Apple Just Patented a Shopping Bag

They may have just released the iPhone 7, but the folks at Apple aren’t resting on their laurels. The Next Web reports that the tech company recently obtained a patent for a new device that’s fully wireless, has no ungainly buttons, and never needs recharging: a shopping bag.

The tote is reportedly part of Apple’s larger effort to go green. Like all Apple products, the bag embraces a minimalist design aesthetic: Its body is made with white paper (of course) while its handles are made with woven paper fibers that allegedly improve the “feel and flexibility” of the handles. The bags will also be more environmentally friendly than previous Apple shopping bags, and will be made with at least 60 percent recycled materials. In order to improve the durability of the paper bag, Apple has also designed an interior insert to reinforce the structure.

Paper shopping bags may not feel like they need much updating; after all, they’ve been working just fine without major upgrades for well over a century. But then again, the same could have been said for the headphone jack, which is nonexistent on the new iPhone 7. As The Next Web notes, Apple isn’t so much revolutionizing the shopping bag as trying to perfect it—seeking just the right balance of design aesthetics and environmental sensitivity.

[h/t The Next Web]

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