Going Green - How to Recycle or Donate Your Cell Phone
Our pop cans are recycled by us. But there is one vital conservation measure that many of us overlook: recycling our old electronics. Cellular phones are perhaps one of the most prevalent electronics that end up in landfills. Under most contracts, you are allowed to a brand new phone every one to two years and with new improvements, new technologies and new features being introduced each quarter, the amount of old, old and unwanted cell phones laying around quickly adds up. Like all electronics, cell phones are manufactured from highly engineered materials, most of which can be repurposed and reused and some of which (such as the substances in batteries) is toxic in a landfill. Recycling electronics, or eCycling, is an excellent to put these valuable materials back to good use and avoid drawing further on the Earth's natural resources. You may recycle the phone sell or donate to someone. Each of these routes are far more beneficial for the environment than throwing them in the dustbin and are all extremely simple. Recycling your Cell Phone Different ways are there to recycle phones. The most likely place to turn to is your cell phone service provider. AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon Wireless all have cell phone recycling programs. These providers have programs that either reuse old cell phone parts and batteries or dispense old cell phones to those in need through charitable organizations. Visit your cell phone providers website to learn where to ship your phone - you can often print off a free postage-paid label and mail it in without cost. Many retailers and manufacturers also offer tech recycling programs, such as Best Buy, Office Depot, Staples, Sony Ericsson, Nokia, Motorola and LG Electronics. Best Buy offers a mail-in program. Office Depot sells "tech recycling boxes" is to be filled with cell phones, laptops and other items and brought in to an Office Depot to be transpoted for processing. Donating your Cell Phone Charitable organizations at times takes cell phones. Similar to the recycling programs given by cell phone providers and electronics dealers, you could either mail-in your cell phone or drop it off at a local location. But to get the most out of your donation, take time to locate a charity that resonates with you or you empathize strongly with. Programs include Cell Phones For Soldiers, The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Phones for Life (for senior citizens), Donate a Phone, Call to Collect and Collective Good. You may inquire locally to ascertain if your cell phone is required. Selling Your Cell Phone for Cash If you have a comparatively recent model cell phone and would like to realize a bit of return on it, you can at all times sell it for cash. Numerous services on the Internet will purchase used cell phones. Most will either inquire that you submit information about your phone or will have an online pricing sheet for your reference. Eco ATM kiosk buy instantly. These automated kiosks will automatically ascertain the value of your phone and either print out one in-store trade up coupon or gift card. You can opt for recycling. Erasing Your Information Before disposing of your phone, it's important to remove all private information from your phone. The spammers can extract information from a dead phone. Consult your cell phone manufacturers manual or use third-party software to safely and completely erase the records on your phone before donating, recycling or selling your phone. If your phone has a SIM card, you can simply remove the SIM card. As you can see, there are different better uses for your cell phone than consigning it to a landfill or letting it collect dust at the bottom of your junk drawer. Whether you are selling it for some quick cash, donating it to a charitable cause or recycling it, properly divesting your self of your old, unused cell is far better for the Earth and its denizens than throwing it in the trash.
