ReCellular's 2008 Top 10 Recycled Phones List

 

DEXTER, Mich., November 17, 2008/PRNewswire via COMTEX – ReCellular

 

Today, ReCellular announced the top 10 most recycled phones for 2008. The first annual list illustrates how rapidly wireless technology becomes outdated, and how consumers often discard phones for the technology of their new phones, rather than functional problems with their old phones.

 

ReCellular is on track to collect six million used cell phones for reuse or recycling in 2008. Of the total phones ReCellular has processed to date:

 

      -- Motorola leads the list, making four of the top 10 models

      -- The RAZR V3M and C139 are the newest models, introduced in 2006

      -- 80 percent of the Top 10 phones were still functional, eligible for reconditioning and reuse

 

Top 10	Cell Phone, by Model	Release Date
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10	Nokia 6010 Motorola RAZR V3 LG VX4500 Motorola RAZR V3M Motorola C139 LG VX3200 Samsung A670 Motorola V551 LG VX5200 LG VX3300	2004 2004 2004 2006 2006 2004 2004 2004 2005 2005

 

“Three years ago, the most popular trends were ultra-compact handsets and the first entry-level camera phones,” says Chuck Newman, CEO of ReCellular. “Today, those phones are being retired in large quantities as consumers are moving toward newer technologies, especially smart phones and multimedia-enabled handsets.”

 

Based on the these trends, ReCellular expects the best-selling models of today -- such as the Apple iPhone and BlackBerry Curve -- to appear on the list of top recycled models in 2009 or 2010.

 

“The average American replaces their cell phone every 18 months, which is a great challenge and opportunity,” says Newman. "The challenge is there are over 130 million phones retired every year, potentially creating 65,000 tons of dangerous electronics waste.

 

“The opportunity is diverting that waste through increased reuse and recycling efforts. Most discarded phones are still functional, and are ideally suited for reconditioning and reuse to meet the global demand for affordable, functional handsets. Recycling obsolete phones would reclaim valuable materials that could be used to replace virgin materials needed for new cell phone production.”

 

 

About ReCellular
With offices in the United States, Hong Kong, and Brazil, ReCellular Inc. is the world's leading electronics-sustainability firm. We provide solutions for the collection, reuse and recycling of used personal electronics that generate financial return for our partners, quality products for our customers, funding for charity organizations, and protection of the environment. Corporate, charitable, consumer and wholesale information is available at www.ReCellular.com.