The economy sucks right now, lets just get it out there. With gas nearing $5.00 a gallon, this is causing much consternation (read worry) among everyday people. If you’re a gadget hound like me and friends of mine, It’s a nightmare. We love to have the newest and the best of the best in the gadget community. These are the people that will stand out in a line, overnight to get whatever “Insanely Great” device Apple is producing this week. The people that might mortgage a house or sell a body part to get something a day before your friends. We’re the people that try these things so that you don’t have to, but it gets expensive and is getting worse. Are you one of these people and need the cash to support your gadget “habit”?
Solution: Sell Your Old Devices
With the proliferation of second hand sales on EBay a new category of company has emerged that will give you cash for your mildly used devices and then resell them. What’s stopping you from doing this yourself? Nothing other than the time and trouble of doing it. Companies like BuyBackWorld and NextWorth remove the worry from auction site sales and return you to what you love, playing with those new gadgets and giving you the money to afford them.
My Favorite
The one that I like and use the most myself is Gazelle.com. They make the process extremely easy where every step is laid out for you and all you have to do is send it in and collect the cash. Read on for a day-in-the-life of the Gazelle process and my experiences with them.
The Gazelle Process
Lets say that you own an original Wi-Fi iPad but it seems a bit slow, a bit bulky, a bit heavy plus the new sleek, light, and sexy iPad 2 was just released. The new one is rather expensive but you can’t ignore that itch for the newest and best’”est”. You remember that you read on a fantastic website called “SyberSquad.com” about a place to sell your old device for cash and you can use that for the new one. Going to Gazelle.com you enter “ipad” in the search box on the front page where a dropdown appears with a list of choices where you pick “Apple iPad 16GB Wi-Fi” and click the Search button.
Next the site asks about the condition of the device. You having always taken care of your gadgets pick “No Noticeable Flaws, it looks like it has never been used” selection and click the continue button. If yours shows a little wear and tear, the have a price for you too.
Then you tell the site if there is any personalized engraving (lowers the value a bit) and whether you have the parts that came with it. You click continue and come to find that they will offer you $203 (as of this writing) for your device. You can click add to box and find and add other devices or check out. They will even send you a box in the mail complete with mailing labels where you can just pack up your hardware with some padding (crushed newspaper works well) and mail it out…FREE.
They will pay by check, PayPal, direct deposit into a checking account, or with an Amazon Gift Card (with which you receive slightly more credit for your device). So you just sit back, wait for them to check your device, emailing you at every step along the way, and wait for the cash to come rolling in. If there is a problem, such as a phone that hasn’t been cleared from a contract, they will contact you quickly to clear it up.
My Experiences
I’ve sold several devices to Gazelle and always received the quoted amount, OR MORE, for my items. I once sold a Sony 1st Gen. eBook reader and they actually paid me more money than was quoted because of it’s excellent condition. I’ve even asked them to add a few devices to their database so that I could sell them back. If you can’t find it on their site, they give you the opportunity to have it added and receive a quote via email.
If you have an ancient gadget that you just want to dispose of in an environmentally sound manner you can send it to them and they’ll take care of it. You have to send at your own cost, but if you fashion yourself an eco-warrior this will work out well for you.
Need to raise some money for a church group or charity? Gazelle will setup a web portal that people can donate their old gadgets to and the money goes to your organization. All you have to do is signup and promote it to your supporters. It’s great for supporting a cause.
So Now What?
Do you like making money? Could you use a little more? Go through your attics, closets, and for those of us less organized, the crap cluttering up your desk and contact Gazelle. Your bank account will thank you for it.
Email This Post | 
Print This Post
No related posts.
