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TheBuzz
Erika Engle
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CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Amy Koppmann, Sony senior product trainer, demonstrated Sony's new High Definition Handi-cam, the 899 HDR TG1, yesterday at the Hilton Hawaiian Village.
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Sony reveals new toys and plans to take back old ones
S
ony Hawaii unveiled its 40th annual round of cool consumer electronics to retailers and reporters yesterday, but also announced plans for a new program to help you get rid of your old Sony stuff.
In the interest of full disclosure, the words green and sustainable make your columnist's eyes roll. One reason is that trend-savvy marketing and PR types believe using the words will get their clients ink.
It worked, this time, because Sony introduced its green initiatives alongside its new toys. The company is also going to recycle some old -- as in Betamax-era -- advertising to remind you to recycle your old Sony products.
The Sony Take Back Recycling Program, launched nationally in September, has already collected 7 million pounds of consumer electronics, announced Mike Fasulo, chief marketing officer.
The program allows consumers to turn in old Sony-ware at selected recycling centers for free, as Sony picks up the tab.
The program already is in place on the Big Island. Fasulo wouldn't say when the company plans to roll it out on Oahu, but added that Sony goal is to have a recycling center within 20 miles of 95 percent of the population. Another is to recycle a pound of old stuff for every new pound it sells.
Electronics waste is a hot topic, said Suzanne Jones, recycling coordinator for the City and County of Honolulu. Oahu recycling companies that handle it are listed at www.opala. org. Households also can dispose of it with regular trash.
Jones noted a bill submitted for the governor's signature, SB 2843, would require electronics manufacturers to collect and recycle such products and establishes an electronic device recycling fund.
On the Big Island, Sony is working with Hilo-based nonprofit Recycle Hawaii. Recycle Hawaii's Web site indicates it collects so-called e-Waste at the Kaloko Business Center in Kailua-Kona and at Bayside Computer Shop at 55 Kukuau St. in Hilo.
The new toys
Many of the new Sony products provide wireless functionality. Bravia television sets can access photos on your computer as well as movie companies' online offerings; a wireless home theater system can play different things in different rooms and a wall-mountable TV/PC has wireless peripherals.
Portable gear includes a high-definition video camera not much bigger than a cigarette pack; a 16-gigabyte Walkman that can remotely control wireless speakers and Sony's answer to the iPhone. At $300 the mylo Personal Communicator is a contract-free phone, PC and camera with a slide-out qwerty keyboard.
Consumers get to gawk at the new gear and gadgets during the Sony Expo in November.
Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin. Call 529-4747, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached at:
eengle@starbulletin.com