New Monitors Will Eliminate Dangerous Chemicals

by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger

10 May 2007 04:48 AM

In an open letter to its customers, shareholders and general public, Apple shared its plans for being more environmentally responsible. One of the points in that letter was the announcement that the company will be transitioning all of its computer monitors to LCDs (light-emitting diodes).

Currently, the monitors that Apple mainly produces are of the LCD (liquid crystal display) type, an industry standard. These types of monitors contain two major toxic chemicals, Arsenic and Mercury. Apple isn't alone in manufacturing monitors with these chemicals, they are used as standard components for most computer monitors.

Arsenic is added to the glass of the monitors to prevent the formation of defects in the screen. Apple says they are on track with eliminating the need for arsenic, and will be producing the first displays with arsenic-free glass this year. This will not completely eliminate arsenic from being used, as Apple also says, "A small number of high performance integrated circuits (ICs) will continue to contain a minute amount of arsenic as an element of the semiconductor substrate.

Mercury is currently used in small amounts in the fluorescent lamps that illuminate the LCD displays. The only way to eliminate that mercury, Apple says, is to transition away from LCD displays and into LED displays. Currently, all of the iPod designs use the mercury free backlit LED display. Apple plans on introducing their first Mac computers with LED displays sometime this year. There is no time frame given on a complete transition. Apple states: "Our ability to completely eliminate fluorescent lamps in all of our displays depends on how fast the LCD industry can transition to LED backlighting for larger displays.

There is no indication that these changes will affect the normal pricing of the monitors.

For me, I love the idea of reducing the use of substances that may eventually find their way into the water supply and my body or the bodies of my children.

What do you think of all of this? Would you purchase a new monitor or computer specifically because it has no traces of these chemicals? How important is this issue to you?

Mary Ann Romans writes about her family's money saving secrets in the Frugal Living Blog here at Families.com

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Learn more about Mary Ann Romans

Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat.

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