As everyone knows, Apple products are really expensive. However, the company recently launched their new Apple GiveBack program, which grants you a credit towards new purchases if you recycle your old Apple products. Not only does Apple’s initiative help you get a discount on the new iPhone, but it also helps the environment. This is through the new robot, Daisy, that disassembles old Apple products in order to help the recycling process.
What Is the Apple GiveBack Program?
There are tons of people every year who sign up for the latest iPhone before it even launches in stores. However, this usually means that they end up throwing their old iPhone away.
Apple GiveBack is like a trade-in service for people who want to get the latest Apple products. This applies to all of the Apple devices, including the most recent Series 3 Apple Watch.
Based on information given by an employee at the Apple Store in Short Hills, NJ, the only requirement for a trade-in is that the phone still works. So, this offer wouldn’t apply to people who break their phones.
If you want to recycle your old Apple products for a credit, they require that you select the device you wish to turn in and fill out some information about it online. They will give you an Apple gift card to use towards something else depending on how recent your model is. However, if the deal doesn’t make sense, then Apple GiveBack might not provide you with a cash reward. They do always encourage Apple product recycling for free, though.
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How Does It Help the Environment?
Apple released their new recycling robot, Daisy, on Earth Day of this year. They are trying to recycle as many products as possible in the most efficient way. The company states, “Daisy can take apart up to 200 iPhone devices an hour, removing and sorting components, so we can recover materials that traditional recyclers can’t.”
This way, Apple can use materials that already exist to make new products instead of taking more of the Earth’s resources.
Is the Program Worth It?
Some critics, like Forbes, claim that this program only encourages people to buy new Apple products, regardless of if they need an upgrade. Nothing gets Americans ready to shop like gift cards or coupons.
There is some validity to this consumer motivation because some Apple GiveBack deals make it much cheaper to buy new products. For example, Apple says that they will give you up to $175 back for an old or broken Apple Watch. If this is the amount you receive, then it might be worth recycling and buying a new Apple Watch. A brand new Series 3 watch, which is waterproof, is $329. So, a $175 credit gives you over half of the amount needed for the new watch. That’s a pretty huge discount, especially for families trying to save money.
The same idea goes for old smartphones, which you can get up to $290 back for. While this doesn’t help as much for the new iPhone X that is about $1,000, it can still reward you for recycling.
Even if Forbes is right and Americans only recycle their old phones in order to buy the brand new ones, this is still reducing America’s carbon footprint. Before this program existed, a lot of Apple products were added to the planet’s electronic waste. But, now, Apple GiveBack is rewarding people for recycling their technology. As the Apple website states, there are a lot of useful materials in old products, which can make completely new and exciting ones.
Whether your family does it for greed or for good, Apple GiveBack is making strides in keeping the Earth sustainable. Recycling old technology can help protect the environment as well as your bank account.
