Amazon has set up a new trade-in programme where you can send back your unwanted Amazon gadgets and the company will send you Gift Cards which you can spend on the website.
The scheme is accepting many Fire tablet models, Echo speakers, Kindle e-readers and Fire TV streaming sticks and asks just two questions about their condition before giving you a provisional offer.
If you’re happy with it, you can choose whether you want to accept the ‘adjusted value’ if the condition isn’t what you said it was, or to have the device shipped back to you for free.
Amazon will send you a shipping label so you can send the gadget to the company for free where it will be checked over within a week.
And if the Gift Card value isn’t tempting enough, Amazon will also automatically apply a discount to your account which will come off the price when you buy a new Amazon device in the same category.
For example, if you trade in your old Fire 6 tablet, you’ll get a £10 Gift Card, plus a 20% discount off any new Fire tablet. It’s a 25% discount for Echo devices.
It’s well worth checking if you can get a better price elsewhere, though. We checked Amazon’s trade-in price for an Echo Spot (currently the only smart display it accepts via the scheme) and it’ll earn you a £20 Gift Card.
On ebay, though, a good-condition Spot goes for around £40-50, so although a little more hassle, even accounting for ebay and PayPal fees, you’ll still get more selling it that way, and actual cash rather than a Gift Card.
Amazon is offering the programme at least partly to meet its target of becoming net zero carbon by 2040 and to increase sustainability.
If you’re considering using the scheme to upgrade, check out our reviews of Amazon’s Echo range, its Fire tablets and Kindles.
Author: Jim Martin, Executive Editor
Jim has been testing and reviewing products for over 20 years. His main beats include VPN services and antivirus. He also covers smart home tech, mesh Wi-Fi and electric bikes.