Want to sell a broken phone? Learn how to wipe it before sending it for recycling

Billions of mobile phones are sold each year across the world. Just in 2017, different mobile phone vendors reported the sale of more than 1.5 billion mobile phones being sold across the globe and this figure does not take into account the huge number of used mobile phones sold. But the irony is that less than 10% mobile phones which can be refurbished and reused reach the recyclers and refurbishes annually. There are a few reasons why this number is so low.

• People underestimate the value of broken mobile phones hold.

• Mobile phone users are sceptical about the factory reset option and do not believe once the data is deleted can be recovered. And they don’t want to risk their data going into the wrong hands.

• Inability to reset a mobile phone back to the factory settings due to broken screen.

There is a huge difference between the number of mobile phones recycled in developing countries as compared to the number of mobile phones recycled in developed countries. The main reason for that is the difference between the purchasing power and disposable income of people living in different worlds. If all the mobile phones which can get refurbished reach recycling companies and refurbishes the demand of newer models would decline remarkably and will help save the precious natural resources used to manufacture each mobile phone.

Factory reset options are pretty state of the art and most of the major mobile phone vendors have incorporated systems which assure mobile phone data destruction when the mobile phone is set back to the factory settings. And the mobile phones depreciate at a very fast pace and you should always look forward to selling your mobile phone even if it's in a broken state not only to generate cash but also to keep the environment clean.

Below are three different ways you can reset back to the factory settings before you sell a broken phone.

Connect your mobile phone to a computer to reset

There are different issues to the mobile phones and some can allow users to reset them without using your computer but sometimes you are unable to see what’s on the screen, in that case, you can connect your mobile phone with a computer and use the manufacturers software to reset your mobile phone back to the factory settings. It's much easier with Android mobile phones. Although you might find it difficult to do so if the mobile phone has a password on. But there are different software’s available in the market which let you see the screen on your monitors' screen. Also, there is another option, you can connect your mobile phone with a TV and just see the same display as the mobile phone which makes it much easier to go to the settings and set your mobile phone back to factory settings.

Use a mouse to restore your mobile phone to factory settings

In some scenarios, the touch screen on a mobile phone isn’t working and that makes it impossible for the user to unlock the mobile phone. In this scenario, it's simple, just get an OTG connector which will allow the user to connect different input peripherals such as a mouse or a keyboard. There is no need to install any drivers like the old days. In the majority of the cases its simple plug and play. Once you have attached a mouse using an OTG connection, simply unlock your mobile phone and reset your mobile phone back to the factory settings but you have to make sure the mobile phone has enough battery because once connected to the mouse it wouldn’t be possible to charge the mobile phone although a wireless charger can be used in the latest mobile phones to charge your phone whilst the restore process is on its way.

Install a new screen temporarily to delete your data and reset it back to the factory settings

If any of the above options are not possible, you can always take your mobile phone to a local mobile phone shop where you can get a screen replacement temporarily so that the mobile phone can be restored to the factory settings. This might cost you a bit but would be much better than getting the screen fixed especially if it’s a Samsung mobile phone as the screens are really expensive to get repaired on Samsung mobile phones.