EU mandates strict repairability and battery labels for mobile devices

The new labeling system mirrors the A-to-G scale long used for household appliances. Beyond energy ratings, devices will display specific metrics including the number of rated charge cycles, IP ratings for dust and water resistance, and letter grades for overall durability. These mandates apply to all smartphones, tablets with screens up to 17.4 inches, and cordless landline phones, though rollable displays currently remain exempt from the requirements.

Hardware standards are moving beyond mere aesthetics. Under the new ecodesign rules, batteries must maintain at least 80 percent capacity after 800 charging cycles. Manufacturers are also legally obligated to stock critical spare parts, ensuring they remain available within a five-to-ten-day window. Furthermore, the EU is tightening software support policies, requiring vendors to provide operating system updates within six months of source code release—a threshold that would have disqualified recent rollouts from major manufacturers like Samsung.