The Importance of Recycling Your Cell Phone

Michelle Wilson - June 18, 2020

How many people do you know are the types who just HAVE to have the latest cell phone the second it hits the shelves? There is a good chance, based on the lines I’ve seen out the Apple Store, that you know at least one or two friends who fit the description. Heck maybe you are one of them. We aren’t here to judge. But instead to perhaps make you think.

If you were like me, up to a few years ago I had a box of old cell phones. Once a new one hit my hands the old one (mind you it was a few years between each) would get thrown up on the heap of old phones. It never really occurred to me that recycling a cell phone is a thing.

The good news is there are a number of different ways that you can recycle your old cell phone, and depending on which way you choose you could make money, or even do some good in the world. Sounds pretty sweet right? We thought so too.

Why Should I Recycle My Phones?

Well obviously there is the immediate issue of junk. Landfills are great for trash that can break down, but if you were to leave an average cell phone to break down naturally, you’re looking at a hefty 1-2 MILLION years, and I don’t know about you, but I’m not prepared to invest that much into our landfill futures… I hear the returns are awful. Electronic scrap accounts for 70% of the overall toxic waste currently found in landfills in the U.S. and that’s a fact.

As such many stores and companies around the country hold trade-in or recycling events for old phones. Some offer drop boxes for old phones and batteries that are processed accordingly.

While those are great, and convenient you can also use one of the many website services that will pay you money for your used phones. Nothing that is going to buy you any new jewelry, but if there were two lines and you had to get into one of them, are you going to choose the line that gives you nothing, or the line that gives you a five-dollar bill? If those two are the only options, I’d go with the five-dollar bill, and I’m sure you would too. Unless of course youd rather be paid in appreciation. Some websites let you donate your old phones so that the proceeds can be used for charitable opportunities.

However, you choose to recycle your old phone make sure you wipe your phone clean of all data before you do.

How to Wipe Your Smartphone Clean

Alright so we are going to recycle your phone. That’s great! Once you have successfully transferred off any files or data you need to your computer or your new device we’ll need to go ahead and wipe it clean.

iPhone Wipe:

• Tap the “Settings” icon and scroll down the list and tap “General”
• Scroll down and tap “Reset”
• Tap “Erase All Content and Settings”. You should get a warning message that your data will be erased. Accept it.

Android Wipe:

• Tap the “Settings” icon and scroll down and tap “Security”
• Scroll down and tap “Encryption & Credentials” or “Encrypt”
• Tap “Encrypt Phone” you will be get a warning screen that your device will need to be reset. Once your device is done rebooting you’ll have to enter your PIN to get back into your phone. Now you can factory-reset your device and your phone is wiped.

Always perform a data wipe before donating or recycling your phone. You have no idea who will be handling your phone after you and sensitive information can certainly be retrieved by those who work on phones for a living. So take the extra time to protect yourself and your data! And whether you are dropping it in a drop box, getting paid or donating your recycled phone, you should know you are doing your part to ensure we all have a worthwhile future, in which we are not all stepping over the piles of cellphones on the ground!