eTrashing old digiCrap without iGuilt

I admit it: I’m attracted to shiny new tech objects.  Fortunately I’ve learned to (sometimes) curb my desires and not (always) buy the latest iThis and eThat.  But I do have a remarkable collection of defunct digital widgets and gizmos from the last 20 years of working and playing in high-tech.  My basement runneth over.

We recently made an effort to clear the cruft, but wanted to avoid simply sending it all to a landfill.  eBay, Amazon and Criagslist were out as we lacked the time to post, package and ship dozens of gadgets.  Instead, we found two excellent, environmentally- and socially-conscious options.

First option – best for widgets in working order – is Gazelle, which claims to be changing the world one cellphone/laptop/iPod at a time.  In our case it was one PDA and one iPod.  With a list of model numbers in hand, it’s easy to use their site to find the product, rate its condition (they pay extra for cables, chargers, manuals and original packaging) and click “Calculate” to find out how much they’ll give you for it.  They send you a shipping label and for some transactions even the box to ship it in, though one wonders how green it can be to ship empty boxes about.  Once they receive your items, they check them over and send you your money – with a 5% bonus is you take your payment as an Amazon.com gift certificate.

On the socially-conscious side, instead of payment you can donate your money to a charity, or use Gazelle to organize the high-tech equivalent of a bake sale.  Arrange collections of used high-tech gadgetry through their Web site and put the money towards your charity of choice.

The second option – only viable for those in the Seattle area, though I’m sure there are similar organizations elsewhere – is Interconnection.  They collect donations of used computers, monitors and peripherals.  No, you won’t make bank like you might at Gazelle – thought you likely not reading this if you’re looking to maximize your return – but you’ll get a nice warm feeling.  And a tax break!  Interconnection is a 501(c)3 charity letting you give Uncle Sam’s long arm a little smack as he reaches for your wallet on Tax Day.

Both Gazelle and Interconnection emphasize reuse over recycle of the products they collect.  Gazelle uses retail and wholesale channels to resell products while Interconnection sells rebuilt system and parts in their Seattle store.  They also ship computers around the world and offer full systems at discount to low-income or unemployed individuals.  Volunteers at Interconnection can trade hours for hardware while gaining valuable computer skills.

Finally, both claim to responsibly recycle anything that cannot be reused.

So, look around your office.  There’s a change to be made, one piece of digiCrap at a time.