Don’t just throw away your old amber computer monitor or ancient brick cell phone. I’ll tell you about eco-friendly resources for disposing of old electronics such as computers, mobile phones, the VCR, and so on. Turns out many retailers will take old electronics, and your local Goodwill is a great resource. 
The problem with old electronics
It should really be illegal to throw out certain things in the trash. Cell phones can be loaded with cadmium, mercury, and arsenic, which are all toxic. Old computer monitors and tube TVs might have up to eight pounds of lead. These are not things you want in land-fill.
Recycling old electronics is the right way to dispose of them
Luckily, your cell-phone provider should be able to recycle your old phones. Its a good idea to clean all your information off the phone before getting rid of it, here is a link to a tool which will give you instructions on how to erase all your cell phone data, based on which phone you have.
Some manufacturers and retailers are setting up programs to help safely dispose of old electronics. You can also try The National Center for Electronics Recycling, which lists resources in your area.
Retailer Programs — Probably the quickest way to get rid of your old electronics.
- Staples, Best Buy, and Office Depot will take your old batteries, mobile phones, cameras and MP3 players off your hands for free.
- Walmart’s and Best Buy give you store credit on different items.
- Costco and Sears are supposed to give you a gift card for the cash value of any electronics you turn in.
- New Info… read about Goodwill below.
Manufacturer Programs — Some offer free recycling, some have conditions.
- Apple will recycle your old Mac or any brand of PC if you’re buying a new one. If you’re not buying a new Apple, they will charge you $30.
- Dell will recycle any Dell product. If you’re buying a new Dell, you can recycle old PC or Mac through them. (Dell recycling site link)
- Sony will recycle TV’s and computers for free at drop-off centers. (www.sony.com/recycle)
- EMRMC, The Electronic Manufacturers Recycling Management Company, is a great resource for recycling any Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Sharp, Toshiba, or Vizio brand TVs, DVD players, or VCRs.
Charities — Many will accept donations of working computers, and probably VCR’s and MP3 players too.
- Look into www.cristina.org – a not-for-profit foundation dedicated to the support of training through donated technology.
- Also of interest: freecycle, connects people who are giving stuff away.
- There’s also the Salvation army.
Misc…
- You can try to get a few pennies at gazelle.com or myboneyard.com.
- Last but not least, dont forget ebay and craigslist.
July 2011 Update:
Through the RecyleWorks-eWaste web page, I found that you can drop off laptops, computers, cell phones, and televisions, whether they work or not, at any Goodwill Donation Center free of charge!!
Unfortunately at the time of this writing, the link to Electronics Recycling at Goodwill on their website is broken. Regardless I went there and dropped off my old monitor.
