Daily Mail - 28.08.2019

Daily Mail, Wednesday, August 28, 2019 Page 41

By Amelia

Murray

MoneyMail 41

unlocking shop which can be

found on most High Streets. You

should also wipe any personal

data and reset the device to fac-

tory settings in case it falls into

the wrong hands.

Be aware that if the recycling

firm receives the item and it is

more damaged than you let on, it

may offer you a lower price than it

first quoted.

You do not have to accept this,

in which case most companies will

send it back to you free of charge.

TRADE IN GIZMOS ON

THE HIGH STREET

Computer exchange firm CeX

specialises in buying and selling

second-hand goods such as mobile

phones, computers and other

technology. So it is worth getting

a quote as it can sometimes

beat what you will get from a

recycling website.

For example, you can get £97 for

an unlocked iphone 6 16GB in

mint condition or a voucher worth

£130 to spend in the store.

this is £37 more than the best

deal on a recycling website. CeX

will buy the same phone in good

condition for £87 or £80 if faulty.

the firm operates online and has

more than 500 stores uK-wide.

those people with old laptops

and playstations can swap them

for cash or credit. For example,

website music magpie will buy an

Xbox one S 500GB for £111 if in

good condition. this drops to

£66.60 if in poor condition, or

£11.10 if it is faulty.

Some High Street stores will pay

more for your devices if you accept

store credit instead of cash.

retailer Game will pay £86.40 for

the same console in perfect condi-

tion, or £108 credit to customers

who trade it in store.

If you still have the box, you

could get £92 from CeX.

You might not be offered cash

for some older models, but you

can still recycle the item for free.

If you have Apple products you

can swap them for an Apple Store

gift card. the firm pays up to £900

for a computer, £380 for a tablet

and £380 for a smartphone.

High Street retailer Currys also

offers gift cards for old laptops and

other electronics or a discount on

some items. For example, you can

get a £20 gift card if you recycle an

old Google Chromebook. Buy

another device and you could get

between £50 and £200 off. It also

recycles other electronics free.

TRY YOUR MOBILE

PHONE PROVIDER...

mAnY mobile networks also offer

to recycle old phones for cash. You

do not need to be a customer but

you may get less if your phone is

locked to another network.

o2 offers £50 for a working, non-

damaged iphone 6 64GB if it is

locked to o2, three, GiffGaff,

tesco mobile or Sky.

But if you are a ee customer, for

example, it drops to £34.

Vodafone, ee and three also

have their own phone trade-in

service paying £50 for the

same model.

All of the networks provide a

postage pack so you can send

in your device for free.

... OR HELP A

GOOD CAUSE

mAnY councils will take

unwanted electronics at

recycling centres.

For example, there are seven

run by oxfordshire council

which accept everything from

laptops to vacuum cleaners

and electric shavers.

other councils offer bulky waste

collections — but you may have to

pay a fee.

Hackney Council in east London

charges £15 to collect five items.

Bristol residents have to pay £25

for up to three items or £50 for up

to six.

You can also donate unwanted

items to charity shops, but check

We ALL have a ‘bits and bobs’ or

‘messy’ drawer. It’s probably home

to some string, spare light bulbs,

old batteries — and, collectively,

an estimated 40 million forgotten

electronic devices, according to a

report last week.

the royal Society of

Chemistry warned this is an

utter waste of rare earth

elements needed to create

new technology.

It also raised concerns

about the number of people

with no plans to recycle their

devices, which could mean

toxic substances end up in

the landfill.

But did you know trading in

old gadgets can be as

beneficial for your wallet as

the planet? With new recycling

firms popping up all the time,

appearing on some comparison sites but

not others, finding the best deals can be

hard work.

So if you’re having a post-summer

holiday clear-out, read our ultimate guide

to cashing in on the old electronics in your

cupboards — even if they’re broken.

SHOP AROUND FOR

THE BEST PRICE

tHe fastest way to find out which

recycling firm will give you the best price

is to use comparison sites such as Sell my

mobile, Compare And recycle, and

Compare my mobile.

none compares all recycling firms so it is

best to try all three. For example, on Sell

my mobile and Compare my mobile, the

best deal for a working, unlocked iphone 6

16GB is £60 with GoodBuytech.

Cash4tech and GiffGaff quoted £57 and

£56 respectively. When using Compare

And recycle, the top offer was lower at

£53 with music magpie.

Sell my mobile is the only site that offers

a price match guarantee if you find a

better offer elsewhere.

As well as mobile phones, you can

compare deals for ipods and mp3 players,

smartwatches, tablets and digital cameras.

You can also sell gadgets that are damaged

or no longer work — but expect signifi-

cantly less.

For example, while you could get £285

for a working Samsung Galaxy S9 plus

128GB from webuyanyphone.com via

Compare And recycle, you’ll only get £60

if it is broken.

most recycling firms cover postage costs

by either sending you a padded pre-paid

envelope or a label. However, if your goods

go missing there will be no redress, so you

may want to pay for royal mail’s special

delivery option.

Sending a phone worth up to £250 costs

£7.40, or £4.20 if the value is up to £100.

Some firms may require that your phone

is unlocked. Your network provider may

do this for free or for a small charge

depending on the make, the contract and

how long you have had it. For example, ee

customers will be charged £8.99 if they want

to unlock their phone while in contract.

You may be able to find an online code to

unlock your phone for free using GiffGaff ’s

online service unlockapedia (giffgaff.com/

unlock). Failing that, you can try an

Britons hoard 40 million old devices... here’s how to cash in

Are you

sitting on a

GADGET

first that they accept electronics.

Some charities are part of recy-

cling schemes which allow you to

sell your old phone and donate all,

or some, of the proceeds.

Fonebank, for example, works

with oxfam, Water Aid and the

national trust and offers £40 for a

working iphone 6 16GB, or £50 if it

is unlocked.

You can then choose to donate

between 25 pc and 100pc of the

sale price of old mobiles.

If you have five or more old

phones they will be collected by

courier for free.

Fonebank will not accept phones

that do not charge or if the screen

does not work.

Alternatively, you can always

just give old devices to any friends

or family members who need one.

[email protected]

SIX BEST

SELLERS

GOLD

MINE?

IPHONE 6 16GB

BEST PRICE: £97

at CeX

XBOX ONE S 500GB

BEST PRICE: £111

at Music Magpie

IPAD 5 128GB

BEST PRICE: £181

at Handtec

SAMSUNG

GALAXY S9

PLUS 128GB

BEST PRICE:

£285 at We Buy

Any Phone

PANASONIC

LUMIX DMC TZ8

CAMERA

BEST PRICE: £30

at Camorada

IPOD TOUCH

6TH GEN 64GB

BEST PRICE:

£39 at O2

Picture: iSTOCKPHOTO