Post Office kicks off free, by-mail gadget recycling

Tue Mar 18, 2008 3:27PM EDT

See Comments (81)

Got an old camera, cell phone, or MP3 player that you want to toss? Under a new pilot program offered by the U.S. Postal Service, recycling your dead gadgets is as easy as dropping them in the mail.

Computerworld reports that the Post Office's new "Mail Back" program is getting a trial run in 10 U.S. markets, including Chicago, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Washington, D.C. If the pilot program takes off, a nationwide rollout will follow.

So here's the deal: Just bring your old gadgets (handhelds, cell phones, MP3 players, and even inkjet cartridges - no 20" CRTs or dead dot-matrix printers, unfortunately) to one of 1,500 participating post offices, seal them in preprinted, postage-paid envelopes (you can take as many envelopes as you want), and drop them in the mail.

The package goes to Clover Technologies Group, which is partnering with the Post Office in the new recycling program. In a press release, the Post Office promises that Clover will refurbish, resell, or break down the discarded gadgets for recycling, and that nothing will end up in a landfill.

It's a clever idea for those of us with old electronics too outdated to sell on eBay. Indeed, I have an old, 2001-era iPod that's essentially worthless (I priced it over at SecondRotation and got an estimate of exactly $0), and I'd rather drop it in the mail than pay to have it recycled.

Related:
Recycle electronics free by mail [Computerworld]

Comments on Post Office kicks off free, by-mail gadget recycling

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  • 66 Posted by lily1130 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 6:52PM EDT Report Abuse

    agree with elle.marr where are these 1500 post offices?, in order to make this program work have to make it easy for people to participate

  • 67 Posted by abuelat on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:44PM EDT Report Abuse

    how about dvds and cds. where or how do they get disposed?

  • 68 Posted by adcrapps on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:45PM EDT Report Abuse

    Is anyone thinking about the possible security risk this could pose? I mean just bring in a bunch of devices that would have to be scanned in an airport and package them up and drop them off at the post office?! Is is just me or does that sound crazy? I hope it fails miserably. Let the kids play with them. Then maybe they'll stop selling those toy ones.

  • 69 Posted by mindtravelerstretch on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:21PM EDT Report Abuse

    wow whos the moron who thought of this.. Did anyone from homeland security know about this.. 1. I wouldnt want to work at a post office.. 2. whats a bomb and a cell phone have in common?? 3. have you ever heard the one about the battery on the cell phone catch fire..4. the battery in my cell phone contains chemicals.doesnt yours? 5. I saw a man drop a device into the mail box it was in front of the whitehouse it was metal.. I hope the post office has a great insurance... I dont know why but this reminds me of the swoosh that they had follow the puck at a hockey games on tv... I dont get american government.. feel free to back lash hate to tacobelldog1 on yahoo

  • 70 Posted by jwhal6 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:45PM EDT Report Abuse

    SORRY - this will fail... have to get free boxes for USPS wrap them, and then back to the post office... And with only 1500 alleged post offices, for 2 million people in the united states = do the math... If I had and old mp3 player I would just toss it the big green mail box, or even easier toss in trash, and it GONE no muss no fuss. ERACE personal data, then SMASH your Hard drive into tiny pieces. Nice try

  • 71 Posted by madel1963 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:02PM EDT Report Abuse

    Recycling would be a better choice for people rather than throwing it straight to the garbage. In this way, people won't be worried on how to deal with old relic gadgets.

  • 72 Posted by akrigby1996 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:49PM EDT Report Abuse

    I live in a rural town in Indiana about 3 hrs outside of Chicago and they have this available to us. As the company I work for uses stadard printers and we are constantly going through ink cartridges, we just plop 2 or 3 in the bag and host them in the mail a couple times a month. Everyone working for the company uses this for their old cells and mp3 players as well. It's working out great knowing at least some of the trash is going back to use.

  • 73 Posted by geo7399 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:07PM EDT Report Abuse

    Uh....first of all...I completely agree with one of the posters here when they say to just keep using the item they already have. I have and I don't believe I'm missing anything. No big void in my life...but then again it's my life and my choice. Your life my vary. As for a first generation IPod being worthless.....check this out: http://cgi.ebay.com/Apple-iPod-1st-First-Generation-1G-Gen-5GB-5-GB_W0QQitemZ280211592436QQihZ018QQcategoryZ90964QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem That doesn't seem worthless to me.

