Disposal of a tablet or two…

[Changeable]

I've had a unusable Google Nexus 7 lying around for a couple of years now, collecting dust.
Certain areas of the touch screen became inactive, so it was impossible to enter the password to be able to use it. The repairing cost made it uneconomic to buy a new screen.

I ended up buying a cheapy replacement Samsung which did the job, but was no where as good as the Google.

The replacement is now playing up and actually failed on the last day of the guarantee. I returned it to the shop where I purchased it the following day and was met with, “You are one day too late!” However, they agreed to see if they could persuade Samsung to repair it under the guarantee. I’m not holding my breadth…

Both tablets were encrypted and had various linked email accounts with the pass words remembered. I thought that should they be lost or stolen, the account access would be safe behind the encryption.

Well I may or may not get the Samsung repaired, but am wondering how can I safely dispose of the tablets so there’s no chance of anybody ever gaining access?

Any polite suggestions please...

[staffordian]

Won't your local pharmacy accept them?

[Changeable]

staffordian

Thanks for that, why didn't I think of it?!

[staffordian]

On a serious note, if I had a tablet which was definitely beyond repair, I would take the opportunity to dismantle it to see what was inside. I'd then smash anything which looked vaguely like a storage entity and then either dump it in the bin or take it to the recycling centre (aka local tip) depending on how environmentally sensitive I was feeling.

[stevensfo]

I've had a unusable Google Nexus 7 lying around for a couple of years now, collecting dust.
Certain areas of the touch screen became inactive, so it was impossible to enter the password to be able to use it. The repairing cost made it uneconomic to buy a new screen.

I ended up buying a cheapy replacement Samsung which did the job, but was no where as good as the Google.

The replacement is now playing up and actually failed on the last day of the guarantee. I returned it to the shop where I purchased it the following day and was met with, “You are one day too late!” However, they agreed to see if they could persuade Samsung to repair it under the guarantee. I’m not holding my breadth…

Both tablets were encrypted and had various linked email accounts with the pass words remembered. I thought that should they be lost or stolen, the account access would be safe behind the encryption.

Well I may or may not get the Samsung repaired, but am wondering how can I safely dispose of the tablets so there’s no chance of anybody ever gaining access?

Any polite suggestions please...

I remember loads of posts on TMF about how to dispose of hard drives, and the best way was simply with a large hammer. Divide the pieces and throw away in separate bins.

With a desktop that you wanted to give away, the answer was to encrypt everything, then overwrite with an eraser program. Free open-source programs like Axcrypt do this. Then reformat.

No idea if this works with Android. I'd stick with a hammer.

Steve

[didds]

second/third/fourth the hammer.

didds

[Infrasonic]

Depending on how broke they are you might be able to factory reset them, which will wipe them of all user data.
If they get repaired they'd probably get wiped anyway.

https://www.technipages.com/android-wip ... ken-screen

The screen on an Android device is probably the most fragile component. It’s very common for Android owners to end up stranded with a device that has a broken, black, or non-functional screen. What do you do though when all of your data is left on the device? If the device still powers on, there are a few options to try.

[uspaul666]

I usually take them apart. Just for fun although the thin layers of metal can slice through fingers if you’re not careful. I usually end up squeezing anything that looks like memory with a pair of pliers just to sure. It’s quite fascinating all the bits they contain. I do sometimes keep bits like cpus or glass platters from hard disks just to marvel at progress.

[TedSwippet]

Certain areas of the touch screen became inactive, so it was impossible to enter the password to be able to use it.

Mine too. It was a nice device before. Problems started about six months ago at the bottom of the screen when in portrait mode. Usually solvable by turning it through 180 degrees as needed. Then about three months ago it developed a new dead spot in the centre of the screen, and also assorted problems directly opposite the problems at the bottom. This requires complex sequences of 90 degree and 180 degree rotations to use it. Anyone watching me might think I am tackling a Rubik's Cube. I'm just waiting for one final deterioration before I junk it entirely.

Well I may or may not get the Samsung repaired, but am wondering how can I safely dispose of the tablets so there’s no chance of anybody ever gaining access?

Don't know about the Samsung, but as long as the power and volume buttons still work, you should be able to wipe and factory reset the Nexus 7 without needing any screen touchability. Details here:

How to factory reset the Nexus 7 (2013)

Of course, this still leaves the problem of what to do with the carcass. A refurb shop might be interested, but it's unlikely they would pay you much of anything for it. My local council accepts e-waste.

[Changeable]

TedSwippet

Don't know about the Samsung, but as long as the power and volume buttons still work,

Alas...

I'm afraid that it's e-waste...

[Changeable]

uspaul666

I think that I will end up doing the same, but I dont have the correct tools to remove the screen...

[Lanark]

Many tablets will contain a cocktail of complex chemicals sometimes including [expletive deleted], Mercury, PVC, Beryllium and lead. Typically very small quantities but something to bear in mind before breaking out the hammer.

EU legislation promoting the collection and recycling of such equipment (Directive 2002/96/EC on WEEE) has been in force since February 2003. The legislation provides for the creation of collection schemes where consumers return their used waste equipment free of charge.

The WEEE Directive was transposed into UK law in 2006 and we currently have a higher collection rate than France, Germany or Italy.

Most suppliers will accept returns for recycling:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/custom ... =201819410

https://www.recyclenow.com/local-recycling

[Changeable]

Infrasonic

If they get repaired they'd probably get wiped anyway.

There is no data on the tablets, just the passwords which give access to the linked email address. If Samsung repair it and it gets a factory reset, it isn't a problem to reset the passwords and email accounts...

[Changeable]

didds

second/third/fourth the hammer.

A bit crude, but effective!
I removed the hard drives from my previous desktop and drilled holes through them before they went to the local tip ...

[Changeable]

staffordian

On a serious note, if I had a tablet which was definitely beyond repair, I would take the opportunity to dismantle it to see what was inside. I'd then smash anything which looked vaguely like a storage entity and then either dump it in the bin or take it to the recycling centre (aka local tip) depending on how environmentally sensitive I was feeling.

That's what I will do and after that it becomes e-waste...

[Infrasonic]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBzlfcmHD8E

[Changeable]

Infrasonic

Thanks for the youtube clip, but I'm not sure that my wife would be too happy if I was to use the micro wave in our kitchen!

I believe that it would make an really excellent job of destroying the tablet!

[kiloran]

didds

second/third/fourth the hammer.

A bit crude, but effective!
I removed the hard drives from my previous desktop and drilled holes through them before they went to the local tip ...

I thought about the hammer also, but..... great for hard drives, but I'm not sure if it's a good idea for a tablet with a lithium battery. A potential fire risk or something???

--kiloran

[Garless]

When my ibook died I asked the local, not Apple, repairer to take the hard disk out and if it worked put it in a caddy. Mounted the caddy and could restore all that I needed. Then the caddy became a backup disk for my new iBook. Win win. Not certain if tablet storage is recoverable like this.

[Infrasonic]

When my ibook died I asked the local, not Apple, repairer to take the hard disk out and if it worked put it in a caddy. Mounted the caddy and could restore all that I needed. Then the caddy became a backup disk for my new iBook. Win win. Not certain if tablet storage is recoverable like this.

Generally tablets are solid state eMMC storage and are probably soldered in, along with the RAM, wifi etc. If they were on a ribbon cable you might be able to get them out.