PC World and Currys Offer Old Computer Trade-In

With parents potentially gearing up to buy their children PCs or laptops this bank holiday weekend ahead of the return to school and university, PC World and Currys are offering a guaranteed trade-in price for old working computers of £50.

The scheme, which starts Friday 27 August and runs through until (and including) Wednesday 1 September, is geared towards people buying new laptops, desktops, netbooks or Apple Macs, and is available at over 600 stores in the UK.

Any Old Iron

eWEEK Europe UK was assured that PC World and Currys will accept any old computer regardless of the age, providing it is still in working condition, and switches on. The scheme also covers any brand new computer, Mac or laptop, even its high-end machines.

In addition, in these days of heightened concern about security, customers will also be given a data wiping service on their old equipment, which is usually priced at £30, but available for free as part of the trade-in scheme.

All old computers will be “safely and securely recycled in accordance with the government’s WEEE initiative, which sees working parts reintroduced into emerging markets where there is a natural demand for the products,” said PC World and Currys owner DSG Retail Ltd.

“This is the best offer of its kind in the market, covering all brands of PCs and even includes Apple Macs,” said Jeremy Fennell, Category Director for PC World and Currys. “All customers can benefit from this scheme, but it is particularly great timing for all the students returning to school and uni as they can snap up a real bargain with netbooks starting at only £139 with the trade-in offer. “

Reuse Not Recycle

This is not the first time the company has offered trade-in schemes, but they are useful in that they can sometimes encourage people who would otherwise leave their old computers to gather dust in a cupboard to instead dispose of them in an environmentally friendly way.

However, IT charity Computer Aid recently criticised environmental legislation for promoting recycling over reuse of IT hardware, which it claims is a more sustainable use of second-hand equipment. It said that recycling is often seen as the best way to tackle increasing volumes of so-called e-waste. However this approach ignores the fact that manufacturing hardware is more carbon and energy intensive than the day-to-day use of the device.

Earlier this week, DSG Retail Ltd was slapped over the wrist by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), after eight completed customer credit agreements, containing personal and financial details, were discovered in a skip at one of its PC World stores.