One of the plans that Fujitsu considered is to introduce an innovative notebook design, that aims at replacing plastics and other polymers in the casing with eco-friendly, bio-degradable wood. Modern designs are usually based on plastics and metal, but they have an extremely destructive impact over the environment. Although the laptop is in its early stage, the prototype unit is built of cedar wood for the case, while the parts are manufactured using bio-plastic and recycled polymers.
This new eco-friendly prototype is the result of a tight collaboration between notebook vendor Fujitsu and the Japanese design team Monacca specializes in designing wooden products.
The environmentally-friendly notebook, called the FMV Biblo, was built with biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA). Nowadays, Fujitsu’s attention shifted to castor-oil-based polymers that offer superior flexibility over the conventional plastics, but at the same time, they preserve a low environmental footprint.
Despite the fact that creating a wooden notebook is possible, the market for such a device would be extremely limited, mostly because of the European and US sales restrictions. For instance, in order for the notebook to get green light on the US market, the product would have to pass certification, and one of the toughest requirements is the UL and ISO flame-retardation tests. Definitely, this is the edge of wooden laptops.
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A wooden laptop would be pretty classy! Might not be the most practical material to use, but I know I would love to have somethng like that! Maybe in a burlwood finish..If nothing else it’s a great conversation starter at Starbucks or your favorite WiFi hotspot!