>some products, such as medical devices and so-called “wet appliances” (for example, electric toothbrushes or water flossers), are already exempt from this requirement, mainly for safety reasons. In these cases, batteries only need to be removable and replaceable by independent professionals.

As people will be wearing wearable products when it is raining these categories of clothes products have been classified as wet products

[0] https://environment.ec.europa.eu/news/commission-adds-exempt...

We have several for our kids, with removable batteries from Oral-B. All are years old and still waterproof. And with that amount of voltage, where can there _ever_ be a "safety issue"? That is quackery!

Sounds more like somebody lobbied successfully.

    > The Commission is now adding six new product categories to the existing list of exemptions. This includes wearable devices such as smartwatches and fitness trackers, electric toys, and products within the scope of the ATEX Directive (equipment used in explosive atmospheres such as explosion-proof motors, sensors, pumps or forklift trucks).

Have a sales tax on each product that corresponds to the toxicity of its components.

Exempt recycled materials from the tax so companies have an incentive to collect old parts and recycle them, preventing them from going to a landfill.

I can understand for super compact devices like AirPods, you cannot provide replaceable batteries without making the device larger. But why on earth would they exempt iPhones? Like is it rocket science to build a water proof battery replaceable phone in 2026?

Not at all surprising, though.

I wonder what exactly that means. I hope the European Parliament won’t have to waste time voting on this.

I’d guess the number is pretty close to zero, these devices aren’t used for long enough for this to become a problem.

If the goal was to sell more AirPods, not implementing “Find My” for them would’ve been a much better strategy.