That Time I Almost Threw Away – A Story About Old Phones

Normal junk drawer stuff. A couple months back I was cleaning it out and found two old phones at the bottom. Completely forgot they were even there.

One was this iPhone from maybe 2018. The other was some Android phone I’d used for like six months before switching back to iPhone. Both had been sitting in that drawer for years. The screen cracked on the Android one. The iPhone had a dent on the corner.

My first thought was to just toss them. I gave her the iPhone.

She’s playing with it later and asks how much phones like this cost. I said probably nothing, it’s ancient. She looks it up on her tablet and goes Dad, people are selling these for like a hundred dollars.

Why I Thought They Were Trash

In my defense, these phones looked pretty rough. The Android had a crack running diagonal across the screen. Not huge, but noticeable. The iPhone had this dent on the bottom corner where I’d dropped it on concrete years ago.

Neither one turned on when I found them. Batteries had died from sitting unused so long. Didn’t even know if they’d work anymore.

Plus they were old. Like really old in phone years. Multiple generations behind current models. Figured technology that was outdated wasn’t worth anything.

And I’d already upgraded twice since using either of them. To me, they were ancient history. Didn’t occur to me that ancient for me might still be useful for someone else.

What My Kid Taught Me

After she showed me those prices online, we actually charged up the iPhone to see if it worked. Took forever because the battery was so dead. But eventually it powered on. It worked fine. A little slow, but functional.

My daughter’s like so why were you throwing this away? Good question. Because I’m an idiot who doesn’t think before tossing stuff?

She suggested I sell both phones instead. Said her friend’s mom sells old phones all the time and makes decent money. Never thought about it before but why not?

I looked into how to actually do it. Turns out there’s companies that buy old phones, even broken ones. Or you can sell directly to people online. Bunch of different options.

The Android Phone Surprised Me

I started with Android because I cared about it less. Cracked screen and all, figured I’d get maybe fifty bucks if I was lucky. Listed it online with photos showing the crack clearly. Didn’t want to hide the damage and deal with angry buyers later.

Got a message the same day. Guy asked if everything else worked besides the screen crack. I tested it – yes, everything functioned fine. The crack was purely cosmetic, and didn’t affect the touch screen or anything.

The iPhone Was Even Better

The iPhone was in better shape. No cracks, just that dent on the corner. Everything worked perfectly fine once I charged it. Even the battery seemed okay after getting some power back into it.

Cleaned it up a bit. Wiped off the dust and grime. The factory reset it properly this time. Took some decent photos in natural light so you could see the actual condition.

The Math That Made Me Feel Dumb

Two phones. I almost threw them away. Instead sold them for Rs.26500 total. That’s not like finding change in your couch. That’s actual money.

Could’ve paid my electric bill with that. Could’ve bought groceries for two weeks. Could’ve put it toward the car repair I’d been putting off.

All that money was just sitting in my junk drawer and I almost threw it in the trash without even checking if it was worth anything. If my kid hadn’t asked about it, I would’ve.

Started thinking about other stuff I’d probably thrown away over the years without checking value. Old tablets, laptops, game consoles. How much money had I literally tossed in the garbage?

Made me feel pretty dumb honestly. But at least I learned the lesson before throwing away these phones.

What Else Was Hiding

Hadn’t worked in years, the screen was dead or something. I figured it was definitely trash. Look it up – even broken tablets are worth something for parts. Could get maybe Rs.3000 for it.

Old digital cameras from before smartphones had decent cameras. I hadn’t touched it in probably eight years. Worth Rs.4000 apparently.

Started adding this up in my head. I had probably Rs.30000+ worth of old electronics just sitting around that I’d been ignoring or planning to throw away eventually.

Companies Actually Want This Stuff

Here’s what blew my mind – there’s entire companies whose business is buying old electronics. Even broken ones. Even really old ones.

They refurbish them and resell them. Or use them for parts. Or recycle them properly and recover valuable materials. Whatever they do, they’re willing to pay for devices I thought were worthless.

Some of these companies make it super easy too. You tell them what you have, they give you a quote, you ship it to them, they send payment. Don’t even have to meet anyone or deal with selling to individuals if you don’t want to.

The prices are usually lower than selling directly to people. But it’s way less hassle. Depends on whether you want maximum money or maximum convenience.

Why People Buy Old Phones

Talking to buyers taught me a lot about why people want older phones.

Some people just need something basic. Don’t care about having the latest model. Just want something for calls, texts, basic apps. The old phone works fine for that.

Some are buying for kids. Don’t want to give a child an Rs.80000 phone that’ll get destroyed. Rather give them a Rs.10000 phone and not worry about it.

Some can’t afford new phones. Not everyone has hundreds of dollars to drop on electronics. The used market lets them get something functional for way less.

Some are buying for parts. Fix broken phones using parts from other phones. What’s trash to me is valuable inventory to them.

Some are resellers. Buy cheap, fix up if needed, sell for slightly more. Whole business model based on used electronics.

The point is, there’s actual demand for old phones. Real people willing to pay real money for them. I just had to get over my assumption that old equals worthless.

What I Do Different Now

I keep my devices in better shape knowing I’ll eventually sell them. Use a case, use a screen protector, don’t let them get beat up. Better condition means better resale value.

I don’t assume things are worthless based on age. Technology from a few years ago still works fine for lots of uses. Still has value.

The Environmental Part

Someone else uses them longer or they get recycled properly and materials get recovered. Either way, better than trash.

So selling those phones wasn’t just good for my wallet. Also good for not poisoning the environment. Didn’t mean to be environmentally conscious but I’ll take it.

For People With Junk Drawers

If you’re like me and have a junk drawer full of old electronics, go look through it. Seriously, right now. See what’s in there.

Look up each one. Just search the model online and see what they’re selling for. Takes five minutes per device. You might be surprised.

The Easiest Money I Made

Selling those two phones was honestly some of the easiest money I’ve ever made. Found them in a drawer, charged them up, took some photos, and listed them online. Maybe three hours of actual effort for Rs.26500.

That’s like Rs.8500 an hour. Show me another way to make that much money for that little work. I’ll wait.

And this was stuff I was going to throw away. Literally going to put it in the trash. Instead I put it in my pocket as cash.

Not saying you’ll get rich selling old phones. But it’s free money for stuff you’re not using anyway. Why leave it sitting in a drawer when someone will pay you for it?

The Lesson My Kid Taught Me

My daughter asking about those phones saved me from a stupid mistake. Also taught me to question my assumptions about value.

I assumed old phones were worthless. Wrong. I assumed damaged phones definitely weren’t worth anything. Also wrong. I assumed nobody wanted outdated technology. Wrong again.

Kids sometimes see things more clearly than adults. We’ve got all these assumptions and biases built up over years. They just look at things fresh and ask obvious questions we forget to ask.

Why are you throwing that away? Simple question. Obvious question. Saved me Rs.20000.

Now I ask myself that question before tossing anything electronic. Why am I throwing this away? Did I check if it’s worth anything first? Usually the answer is no, and I should probably check.

What That Money Bought

The Rs.26500 from those two phones went toward fixing my car. I had this issue with the brakes that I’d been putting off because I didn’t have extra cash.

So those old phones sitting in my junk drawer indirectly fixed my car. Weird to think about but that’s exactly what happened.

Could’ve just let them sit there forever. Or throw them away like I planned. Instead they became brake repairs.

Makes you think about what other useful things are hiding in your house disguised as junk. How much money are we all sitting on without realizing it?

Go check your junk drawer. Might find something worth keeping. Or might find Rs.20000 you didn’t know you had.