Turning tech trash into treasure

If you don't have the time to keep abreast of the latest developments in laptops or PCs, there's an excellent chance that your most recent purchase was outdated before you got it home.

Don't fear, such is the speed that this industry moves at, those who do pay enough attention only have the most advanced item for about six months before it too becomes substandard.

The swiftness with which electronic products go from being up-to-date to prehistoric means a lot them end up being thrown out – the majority of them for no return.

Every year up to 50 million tonnes of discarded electronics – referred to as e-waste – ends up in landfills for little to no return and that needn't be the case.

For businesses with potentially hundreds of electronic devices that would otherwise go to waste when an IT upgrade is implemented, there are innumerable ways to make sure that the outdated products don't entirely go to waste. Here's four of them.

Amazon Trade-In Store

Internet retail giant Amazon has taken the fight up to online electronics exchange Gazelle by expanding its trade-in program to allow people to send in their unwanted electronic products in return for a gift card to Amazon.

It's a smart move by Amazon to try to entice customers back for return business when the products they buy become obsolete much quicker than anticipated, but it nonetheless presents an opportunity for the consumer to get some reimbursement for unwanted products.

You have to find the exact product you want to exchange – no close relatives – then you have to choose a condition as 'like new,' 'good' and 'acceptable' which come with their own unique set of criteria. As long as you send the item within seven days of lodging the agreed exchange and Amazon agree with your condition assessment, you're account will “generally” be credited within 48 hours.

There is one big disadvantage to going for Amazon, they don't accept tablets, even their very own Kindle.

ReGadget

Of course, if Amazon doesn't suit you can always go Australian. The main advantage of opting for Melbourne-based outfit ReGadget is unlike their giant American trade-in cousins, they do accept tablets, along with just about everything else.

So far it's only iPads that are listed on the site but you can submit a custom quote for their consideration.

Like Amazon, you find the product and nominate one of four conditions, as opposed to three. The prices are pretty comparable and in the instances where Amazon does clearly beat the Regadget price, the Australians offer an appeal system where there's an easy opportunity to let them know they need to match it to get your once-loved item.

Recycled Servers

Consumer products aren't the only second-hand items on demand; those bulky servers your IT manager wants to replace also have some welcoming homes. Server recycling houses are all over the place and they'll give you a varying rate of return on your outdated workhorses.

In the US there are even some places that organise for your surplus server capacity to be used as a host for the needs of other companies and they pay a form of rent to you. There don't appear to be providers of this kind of service in Australia, yet.

eBay it

It's a time honoured classic and the reason this service endures against these rivals isn't just because of how visual the eBay brand is but the thing that motivates all exchanges, price. If you're willing to go through the trouble of listing and auctioning, the prices are often superior to any of the aforementioned services.

The reason is on eBay you're more likely to find a willing buyer that doesn't have any excess outlay on the product before it becomes useful, they're simply there to buy your goods.

The only thing left is quality, which pits eBay's well established sell info rating against the way in which the trade-in categories work. Many will continue to opt for eBay's well-worn system.