It’s 2012. You just got a new laptop, smartphone, or TV for the holidays. Heck, maybe you received all three. But now your old gear is destined for a bookshelf or closet where it will just gather dust — or peg you as a compulsive hoarder.
If you don’t mind putting in a little bit of effort, you can get rid of last year’s gear (or even gadgets from a bygone decade) in an eco-friendly way. And you could even earn some cash in the process.
Whatever you do, just don’t throw your old electronics in the trash. In 2005, an estimated 304 million electronics (PDF) were disposed of in the U.S., which equates to 1.5 to 1.8 million tons of e-waste. In 2010, that figure increased to 2.4 million tons, and in 2011, the e-waste numbers should only rise: The Consumer Electronics Association estimates that one-third of gift purchases this holiday season were some type of consumer electronics.
We’re constantly getting new electronics and blithely tossing away our old stuff. This is hell on the environment, because e-waste — even when tossed in landfill — can leak harmful chemicals into the soil or water supply.
You have three main choices for properly getting rid of your old electronics gear: trading it in, donating it or recycling it. Here’s an overview of each option.
Source: Gadget Lab
By Christina Bonnington