Recycle Computers and Make a Donation (or Recycle Computers and Get Cash!)
- Either way, you will help the environment.

Technology changes faster than we can blink. Our nation is drowning under the weight of our discarded electronics. Many of these old cell phones, digital cameras, video cameras, and computers are in good working order. They’ve just been upgraded, given the pink slip by their owners.

What do we do with these old gadgets? All too often they end up in the basement waiting to be purged. At the next spring cleaning, off to the landfill they go.

What should we do with our old electronics? Recycle computers - give them away! But that takes motivation and energy and effort. Too much effort. Many companies have stepped up to help you with that burden. Some of these companies donate the equipment to charities and you get a deduction. Some sell the equipment, donate the proceeds to charity, and you get a deduction. And some just plain pay you cash. And cash can be a good motivator.

I recently came across a site called Second Rotation. They buy your old electronic gadgets - and they make it really simple.

• Using their user friendly pricing guide, you can quickly find the make and model of the item you want to sell.
• You then answer a series of yes/no questions about whether the item is working and whether you have all the original stuff like chargers and manuals that came with the product.
• Then you rate the overall condition of the product. Second Rotation calculates an estimate of what they will pay you for it.
• If this is acceptable to you then you click accept.
• You ship the product to Second Rotation free of charge.
• They check out your product, if it is up to snuff, they send you a check for the price you agreed to.
• Easy.

Second Rotation accepts a variety of gadgets. They recycle computers (laptops), cell phones, gaming consoles, digital cameras, camcorders, mp3 players, and GPS devices. Just remember, you must check that the make and model of your product is listed, as they don’t take everything.

Of course Second Rotation is only one option in electronics recycling. A while ago I wrote about about a company where you can recycle cell phones for a good cause. Donating electronics is always a good choice as well.

Last spring I wrote about my thoughts on cell phones for kids from a parents perspective. At the time I was thinking about purchasing a cell phone for my son.

Over the summer, I did indeed join a family cell phone plan and get a cell phone for him. Now, 6 months later, I can look back and see if my perspective on cell phones for kids is the same.

The bottom line is favorable. I like knowing that my son has a cell phone and is reachable at all times. He is now in middle school and always carries the cell phone with him. He is responsible enough to take care of and keep the cell phone charged. He is also careful to turn the phone off during school hours according to school policy.

The entire cell phones for kids experience is not without it’s lessons though.

Data Plans and Cell Phones for Kids

Many cell phone carriers have web access, downloadable ringtones, music, videos, games, etc. Almost all of these extras carry a charge. Even if you subscribe to a data plan, the time you spend on the site and size of the transfer may be included but the actual download (for example, purchasing the ringtone) is not.

This potential for tons of hidden fees made me extremely nervous. Even if the kids know that they should not download anything it is not only tempting, but very easy to do accidentally. Suddenly that great family plan will be costing you thousands of dollars per month. What I found out is that you can call most carriers and they can block access to these services from your or your kids cell phones. Even if you think everything is blocked always ask the very general question “Is there any other service on this phone that can result in additional charges?” - “I want every service that can result in additional charges to be blocked because the phone is being used by a child.”

Texting and Cell Phones for Kids

I opted for the unlimited texting plan. I found that my son is big on texting - he texts me, our extended family, and his friends. He actually texts more than he talks. We would probably be ok with a plan that allows a ton of text messages but the unlimited plan did not cost that much more.

How Many Minutes on Plans for Cell Phones for Kids?

If you have a family plan - this may actually depend more on how much you use the phone. As I said before, my son texts more than he talks, so he uses very few minutes. I was able to downgrade our plan because I found that we were not using all of our allowed minutes - and if you have rollover minutes then you are even better off.

In the end cell phones for kids can be a good choice but you, as a parent, need to actively monitor your cell phone bill in order to get the most out of it. As your child grows, his cell phone usage will also change so what works today may not be the same tomorrow.

How many of you have old, discarded cell phones lying around the house? In this age of technology cell phone providers are practically giving away phones, so it really makes no sense to hold on to your old phone for longer than your contract period.

Of course, there is a downside. The earth. With throw away techonolgy our landfills are bursting at the seams and high tech materials are not biodegradable or environmentally friendly.