  • 74 Posted by maggieami on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:03PM EDT Report Abuse

    Before you fuss and fume over not being in a test market area or not knowing where these post offices are, check with your local schools. We mail these items to other recycling programs AND get cash back (not much but a little!) for our schools. Also, check your local Yahoo Freecycle group... chances are someone there has a connection to a gadget recycling program too.

  • 75 Posted by the_dream22 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:06PM EDT Report Abuse

    I'm noticing a lot of posts on here by people mentioning alternative ways to get rid of ewaste and things like ipods, cell phones, etc. This program is providing another option, and that's great! Of course if items are still useable finding a new home for it through something like ebay, freecycle, or donation to a reuse program - should obviously be your first step. BUT, inevitably with all the electronics out there, sometimes they die, sometimes they get to the end of their useable life, and we NEED to find a home for them. A lot of people will just throw these items in the trash - unfortunately we live in a society focused on convenience, and if it isn't easy - people won't do it. Hopefully programs like this will provide an EASY way for people to responsibly dispose of unwanted ewaste. Hey, and if a for-profit company finds a way to profit off this - good for them! I read a lot of posts of people complaining that someone is making money off this waste, but hey...isn't that a better alternative then it ending up in the trash? We pay for trash both economically and environmentally as a society...so if a company can generate income for itself (also employing people in the process - a good thing for society)...we should be encouraging this. Yes, our electronics have precious metals, etc. in them, and those materials are worth money. BUT will any one individual recover enough to make it worth their while - NO. But companies that can aggregate great amounts of these items can recover materials in a way that makes it profitable - it's all about economies of scale.

  • 77 Posted by thos.niles on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:08PM EDT Report Abuse

    I work for SecondRotation.com and wanted to join the conversation to clarify a few things that have come up in this tread. Our goal is to make it as easy as possible for people to sell or recycle their unused gadgets. We believe that reuse is just as powerful as recycling so we encourage both. Many of the unused items out there still hold value, so we pay folks for them, inspect them to ensure they are in working condition, remove any personal data from them, then extend the life of the gadgets by selling them to someone who still values them. There's no cost to use our service at all. In fact, we pay for the shipping, and for most items even provide packaging. Once a product is at the end of its life, we'll accept it and ensure it is recycled properly for free. Both of these practices help to keep dangerous materials out of landfills and we've found that most people are excited to get paid for being responsible with their unwanted electronics. Because we need to cover our costs for shipping and handling, what we pay is slightly lower than what an individual could make if they sold it themselves, but we're proud of the prices we are able to offer. For example right now on average we're paying: $35 for a Motorola Razr V3c $97 for a Blackberry RIM Pearl 8100 $32 for 4GB Apple iPod minis $940 for Canon EOS 5D Digital SLR Camera $1050 for Apple MacBook Pros. Glad to see so many people as excited as we are about this topic!

  • 78 Posted by edderds on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:51PM EDT Report Abuse

    This is an excellent idea and I think everyone should co-operate. Hopefully recycling the old CRT's, printers, CPU's, etc. will somehow come later. Recycling of any material is very important to our economy and environment. Oh, and about "freddybz's" remark - an old cell phone or an MP3 player isn't gonna make his garbage bill increase. He must work at the local landfill or drive a garbage truck seeking job security.

  • 79 Posted by marius55@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:07PM EDT Report Abuse

    The Post Office would also be the perfect recycling place for household batteries and the new energy efficient fluorenscent bulbs containing mercury. yoyo

  • 80 Posted by keller.georgia on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:49PM EDT Report Abuse

    Besides encouraging conservation of natural resources, you can help the new American co-ed scout program, Adventure Scouts USA, www.AdventureScoutsUSA.org by mailing them inkjet cartridges to P.O. Box 35808, Los Angeles, CA 90035-0808. Your inkjet cartridges get recycled, helping the environment and you enable the scout program to continue to grow and better assist those they serve all on a fully nondiscriminatory basis.

  • 81 Posted by starcarlton on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:39PM EDT Report Abuse

    Funny how the post office does not have a recycle bin for - are you ready - here goes --- PAPER. The garbage can outside of my local post office is always full of amazon.com boxes and peoples mail. Think of how much papaer goes through the post office everyday that could be recycled. I have been trying to contact my state reps about this - but everyone redirects me somewhere else.

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