Regifting Your Electronics is Good for the Environment

It is the season for giving and that doesn’t just mean buying gifts. You can also give away items in your home that you are not using anymore. When a new smartphone, computer, television or game system is released it is very common for people to run out and buy the new one. This means that the old model is suddenly being unused. Selling the older model isn’t always easy, since everyone is looking for the newest and best thing and there is no value in a gadget that is collecting dust. One great option is to give it away to someone who can use it. It can be someone you know who needs the item, or you can donate it to a charity or service that will find the right owner for it.

I had a couple of smartphones that were decent quality so I wanted to keep them as backup phones or to give to the kids later. I set them aside and when the time came that I wanted to use them, they no longer worked. One wouldn’t even turn on, and one won’t hold a charge for more than an hour. Now they are only good for recycling. Electronics contain valuable materials such as gold, copper and other rare metals. Reusing electronics helps ensure fewer of these materials are taken out of the earth, so recycling them is obviously a decent option, but someone could have had a year or more of use out of them if I had just given them away.

Do you have unused electronics around the house? Re-gift or donate your out-of-use electronics this holiday season. Your old electronics could be just the thing that someone else is hoping for this Christmas! If a gadget can’t be re-used, visit RecycleYourElectronics.ca to find out where to drop it off to be recycled.