So, if you care about the earth, wouldn’t you jump at the chance to recycle your old phones and help our troops at the same time?

Yesterday in USA Today, I read an article about a company called Cell Phone for Soldiers. This company sells old cell phones to a recycler for about $5 each and uses the proceeds to buy prepaid phone cards to send to the troops overseas.

Cell Phones for Soldiers is the brainchild of two teenagers from Massachusetts, Brittany and Robbie Bergquist. It all started in 2004 when they read a story about a serviceman that racked up a $7,600 phone bill when calling home from Iraq. The inequity of leaving your family behind to serve the country and then having to pay such high rates to keep in touch struck a chord with the Bergquists. Cell Phones for Soldiers was created to help troops keep in touch ease the financial burden of calling home.

The busy high school junior and sophmore continue to run the company from their home and to date have provided soliers with over $1.4 million in minutes - approximately 400,000 phone cards.

It makes a mother’s heart proud! And what a difference they are making.

You can join the effort and donate your old cell phones. The Cell Phones for Soldiers website has a list of drop off sites and a downloadable postage paid shipping label. Their mailing address is:

Cell Phones for Soldiers
c/o ReCellular
2555 Bishop Circle West
Dexter, MI 48130

1-800-426-1031

There is even a link to an application called Cell Phone Data Eraser that can help you to erase all personal information off your old phone.

You, too, can make a difference.

If you have other gadgets to dispose of, read how you can recycle computers, cell phones, digital cameras, and more for cash.

Cell Phones for Kids: Should your child have a cell phone?

The latest item on my fifth grader’s “need to have” list is a cell phone.

Many of his friends already have one. In the past I always felt that cell phones for kids was a luxury, but as he becomes more independent I can see that it is a necessity.

The main benefit of having cell phones for kids is knowing that you can reach your child and he can reach you at any time. As my son enters middle school he will be spending more time away from home (activities, spending time with friends, etc.) And, let’s face it, because of cell phones - pay phones are nowhere to be found.

Some secondary benefits of cell phones for kids are access to 911 should they need it and the GPS capability of some cell phones so that parents can keep tabs on where there children are.

Of course, with the pros come the cons. As with anything, there need to be ground rules. In addition to making and receiving calls, cell phones come with a large menu of other services from text messaging and cameras to music downloads and internet access. Naturally, these services are not free and if you don’t watch out - your cell phone bill could rival your mortgage payment.

Phone insurance should also be considered. Cell phones for kids are easily broken or lost.

An alternative to purchasing a full featured cell phone for kids is using a cell phone created especially for kids. These phones offer some parental controls ranging from limiting the phone numbers that calls can be made to and received from. But these phones can be difficult to program and are often not viewed as “cool” by middle schoolers, although they may be ideal for younger children. New cell phone companies, like Kajeet which was recently reviewed by washingtonpost.com, are cropping up to meet the needs of tweens and are offering more grown up type phones.

Clearly, this is an area that I must research further. I know that my cell carrier offers family cell phone plans that I can take advantage of. A cell phone could make an excellent fifth grade graduation gift.

Thankfully, I am only facing fifth grade graduation and the minor issue of cell phones for kids. For those of you facing high school graduation, Char at Weary Parent offers a review of a book humorously called Naked Roommate: And 107 Other Issues You Might Run Into in College, 2E.

Nowadays, a call to 411 (directory assistance) will cost you $1.99. Almost TWO DOLLARS to find a phone number! Here’s a little parenting tip that will save your a few bucks.Unless you have resorted to toting your yellow pages around with you, there appears to be no other alternative if you need to look up a phone number when you are on the road. (And parents chauffeurs are always on the road, aren’t they?)Now there is a choice. There is a service called 1-800-FREE411 (1-800-373-3411) that provides you with free directory assistance. Of course, if you call from a cell phone your carrier will still charge you for airtime. But there is no fee for using the service.

What’s the catch? - you ask. Well, it works a lot like regular directory assistance but before they reveal the number that you have requested, they will play a short, approx. 15 sec ad that you must listen to. To me, that’s worth the $1.99 savings - especially if I have more than one number to look up.

You can visit them at www.free411.com to see what they are all about.