EcoATMs convert old cellphones into cold cash

LAS VEGAS – The International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas is all about the latest smartphones, tablet computers and other devices. But what about the old gadgets? Don’t they get any love?

Actually, one machine at the show is designed to help recycle gadgets, giving old phones a fitting end, or a better home.

Drop your phone into the EcoATM, and the machine will pay you what it believes the handset is worth. The cupboard-size machine has a large touch screen and a big metal “mouth” where you can place your old phone or MP3 player. It takes pictures of the device to figure out what kind of shape it’s in. Then, you choose one of the machine’s many cables to connect your device. The machine will figure out if the device’s internals are working.

When its analysis is complete, it gives you a quote on the spot, based on what a network of hundreds of electronics-recycling companies are willing to pay for it. If you accept, it spits out cash. In a demonstration by EcoATM founder Bill Bowles, it said a Verizon iPhone 4 was worth $221.

An older phone might not be worth reselling, but the machine will take it anyway, and give you a dollar. The company will melt down the phone in an environmentally friendly fashion to extract the precious metals from it.