A, the most efficient, to G, the least efficient.
It will also show the battery life of the device, how long it lasts between charges and how that will change over its lifetime. Another important element of the labelling is durability; in other words, how good is your phone in terms of drops or falls in water? Repairability is the final piece of the jigsaw showing how easily devices can be fixed and spare parts accessed.
Tim Stokes, market surveillance programme manager at the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) says the new labelling is an extension of a process that first began in the 1990s, when the EU started systematically bringing in labelling for the “most energy-guzzling products”.
“Nearly everybody has a mobile phone; in Ireland 95% of adults now own a smartphone. They don’t actually individually use that much energy, but it’s the collective number that matters because everyone has one, and that’s where the savings can be made,” he says.
With more information available allowing shoppers to make comparisons between brands, Tim believes it will result in more sustainable choices.
“In addition to the energy class, you will have the battery endurance, so that’s an important thing. That will tell you how long your phone is going to stay charged for on a maximum charge. One phone I looked at today had a battery endurance of 47 hours.
Tim Stokes, market surveillance programme manager at the SEAI.
“Another important piece of information that’s in there is how many cycles the battery endurance lasts. You know, after a period of time, your battery starts to get worse. There’s also an icon on there, which tells you how many charging cycles it’s likely to take before it gets to 80% of its original charging capacity, so that’s good information for people to compare phones.”
How drop resistant a phone is and how it will withstand “accidental drops” is classed from A to E, something that needs to be factored in given the cost of replacing damaged phones.
Repairability is also listed from A to E with ingress protection, which is how well it is sealed against solids like dust, muck or liquids like water, also rated with a coding system.
“This is done with a code IP, E, X, Y. To explain, IP stands for ingress protection. The X is a number on a scale of 1-6 which indicates how high up it is, so 6 is the best and gives you maximum protection from dust. Y is rated 1-8, so 8 means it can be stuck in water for up to an hour, and it won’t go into it [the phone].
Research shows consumers change their phone relatively frequently, often every two to two and half years, but with more data available, Tim hopes the timeframe will lengthen in future.
“I think any information that will inform your purchasing decision is good for consumers,” he remarks.
“By choosing longer-lasting, repairable products, individuals help reduce waste, conserve resources, and lower lifecycle energy consumption.
The new mandatory labelling initiative.
“When millions make these informed choices, small actions will create a major impact. This behavioural shift to more sustainable consumption models supports both national and EU-wide efforts toward a circular economy, where products last longer, cost less over time, and have a reduced environmental footprint.”
New labelling
The SEAI, which will police the new system, also believes that the new labelling on smartphones and tablets will also encourage the manufacturers to innovate and achieve the best rates they can.
“When you put it all together, the whole effect of the regulation is that by 2030, across the EU, it is estimated we will be using around about 14 terawatt hours less electricity, which is sizeable. It’s about the electricity consumption of a country the size of Iceland or around half of Ireland’s annual electricity consumption,” he explains.
Consumer items now boast some form of energy labelling, he says the EU is looking to increasingly supply more information particularly. “It’s not just about the energy efficiency; it’s about the longevity of the product. Can you keep it for a long period of time? Is it repairable, and is there a network of repairers and spare parts?”
See seai.ie
Anyone planning to buy a new smartphone or tablet for Christmas or in the New Year sales will notice new labelling rating the energy efficiency, durability and repairability of the device.
The new mandatory labelling initiative is part of new Ecodesign and Energy Labelling Regulations introduced in June 2025 across the EU. The intent is that it will empower consumers to make informed choices beyond the price tag.
Research shows that consumers consistently rank longevity and reliability of appliances and electronic goods among their top decision factors when purchasing smartphones or tablets. This is alongside price, brand, and warranty, according to a UK study published by Nottingham Trent University.
The new labels on phones and tablets in-store or online will provide clear and comparable information for shoppers on the energy efficiency of the devices. Similar to bigger electrical appliances, this will rate the phone or tablet computer from A, the most efficient, to G, the least efficient.
It will also show the battery life of the device, how long it lasts between charges and how that will change over its lifetime. Another important element of the labelling is durability; in other words, how good is your phone in terms of drops or falls in water? Repairability is the final piece of the jigsaw showing how easily devices can be fixed and spare parts accessed.
Tim Stokes, market surveillance programme manager at the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) says the new labelling is an extension of a process that first began in the 1990s, when the EU started systematically bringing in labelling for the “most energy-guzzling products”.
“Nearly everybody has a mobile phone; in Ireland 95% of adults now own a smartphone. They don’t actually individually use that much energy, but it’s the collective number that matters because everyone has one, and that’s where the savings can be made,” he says.
With more information available allowing shoppers to make comparisons between brands, Tim believes it will result in more sustainable choices.
“In addition to the energy class, you will have the battery endurance, so that’s an important thing. That will tell you how long your phone is going to stay charged for on a maximum charge. One phone I looked at today had a battery endurance of 47 hours.
Tim Stokes, market surveillance programme manager at the SEAI.
“Another important piece of information that’s in there is how many cycles the battery endurance lasts. You know, after a period of time, your battery starts to get worse. There’s also an icon on there, which tells you how many charging cycles it’s likely to take before it gets to 80% of its original charging capacity, so that’s good information for people to compare phones.”
How drop resistant a phone is and how it will withstand “accidental drops” is classed from A to E, something that needs to be factored in given the cost of replacing damaged phones.
Repairability is also listed from A to E with ingress protection, which is how well it is sealed against solids like dust, muck or liquids like water, also rated with a coding system.
“This is done with a code IP, E, X, Y. To explain, IP stands for ingress protection. The X is a number on a scale of 1-6 which indicates how high up it is, so 6 is the best and gives you maximum protection from dust. Y is rated 1-8, so 8 means it can be stuck in water for up to an hour, and it won’t go into it [the phone].
Research shows consumers change their phone relatively frequently, often every two to two and half years, but with more data available, Tim hopes the timeframe will lengthen in future.
“I think any information that will inform your purchasing decision is good for consumers,” he remarks.
“By choosing longer-lasting, repairable products, individuals help reduce waste, conserve resources, and lower lifecycle energy consumption.
The new mandatory labelling initiative.
“When millions make these informed choices, small actions will create a major impact. This behavioural shift to more sustainable consumption models supports both national and EU-wide efforts toward a circular economy, where products last longer, cost less over time, and have a reduced environmental footprint.”
New labelling
The SEAI, which will police the new system, also believes that the new labelling on smartphones and tablets will also encourage the manufacturers to innovate and achieve the best rates they can.
“When you put it all together, the whole effect of the regulation is that by 2030, across the EU, it is estimated we will be using around about 14 terawatt hours less electricity, which is sizeable. It’s about the electricity consumption of a country the size of Iceland or around half of Ireland’s annual electricity consumption,” he explains.
Consumer items now boast some form of energy labelling, he says the EU is looking to increasingly supply more information particularly. “It’s not just about the energy efficiency; it’s about the longevity of the product. Can you keep it for a long period of time? Is it repairable, and is there a network of repairers and spare parts?”
See seai.ie
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