Cell phone recycling

Like most good little geeks, I’ve collected a bunch of electronics over the years, some of which I consider ‘collectors items’.gazellelogo

Like most environmental conscious and organized people, my wife is always trying to get rid of my old electronics, some most of which she considers junk.

We both recently used Gazelle to resell/recycle some old and not-so-old cell phones. The process was simple, the prices were fair and the reimbursement (with multiple options) was quick in her case and a bit slower in mine.

We used it for cell phones, but they also advertise that they recycle digital cameras, MP3 players, laptops, GPS, hard drives and more. They warn you and I’ll warn you: you should erase your personal data from the electronics before sending it in; they say they will, but do you really want to take that risk?

The process is straightforward:

  1. Identify your item
  2. Answer questions (will it make a call? water damage?)
  3. Rate the Condition (poor, fair, good, excellent)
  4. Tell them what other pieces you have (charger, box, cords, etc.)
  5. They make you an offer
  6. If you accept, you can select to receive you funds via Check, Paypal, Amazon Gift card or send your dollars to one of about 30 listed charities. I choose Amazon Gift card (to fill the addiction for books), my wife choose PayPal (similar addiction to eBay), and both methods worked smoothly.
  7. If you accept, they will email you a packing slip and UPS shipping (i.e., they pay the shipping)
  8. When they get it, they evaluate the unit based on your answers to the questions.
  9. You get paid (or the unit gets donated)

The evaluation piece is the sticking point; on the Nokia phone I sent in, there was no re-evaluation. But my wife sent in my son’s old LG Chocolate (yes, the green one) which had a screen problem because dad (that would be me) stepped on it during a basketball game….so the screen was cracked. The rated that a $0 value, probably fair.

What they offered me:

  • Nokia 7360 (2 year old phone, excellent condition) $53 nokia7360
  • Blackberry 7105T ( ,good condition) $0. They will offer to recycle your phone if you throw it in the box, but I took this as a sign that I need to keep this crap around longer;
  • Motorola MPX200 (great condition, a collectors item!!!) $0. Again, a sign! A sign!
  • Garmin eTrex Portable Navigator: $20. I did not trade this in, and they keep track of what you have searched on, if you ever get the itch to go for the cash.

As far as timeline, I got my packing slip 12/30, they got my package 01/07, and I got my lovely Amazon gift card (electronically) on 01/20. Three weeks, not a bad turnaround time.

It is easy to try, just click here.


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