Batteries and plastic are near the bottom of the environmentally friendly list, but UK company Gomi has an innovative power bank that may be the most sustainable solution for both. Everything on the Gomi power bank is recycled, including the batteries themselves, and the whole unit can be repaired and replaced instead of tossed away. If you’re looking to feel better about your batteries, read on, because Gomi has taken recycled electronics to a new level.
Let’s start with those batteries, because you might wonder how a battery can be recycled. Batteries degrade over time, and they can be recharged but not completely recycled. When your battery is dead, it’s just dead.
Except maybe not all of the battery is dead. If you have an e-bike, for instance, the battery pack is made up of a bundle of batteries that are roughly a bit larger than an AA battery. Altogether they offer enough charge for an e-bike, but when a bunch of those batteries die, the battery pack needs to be replaced.
Enter Gomi, which tests those old e-bike battery packs to find which cells in the bundle are still viable and which are dead. The good batteries are recovered and used in battery packs and Bluetooth speakers.
It's all about those swirly (recycled) plastics
As for the rest of the power bank, Gomi says the casing is “made from 100% waste plastics and aluminium.” Specifically, Gomi says it is using waste plastic bags that are non-recyclable. They mix and swirl the plastics in a variety of colors before baking them in the oven, and the company is also eager to try custom power banks, if you need them in bulk.
Like all electronics in Europe, the Gomi power bank comes with a two-year warranty, but these power banks are much easier to repair than other models. There is no glue holding the case together, so you can unscrew the power bank yourself to get at those replaceable batteries. Even after two years, you should be able to simply swap out the batteries with Gomi if they are wearing down.
The Gomi power bank isn’t the most advanced charging unit you can buy, but that’s totally beside the point. This one is all about sustainability, not the most powerful charging. The power brick can hold up to 10,000 mAh of charge, but it only charges up to 18W on either the USB-C or USB-A power outlets on top. That’s slower than the best phones you can buy are capable of charging, for sure.
My review sample came engraved with my name, which is a nice touch you can add to the aluminum back. It also came with a very nice, long USB-C cable wrapped in fabric, not plastic.
In addition to the power bank, Gomi makes a Bluetooth speaker using the same recycled materials and concept. The speaker uses recycled plastics for the casing, which is splash-resistant, as well as the same recycled batteries inside to power the unit. You can even buy two Bluetooth speakers and play them as a stereo pair.
Serious about sustainability and service
If sustainability is important to you, there’s a lot to love in Gomi’s offering. All of those e-bikes you see around your city are leaving behind dead batteries, and Gomi is not only getting the most out of those old cells, it’s openly soliciting new partners if you have batteries you need to recycle. I’ve never seen such an inventive push to use batteries that might otherwise end up in a landfill.
I also love the aggressive way Gomi advertises its repair and warranty service. Gomi sells you the first battery with the understanding that you’ll be coming back for a refill on the power cells.
The power banks are more expensive – $85 for a 10K mAh unit. An Anker battery pack with the same power would cost less than $20. Of course, Anker needed to buy freshly mined minerals for its battery, while Gomi is keeping batteries out of the earth. Still, maybe Gomi would do better with a much cheaper battery pack in a simpler style. I’m assuming all those swirling colors add to the cost.
You can buy Gomi battery packs online through Gomi. Customers in the UK can get battery packs serviced directly from Gomi’s factory in Brighton. If you need service from the US, Gomi offers repair service “at cost” to US customers, which is currently around 35% of the retail price. And if you’re a huge fan of the swirling designs, the company even makes artwork from the same recycled plastics.
