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by spongeb00b 1260 days ago
I'd be interested to know what products you're seeing those on? UK market at least all recent MacBooks, iPads and iPhones I've opened have used paper-based trays instead of the old plastic. Even the screen protector has been a thin paper layer.

Even the cables in the box have a paper rings to hold them in shape, and everything has tabs to allow for easily removing from the boxes.

The exterior brown shipping boxes also have clever mechanisms which "raise" the retail box gently out when opening the flaps.
2 comments
iainmerrick 1260 days ago
Good question — I forgot the article is from a few years back and things have changed a little. Their packaging is not as wasteful as before but still not great.

I bought an m2 laptop a few months back, and a Pencil recently.

Both boxes are double-walled and double-nested. I find them very hard to open, and they’re close to indestructible which makes them very annoying to break down for recycling. The boxes are glued rather than folded.

The insert trays do seem to be some kind of paper composite now rather than plastic, that’s good. The Pencil one is glued in place, that’s bad. (I still have the box because it’s so annoying to recycle! I guess it’s small enough that I could just toss it in without breaking it down.)

Absolutely every component has a little individual wrapping. Again, they do seem to be mostly paper now (though with some plastic I think) which is an improvement.

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brailsafe 1260 days ago
Ya that seemed like an usual, or at least very dated or niche anecdote. I'm not even sure that I remember opening a macbook that had similar packaging, but then I also don't live everywhere or buy any other apple products
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Symbiote 1260 days ago
I unbox a Mac of some sort every 6 months or so, for work.

It's very roughly 4-5 years since Apple stopped using moulded plastic trays in the cardboard boxes, but they do deserve special criticism for them as they were the only company to tightly glue the tray to the box.

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brailsafe 1260 days ago
Seems plausible, I would have bought my most recent ones within that period, then previously 2013.
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