Environmental advocates unveiled a new shopping guide Monday aimed at helping holiday consumers save money while reducing electronic waste through the purchase of refurbished devices.

The PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center announced its "Fixed for the Holidays" guide at a City Hall press conference featuring demonstrations of refurbished devices, including the iPhone 15 Pro, Galaxy S23, iPad Air 2022, and Nintendo Switch. The guide provides consumers with tips for buying refurbished electronics, recommended vendors, and warnings about products to avoid.

"It's great to give gifts to loved ones or treat ourselves in the holiday season. We shouldn't have to hurt our planet or our wallets to do that," said Belle Sherwood, Climate and Clean Energy Associate with PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center. "Let's give our planet a holiday gift this year by reducing the mountains of toxic e-waste."

According to the organization, buying refurbished electronics can reduce environmental impact by up to 91% compared to new products while offering average savings of 20%.

The guide specifically warns against products designed to be disposable, such as Apple's AirPods 4, which contain batteries that users cannot replace.

Philadelphia City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, who chairs the Committee on the Environment, endorsed the initiative at the event.

As part of its broader Designed to Last campaign, the organization is pushing for "repair scores" to be made available to U.S. shoppers through retailers like Amazon, similar to systems already in place in other countries. These scores would rate products on a scale of 1 to 10 based on repairability factors such as spare parts availability and software support longevity.

The PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center works to protect Pennsylvania's air, water and open spaces through research, public education and advocacy.

For more information, visit www.pennenvironmentcenter.org.