Don’T Fix A Broken Laptop; Get Cash For It
Written by on March 9, 2010 – 2:34 pm -
I had definitely gotten up on the wrong side of the bed. 8 A.M., with wrecked hair and badly-burnt coffee, I began my work-day with the intention of collating some old emails. Unfortunately, my laptop would not power up. After numerous attempts to woo, coddle, and accolade the machine, I finally got the old laptop to power up. A few minutes later, detecting its sudden bit of verbal inattention, the laptop involuntarily shut down and became once more a black screen. Bad words were said. A quick consultation with my husband, who is much more technical-minded than I, provided me with the realization that I had an old, broken laptop which I must trade in for a new one. After a brief googleing, I come across a site that would pay me to trade in my used laptop. This seemed too good to be true, especially because I could trade in a laptop that was both old and broken to get cash to supplement a new laptop. At that moment, I thought that the sun had just come out on my cloudy day.
I visited the website, http://www.cashforlaptops.com immediately to do some preliminary research. First, I noticed the professional graphics on the site and the E-trust and Veri-sign verification logos at the bottom. This was very promising thus far, for I had become somewhat attached to the old laptop in the past few years and I wanted to get the best possible value for it when I trade the laptop in. The first step was to get a quote. This took less than thirty seconds and I was ecstatic to get an offer of $150 to trade in my used, broken laptop. This was great news. However, my next question was how a business that could recycle an old or broken laptop could work, so I consulted the FAQ to find out. There I discovered more great news. The website pays for shipping, by sending a pre-paid, insured box to ship my laptop in. Once, the used laptop is received, its memory is erased, and within one day, a check is mailed to the customer. Already, I was thinking that this was probably the easiest possible process to trade in my broken laptop, however I wanted to do some alternative research to see what other deals I could get.
First, I went to some competitor sites, which also offered to pay cash to trade in a used or broken laptop. I found that these sites either didn’t offer as much money as cash for laptops.com did, or they just appeared to be scams with inexplicit privacy policies, or vague information on the location/age of the business. Then, I went to E-bay and ran a search for used laptop parts. Almost a thousand hits. Considering that I didn’t have the time, energy, or technical know-how to take apart my used laptop and requisition its parts, I decided to try local. I called a local computer store who offered to buy my used laptop for $100. I politely declined the offer and decided that my first option to trade in the broken laptop at www.cashforlaptops.com was the most viable and economic option. Plus, I felt good about doing my part to recycle electronic waste and help save the planet. (It was the least I could do for the planet, considering the hundreds of aerosol hair-spray cans I have used throughout the years.)
Needless to say, in a few days I got the prepaid box, slipped the broken laptop in it, and slapped the shipping label on it (which came in the box). In a few more days, the mailman delivered a deliciously sweet $150 check in my name. With this, and a little help from a healthy tax return, I am enjoying the sound of the happy clicking of shiny keys on a new laptop. Thus, I have already collated those emails, and have a bit of extra time to give some advice on how to easily trade in an old, broken laptop at www.cashforlaptops.com. However, I am at a bit of a loss with the burnt coffee…
| Posted in » 