Apple designs products with the environment in mind. That’s why iMac is energy efficient, free of many harmful toxins, and highly recyclable.
View a PDF of Apple’s Environmental Status Report for
Apple and the Environment
Apple takes a complete product life cycle approach to determining our environmental impact.
Life cycle impact.
Apple’s life cycle analysis accounts for all emissions associated with our products. That includes raw material extraction, manufacturing, packaging, transportation, a three- or four-year period of use,1 and recycling. In the course of this analysis, we determined that more than 95 percent of Apple’s total greenhouse gas emissions come from the products we make.
Energy Efficiency
iMac is designed to be energy efficient right out of the box. It has even earned the EPA’s ENERGY STAR qualification for its low power consumption.
Efficient power supply.
iMac includes a highly efficient power supply that reduces the amount of power wasted when bringing electricity from the wall to your computer. Lower power consumption reduces energy bills and lessens the environmental impact of greenhouse gas emissions from power plants.
Advanced power management.
Unlike a lot of Windows-based PC systems, iMac uses energy-efficient hardware components that work hand in hand with the operating system to conserve power. Mac OS X spins down hard drives and activates sleep mode on already energy-efficient LED-backlit displays. And it balances tasks across both central processors and graphics processors. Mac OS X never misses a power-saving opportunity, no matter how small. It even regulates the processor between keystrokes, reducing power between the letters you type. That’s just one of many ways Apple manages small amounts of power that add up to big savings.
ENERGY STAR qualification.
iMac meets the stringent low power requirements set by the EPA, giving it ENERGY STAR qualification. ENERGY STAR 5.0 sets significantly higher efficiency limits for power supplies and aggressive limits for the computer’s typical annual power consumption.
Eliminating Toxic Substances
It’s what iMac doesn’t have that makes it more environmentally friendly. It’s free of many harmful toxins, including mercury, arsenic, BFRs, and PVC.
Fewer toxins.
The greatest environmental challenge facing the computer industry is the presence of arsenic, brominated flame retardants (BFRs), mercury, phthalates, and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in products. Apple engineers have worked hard to eliminate BFRs and PVC from iMac circuit boards, internal and external cables, connectors, insulators, adhesives, and more.2 And they’ve eliminated many other toxins that are a common part of desktop computer manufacturing — choosing, for example, mercury-free backlighting and arsenic-free glass for the iMac display.
Recyclability
Because iMac is made from materials such as aluminum and glass, it’s more likely to be recycled and reused at the end of its long, productive life.
Recyclable materials.
Apple designers and engineers have integrated the entire iMac computer into an enclosure made from a single, solid piece of recyclable aluminum. The display is made of recyclable glass. Both aluminum and glass are very desirable to recyclers, which means the raw materials used in iMac can be reused in other products.
Free recycling for your old computer.
If you live in the U.S., Apple offers a free recycling program for old computers and displays with the purchase of any new Mac. Learn more on the Apple Recycling site
EPEAT Gold
iMac has earned EPEAT Gold status for its responsible manufacture, energy efficiency, and recyclability.
The EPEAT Gold rating.
Through its innovative and environmentally friendly design, iMac has earned the highest rating of EPEAT Gold.3 The Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool, or EPEAT, evaluates the environmental impact of a product based on how recyclable it is, how much energy it uses, and how it’s designed and manufactured.
