You’re a bookman in need of a newcomputer . That old desktop you ’ve had for three eld is just too obtuse to keep up with the pace of progress . So you ’re looking to corrupt . You ’ve set about a little cash , but you have your eye on a nicelaptopthat costs more than your budget would normally allow . You ’re about to settle for a auto with a slowerprocessorand a little lessmemory , when you spot a itemisation on the manufacturer’sWeb site . It say : " Refurbished Computers . "
That depends on whom you ask . The electronics industriousness as a whole does n’t have an official definition for what it means to be refurbished . Torefurbishsomething means that it ’s been renewed or updated in some way , and in general , that ’s honest for electronics . Perhaps an item had a unsound circuit display panel , or the glass face on a euphony role player got scratched and it ’s been supercede , but in some cases , a refurbished detail may have had its packaging damaged badly in the summons of go it to the store . The point inside may be just fine , but the retail merchant may have decided to send it back for repackaging . Or it ’s possible that the merchant vessels corner could be open up and retaped .
The one thing the label think with any sure thing is that a refurbished item ca n’t be sold as fresh . Because of that , and perchance because of the equivocalness of the " freshen up " label , consumer often shy away from buying refurbished merchandise , even when they may be dead fine .
So what should you do ? You could get your computer now and expend the extra money for something else . Or will you just have to get off the auto back after you ’ve had it for just a few days ? The decision you make just may have global consequences . interpret on to learn more .
Advantages of Refurbished Electronics
You ’ve chosen to think on it and maybe get a little advice . Your environmentally witting friend tell you that purchasing refurbished is the agency to go . Why is that ? By giving their merchandise an update , electronics manufacturer can keep electronic waste out of landfills .
Electronic waste is a turn problem worldwide . citizenry in the United States threw off almost 3 million tons of electronics in 2006 . Those machines carry lead and other toxic materials , which are health hazards , but they can also hold gold , silver , copper and even platinum [ beginning : The New York Times ] . Recycling efforts have been deadening to take off . Groups like the Electronics Takeback Coalition promote education of hazardous substances in electronics and programs in which manufacturers recycle the good they sell .
Other organizations take electronic waste matter and make expert enjoyment of it . Some schools and nonprofit groups consent emptyprintercartridges , which they turn in for fundraising . fellowship such as Funding Factory recycle empty cartridges and give rewards , such as schooling supply , classroom tool and electronics . Rather than just change by reversal in their own , some groups solicit empty magazine from others to help parent extra rewards points [ root : The New York Times ] .
One problem that fuel the electronic waste gold rush is the constant release of new products into the consumer stream . For instance , around 16 novel cell phone models come out every calendar month in the United States , making it easy for citizenry to replace their phone . Iain Gillott , president of wireless analyst chemical group iGR , believe 50 to 60 percent of cell earpiece are replaced because people get tired of the aim [ beginning : The New York Times ] .
corporate Good is a nonprofit organisation that collect usedcell phonesand accessory , freshen up them and sell them in develop countries where wireless phones are charm on promptly , thanks to difficulties in installing land - line infrastructure . When someone donate a phone , he or she can specify a charity to which the organization can donate a portion of each phone ’s resale or recycle value [ source : Collective Good ] .
By reusing or recycling these phones , Collective Good observe toxic material in telephone set , such as lead , cadmium , Be , mercury and arsenic , from entering the environment [ reference : Grist ] .
Like a circumstances of other electronic waste , many used and wiped out cell phones are ship overseas where the labor is bum and so are mobile phone telephone set replacement parts . There , shipping containers of old phones are taken apart and refurbish – some of them in factories , others in stall at the village market [ source : The New York Times ] .
Even with the growing numbers of cell phones recycled or refurbished in the United States each class , there are far more that are just sitting around . ReCellular , the largest cadre phone recycler in the area , estimates that only about 10 pct of electric cell headphone are being recycled . Many more are sit on shelves or in drawers , unused . While it may not seem like it cost anything to leave the cell headphone inert , there ’s an environmental monetary value to even that : fit in to Earthworks , an environmental group focusing on mineral development , mininggold for a lap board of just one cellular telephone phone creates 220 pounds of thriftlessness [ source : The New York Times ] .
Everything seems corking now – you want to order that refurbish computer now , do n’t you ? But you still ca n’t get that query out of your head : " What will I do if something goes amiss ? " Do n’t worry too much . That ’s only one of the obstacle in bringing refurbished electronic intersection back to market . Read more on the next pageboy .
Market for Refurbished Products
Refurbishing and sell electronic products back on the market can make an environmental impact , but it makes little remainder if no one bribe it . You ’ve already discovered one of the biggest problem with renovate products , the label itself . Think back to the last prison term you saw the terminus " used elevator car " at your local franchise . Has their signage been change now , to " certified used car , " " pre - owned cars " or even " pre - loved cars ? " One of the reasons you do n’t see more refurbish products in the spotlight is because hoi polloi like the idea of buying something new .
The perception that there might be a problem with the product hold up a prospicient time prevents many from taking a chance on a renovate item . That ’s why refurbished ware sell for less .
But that ’s not the only problem with getting the items back on store shelf . producer have to figure out ways to get the products back to their warehouse and freshen up them in the first place . Those channels may be different from the main distribution line . This summons is calledreverse logistics , as the product to be refurbish have to travel upstream to the manufacturer to be train for sale again .
Taking the item apart and reassemble them to work properly – in a vendable circumstance – means have experts usable who can take the electronics apart , identify the trouble , replace the offending parts and reassemble them . Expert help , of class , cost more than someone who will smash the items assailable with a sledgehammer . The monetary value of labor , transportation , replacement share and repackaging and reshipping are all thing a company has to reckon when put through its refurbishing program .
But when taking into news report the costs of recycling defective material , buying newfangled single and the toll of losing customer over a string of bad mathematical product , it can be in a company ’s best pastime to fetch used and broken electronics back to market place in top - mountain pass status .
As the world go to espouse recycling and learns about the environmental costs of dumping electronic barren and haphazard recycling techniques , more companies are feeling press from individual and organizations to make their surgical operation more environmentally friendly . Greenpeace is one industry guard dog , put out its ranking on green electronics in 2006 [ source : Greenpeace ] . In its ranking , Nokia and Dell were the leaders , though their fleeceable credentials were still far aside from the nonprofit ’s most positively charged rating .
But not all refurbishing has to be done by a producer . Any time you advance a used piece of equipment yourself , you ’re refurbishing it . If yourhard drivecrashes ( you back up your data point regularly , right ? ) you may be able to install a new one , rather than buy a whole unexampled political machine . Or would you speed up your old machine if you contribute some newmemory ? Or a fasterprocessor ? You might be able-bodied to freshen up your honest-to-goodness automobile for less than the price of buying a fresh one .
For more selective information on computers , electronics recycling and other related topic , visit the next page .
