Selling & disposing of old cell phones – where is that possible?

In many cases, simply throwing away the old mobile phone is wasted money and is also not the most environmentally friendly option. Here we show you what options you have to turn your old smartphone (functional or defective) into money.

Often you can even sell broken cell phones. Spare parts and valuable metals in the defective devices can be recycled.

Selling old cell phones – tips

There are already a number of online portals for selling old cell phones. But first you should note the following points:

1. Gather all the accessories for your cell phone that you still have. This can possibly increase the sales price (especially in the case of private sales).
2. Checks whether the smartphone is still fully functional or whether there is a defect.
3. Clean the device! A clean smartphone looks better in photos and is often valued immediately.
4. If you want to sell it in a classifieds market or at auction, you should take your own photo of the device and not just use a product image from the manufacturer. A good picture showing the condition of the clean(!) device can sometimes work wonders.
5. And before selling, remove your own SD card, erase all private data and factory reset the device:

Where can you sell old cell phones?

Selling from private to private is often associated with a little more effort, but usually also offers a higher profit. You can offer your used smartphone yourself with the following services:

• The classic: eBay. Here, however, one should not forget that eBay charges fees for auctions and that there may also be fewer interested parties because there are also postage costs for an already low-priced device.
• Also Amazon has become a popular seller of used goods. You need one for this Amazon seller account, which you can easily create with your normal account. However, Amazon also collects a share of your profit, which you can determine exactly before you list an item.
• Without fees, but often only locally, it goes through various classifieds sites such as eBay Classifieds, Quoka, or Kalaydo Buying and Selling Groups on Facebook.
• Of course you can also try the absolute “old school” way and a note on the bulletin board of the local supermarket or your university.

Which platforms are buying old smartphones?

There are a number of providers who specialize in buying and selling old cell phones and other used goods. We have summarized a selection of well-known providers for you here:

With the various providers you can see directly what (maximum) price you can still get for the cell phone in the specified condition. In general, however, one should not count on too much money. With the exception of Apple’s iPhone, most smartphones and cell phones are depreciating rapidly.

You often get less from second-hand dealers than when selling privately, since the companies also have to make money from resale. On the other hand, selling on such platforms is completed faster and much more convenient. In addition, the companies often accept the broken devices for a small amount of money. You can find a good comparison of the various purchase platforms specifically for mobile phones at handyverkauf.net.

Dispose of old mobile phones: Whether used, defective or broken

As already mentioned, you can also turn defective mobile phones into money with the providers mentioned above. If you wanted to throw the device away anyway, you can at least get one or two euros and have the good conscience that the smartphone will at least be properly recycled. If the phone is simply used or a recent broken phone, the vendor may repair and resell it instead of recycling.

If the mobile phone is so old that it is no longer even listed with the buyers or only fetches a few cents, you can also send it in to Telekom free of charge. Alternatively, it can also be handed in at the local electrical collection point, at the recycling center or at larger electronics stores (from 400 m²). Definitely belongs an old cell phone not in the household wasteas this would be a waste of valuable resources – whether used and still working or broken.

What happens to the old cell phones?

Depending on whether the devices are broken or still functional, the old cell phones experience different fates:

• If the device still works, it is cleaned, reset and finally sold on. In this case, you should definitely delete your data on the smartphone before selling it.
• If the mobile phone is defective, it is still not worthless. The device contains valuable metals and rare earths that can be reused – which in turn protects the environment.

Dispose of cell phone battery

The same applies to mobile phone batteries as to normal accumulators and batteries: They are hazardous waste and must be disposed of accordingly. But you don’t have to put a lot of effort into it. Most supermarkets and many drugstores have collection boxes for all batteries. Cell phone batteries can also be thrown into these. Also read: Where can you dispose of batteries?

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