Turn Your Old Trash Into Money!

If you're like most Americans, you probably have a stockpile of old cell phones, laptops, or other electronics taking up valuable space in your home. It's hard to know what to do with working gadgets you no longer need.

Luckily there are more options than ever for those who don't want to fill landfills with stuff that others can use. In fact, it's possible to earn a few extra bucks in the process.

How? A growing number of websites allow you to easily sell your old electronics for cash. They all work in the same basic way, although there are differences in details such as which products they buy, and, of course, in how much they're willing to shell out.

Here's how it generally works:

• Search for the product you want to unload.
• Answer a few simple questions about its overall condition and which additional accessories you have.
• Company will calculate an offer for you.
• If you decide to sell, you can print out a pre-paid shipping label. Some will send a box for you to ship in.
• Payment options vary, but most allow you to choose between receiving a check in the mail or a credit to your PayPal account. In some cases, you can choose to donate the payment to charity.

Some tips before you get started:

• Shop around to find the best prices. For an iPhone 3G, 8GB, in good condition bids ranged from $119 to $186, so it's definitely worth the extra time it takes to visit a few websites.
• Be sure to check what the terms are if the item you send isn't in the expected condition. Some websites will offer you the chance to change your mind and have the product sent back to you. Others will send products with no value to be responsibly recycled.
• Don't wait too long to sell your old gadgets because the prices decrease as they get older.
• Remove your personal data before shipping out your product.

Below is a sampling of websites that will pay cash for your castaways.

Gazelle buys a large assortment of products -- everything from cell phones, PDAs, and MP3 players to laptops, digital cameras, gaming systems, and more. You can even sell old movies, games, and camera lenses.

Choose between a check, credit to your PayPal account, an Amazon gift card (pays an extra 5%), or a donation to a charity (you choose from a list of organizations). If a gadget has no value, they'll recycle it for you. Gazelle says it removes all personal data from every item it receives (you may still choose to erase data before you drop it in the mail). The company also has a program with Costco where you can receive a Costco cash card in exchange for old devices.

You Renew buys or recycles cell phones, MP3 players, digital cameras, calculators, laptops, gaming devices, external drives, and tablet eReaders. If your device has no value, you can still ship it for free to YouRenew for safe recycling. As an added bonus, the company will either plant a tree or give a donation towards a domestic renewable energy product.

NextWorth purchases iPods, iPhones, cell phones, cameras, e-Readers, laptops, video games, game console, GPS, DVD, and movies. Your choices for payment include: PayPal, check in the mail, Target gift card, or donation to the Red Cross for Haiti relief. The site tells you exactly how to remove all the data from your iPhone, which is a nice touch.

Flipswap offers a set price for cell phones only. No questions are asked, but the company says phones need to be in "working condition." If they don't meet conditions, Flipswap will either pay you a portion of the money promised or they'll recycle it.

Payment choices include: Check or donations to Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Sierra Club, or ASPCA. Several cell phones are listed as "no value," in which case the company pays your postage to send it back for recycling. It plants a tree for every phone that's recycled.

Cell for Cash, as its name suggests, only buys old cell phones. They offer a set price without asking questions, but expect the phones to be in good condition. It wasn't entirely clear in the terms and conditions how the company handles phones that don't meet its expectations, so it's worth checking out before you commit. Cell for Cash will send you a check in the mail.

Just interested in recycling your old electronics?

• Search for local recycling events or visit Earth911.

• Major manufacturers will often take back their products, and some will even offer you a discount on buying a new product. Apple, for example, will give you a 10 percent discount on a new iPod when you bring in your old one to be recycled.

• Several retailers will allow you to bring in your gadgets for free recycling. And some, such as Radio Shack, allow you to trade in old devices for store credit.

Environmental journalist Lori Bongiorno shares green-living tips and product reviews with Yahoo! Green's users. Send Lori a question or suggestion for potential use in a future column. Her book, Green Greener Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-smart Choices a Part of Your Life is available on Yahoo! Shopping and Amazon.com.

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