electronics

How to get a new iPhone 4G for ‘free’

Recycle!The latest iPhone 4G is about to be launched any day (remember the brouhaha about the missing prototype?) and we’ll bet you’ll be slobbering over that one too. 😉 Sooo… how can you (potentially) get your mitts on that one. For free? Or with a nice discount?

Pretty simple actually – Recycle your old one for dollars. So you won’t get the new iPhone for free if it’s the $200 model, but if you get about $100 for your old model, then that’s not a discount to sniff at.

Some of the recycling sites that will pay you big bucks for your old iPhone (and lots of other electronics too) include BuyMyTronics, MyBoneYard and Gazelle.

BuyMyTronics.com pays you for your old Electronics

It’s always great to see more companies involved in recycling. In the past, we’ve featured electronics recycling sites like YouRenew, MyBoneYard and Gazelle (and even Costco/Gazelle) that pay you to take your old cell phones, computers, MP3 players, etc. off of your hands.

buymytronics.com logo

We’re pleased to tell you about another such site: BuyMyTronics.com (think of it as ‘buy-my-tronics’ or ‘buy-my-electronics’). BuyMyTronics.com touts their free shipping, will take electronics in any condition (excellent!), and get this: their facilities are 100% wind-powered.

How much you get for your electronics depends in large part on how much damage a gadget has. BuyMyTronics.com currently takes iPods, cell phones, game consoles, desktop computers, PDAs, eBook readers and more.

yourenew.com pays you to recycle your old electronics

YouRenew.com logoRecycling your old electronics is really becoming easier, as more services spring up to cash in on the growing industry. Yes, cashing in, because they make money from re-selling the parts and raw materials. But I don’t want to rain on their parade, because it’s a win-win for everyone. You can get some cash for your device and they get to run a profitable business.

Take YouRenew.com – they even pay for the shipping of your old gadget and then pay you depending on what it’s worth. For example, a 1st gen 4GB iPhone will get you $94. Nice. Naturally, the older it is, the faster the price goes down, but hey, you’re recycling and not tossing a bunch of hazardous materials into a landfill, and the price on that is much higher!

Another service that we covered previously is Gazelle.

Bheestie bag dries out your wet electronics

bheestie dry out bagDrop your cell phone in a pool, got water splashed on it, or worse yet, did it fall in the toilet?! Well here is some inexpensive help without having to buy a new phone – the Bheestie electronic dry out bag.

Bheestie, which means ‘servant who draws and carries water’ is simple bag that contains beads that are super moisture absorbers. Once your phone or other piece of electronics gets wet, place it in the bag for 24-72 hours (depending on how wet it got).

The Bheestie bag will last about a year, depending on how heavily you use it. If you are prone to moist accidents, then you should snag a Bheestie bag right away, because you’ve got to start drying our your equipment immediately after it gets wet. If it sits for a while, the damage may be irreversible.

Buy now!

More info from the manufacturer
Price: $20.00
(Please note prices are subject to change and the listed price is correct to the best of our knowledge at the time of posting)

Review: Cyber Clean – The Ironically Slime-Looking Cleaning Compound

cyber clean keyboardYou may have seen this product, Cyber Clean, on TV and we got our hands on some of the light-flourescent-green colored silly putty like blob to test it out.

How It Works:
Take the Cyber Clean blob and press it (don’t rub) to the surface you want to clean. Cyber Clean molds to the surface you apply it to, after which you peel it off the surface. It encapsulates the dirt and bacteria into its self.

Does It Work?
In particular, Cyber Clean likes to use the example of the disgusting keyboard that traps a lot more dirt, food particles and bacteria than you can imagine. And yes, Cyber Clean definitely picks up the dust and particles on the keyboard and in between the keys. However, it’s not so elastic and ‘smart’ to get to the particles that have fallen beneath the keys. There’s no question that this is a better method than the paper towel and household cleaner that I’ve used in the past – it picks up a great deal more and is much faster.

Nokia is ‘greenest’ electronics company says Greenpeace

Greenpeace’s latest edition (12th) of their Guide to Greener Electronics still has Nokia at the top with Samsung and Sony Ericsson rounding out the top 3. Holding extremely poor scores, Nintendo, Lenovo, Fujitsu and Microsoft are at the bottom of the 17 company list. While this isn’t meant to be an all out examination of every electronics manufacturer out there, covering the top vendors makes sense as they would contribute directly or indirectly to pollution and environmental damage.

Greenpeace has the latest rankings at their website, and you can download the full report in PDF format as well.

HDMI 1.4 specification is out – new devices may appear next year

HDMI has a new specification, version 1.4, which will allow for 2 new things: bi-directional audio via an audio return channel and data transfer via the Ethernet spec. So that can mean even fewer cables. Of course, it can mean even more consumer confusion.

On the bright side, having an Ethernet channel built into the cable will mean being able to hook up your AV devices with each other and your home network without extra cables. Devices that support the new spec may be out as early as next year.

The HDMI 1.4 spec can be downloaded from the HDMI Licensing organization‘s (founded by a number of big name electronics manufacturers) website.

Press release.

Cyber Clean electronics cleaning Putty

Silly Putty – is there anything you can’t do? Alright, that may be a bit extreme, but take a look at this very practical use for silly putty. Called Cyber Clean Electronics Cleaning Putty, you can use this to quickly clean electronics without risking damage to them.

Think about how dirty your keyboard gets with stuff falling into the cracks constantly. Now just smush some Cyber Putty onto it and peel it away to lift away the dirt. Simple.

Buy now!
Price: $9.99
(Please note prices are subject to change and the listed price is correct to the best of our knowledge at the time of posting)

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