Why buying secondhand technology matters- Greenmarket | AD

It almost feels like yesterday that I removed my Motorola razr phone from my school trouser pocket and tried my hardest to flip it open with one sudden movement of the wrist to answer my mum’s phone call, or received my LG chocolate slider phone one Christmas morning.

Back then, it’s what you did. You circled the latest phones in the Argos catalogue, you dreamt about them, and you tried to keep up buying what was hot collecting a top drawer of used phones. Then with the release of the iPhone in 2007 and the years beyond, we worked out how much our monthly budgets could possibly be stretched signing up to contracts we knew didn’t really make sense but we had to have.

Smartphones have now become an essential and almost unavoidable part of modern life. “In 2008, around 17% of people in the UK owned a smartphone, but a decade later that figure has reached 78%, and that figure reaches 95% for those aged between 16-24 years old. 53% of American children owning a cell phone by the time their seventh birthday arrives.”(1)

But while the figures on cell phone usage rise, I begin to care less about whether I’m keeping up with the latest models but care more about the cost, not just to my bank balance but more so to the earth and its people.

I recently bought a secondhand iPhone from greenmarket

Greenmarket is an innovative online marketplace for eco-conscious individuals and organisations to share sustainable solutions, products and services. These solutions can range from eco-alternatives like Refurbished Smartphones to Car Sharing Services, Renewable Energy Products and free content to help you lower your daily impact. Greenmarket was born when a group of entrepreneurs, environmentalists and engineers decided they needed to do more to fight climate change and accelerate the circular economy. They also have a Bcorp status pending which is great news. So, with my iPhone on its last legs for a long time but feeling equally unenthused about scrolling through Facebook Marketplace looking for someone selling a phone I could trust I was introduced to Greenmarket at the perfect time.

Here are 4 reasons I went secondhand with greenmarket:

  1. It’s ethical

    A smartphone is about 40% metals, 40% plastics and 20% ceramics and resin. Labour exploitation is extensive in the production of electronic goods, and many of the components used, are classed as conflict minerals such as tungsten, tin, tantalum and gold. Minerals that often mean children and heavily exploited workers have been used to mine these minerals. Some phone companies make it a priority to make sure people are cared for in their supply chain such as Fairphone, but this is VERY hard to do and convoluted. Buying secondhand technology means there is no increase in demand for raw materials, nor do they require more energy and labour for manufacture and so purchasing a phone that is already in circulation to protect people from further exploitation is a no-brainer for me. If you follow me on any platform you will always know it’s about PEOPLE first for me…fair and trusted supply chains matter a lot.

  2. It’s cheaper

    I chose an Iphone XS which is currently listed on the Argos website for £379.99, I got it for less than half price!

  3. It’s better for the environment

    E-waste has been labelled as an environmental time bomb. The Independent revealed that “e-waste now accounts for 50 million tonnes per year, (That’s equivalent to the weight of 6,850 Eiffel Towers! ) with the figure expected to double by 2050.” (2) That’s equivalent to the weight of 6,850 Eiffel Towers! I mentioned the components needed to make a phone above, all metals, minerals and components that must be mined and sourced which usually means communities, biodiversity displaced or destroyed and a great amount of water and fossil fuels used in the process. The components making up an iPhone can also leak during production and disposal which is highly harmful to the environment.

  4. They are as good as new.

    I have said this SO many times before, but secondhand does not mean second best. Personally, receiving this iPhone through the post felt equally as exciting and new as if I had gone to the shops. There are options on the website to choose excellent, good or fair depending on your budget and needs. The one I chose was in the ‘excellent category’ and came without any faults.

  5. THERE IS A 12-MONTH WARRANTY

    This sealed the deal for me! I have done a few FB marketplace phone purchases before, on been passed on models by friends. You never quite know what you’re getting and if it’s a worthy investment. There was so much security buying from Greenmarket knowing it was trusted by others and knowing that if there was something wrong I’ve got cover!

Super thankful for a working phone which I feel I can enjoy even more because of its story and the fact I’m giving something another life that would have otherwise been cast off or unused ! There are a shocking 76.8 million unused phones in the UK! (3) many which may even be sat in your top drawer at home so don’t forget to recycle them and consider buying secondhand next time you’re looking for a phone!

Greenmarket also sell refurbished MacBooks, tablets and airpods as well as male and female fashion and bathroom and kitchen essentials with more products being added soon-

Use code SLOW10 to get £10 off purchases over £50!

(1) https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/technology/shopping-guide/mobile-phones

(2) https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/electronic-waste-recycling-un-report-landfill-phones-minerals-world-economic-forum-davos-a8744371.html

(3) https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/technology/buying-second-hand-tech

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