Second hand gadget sales figures will continue to increase over 2013. Historic data shows that the UK had around £762 Million ($1.2 Billion) worth of mobile phones in 2011 being hoarded in their homes. Now in 2013 these figures have dropped to £686 Million ($1.08 Billion), showing that despite the increase in smartphone sales, more and more people are becoming aware that they can use many different methods to trade in their old phones and tech.
So What Devices Are Expected to Hold Their Value?
Recent mobile phone recycling data from comparemymobile.com shows that the average trade in value of a gadget continues to grow by 30% year on year, currently sitting on £114 ($179) at the end of 2012. By using historic pricing data, matched with the popularity of what’s selling now, here are the predictions on the top 5 tech products that will no doubt hold their value in 2013:
- Apple iPad (all models)
- Sony Playstation 3 Slim
- BlackBerry Curve 8520
- Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite
- Amazon Kindle Fire
Apple iPad: The Strongest Gadget Investment You’ll Make!
Comparemymobile.com gadget recycling data shows that the Apple iPad has unparalleled price retention on over 40+ gadget recycling websites. From the variety of iPad models and storage sizes, they lost on average 8.7% of it’s value in 2012 – compare this to it’s competitor, the Samsung Galaxy Tab, which lost 30% in the same period, it’s the right gadget to get if you upgrade these devices regularly.
Interestingly the Apple iPhone 5 release caused the iPhone 4 price to crash by 40% between a 30 day period along with a 367% spike in trade ins. Perhaps this indicates that when the volume of iPad sales increases, the release on new models will have a more severe impact on the value.
So What Does the Future Have in Store for Gadget Recycling?
Most of these websites started off as phone recycling companies, however as the market has grown they expanded into larger ranges. As more prices get listed on these gadgets the value to the consumer gets better naturally from them competing against each other. A recent survey has pulled in data suggesting that these are the top gadgets people have no use for in there homes. This would likely effect the growth of the range consumers can recycle and alter the top devices with great price retention in the future.
- 40 million unused mobile phones
- 12 million unused games consoles
- 11 million unused digital cameras
- 9 million unused PCs
- 5.5 million unused laptops
- 1 million unused sat navs
Top 10 Recycled Devices of 2013 so Far?
Here are the top 10 gadgets currently being recycled in January 2013, Samsung’s entry into the top 10 has come strong this year due to the leap in sales from their popular android powered Galaxy S range.
- Apple iPhone 4 16GB
- Apple iPhone 3GS 16GB
- Apple iPhone 4S 16GB
- BlackBerry 8520
- Apple iPhone 5 16GB
- Samsung Galaxy S2
- BlackBerry Curve 9300
- Samsung Galaxy S3
- Samsung Galaxy S
- BlackBerry Torch 9800
Andrew Beckett of comparemymobile.com told us “One surprising thing you’ll notice when looking at this data is that the iPhone 5 is at number 5 in the most recycled list this month, this is very irregular as the handset is only months old and may reflect the consumers dissatisfaction with the new model.”
He added “As awareness grows of other gadgets we can recycle using this method, you’ll see more categories of gadgets entering these types of sites and eventually prices will rise to a level consumers will accept.”
What Are Your Thoughts?
Have you used a gadget recycling site, what was your experience? Would you choose a gadget recycling site or use a service like eBay or Local listings? Leave a comment below.