A new GSMA global survey shows that handing out smartphones to family and friends is a global trend, but between 5 and 10 billion 'idle' phones remain in desk drawers around the world.
December 12, 2024, London: Millions of family members will receive “legacy” cell phones this Christmas, as younger, tech-savvy consumers upgrade their phones to the latest model. However, while globally a third of us will hand over our old phones to family or friends, around 75% of consumers still have at least one old phone in their junk drawer, according to first figures from a new survey. to 10,000 consumers in 26 countries. by the GSMA, which represents mobile operators around the world.
Globally, more than 40% of mobile phones have some type of “second (or third) life”; It is passed on to family or friends and exchanged for newer models, often during the Christmas period. Around 14% of phones currently used worldwide were bought used or refurbished, and almost 10% of UK consumers bought refurbished phones, compared to a global average of 4%. The used smartphone market grew by 6% in 2023, while sales of new phones decreased by 4%. Furthermore, the growth rate of reused and refurbished devices is expected to continue to outpace that of new smartphones in the coming years.
However, almost a third of consumers keep their old phones as backups, contributing to between 5 and 10 billion “used” phones sitting idle around the world. Many (27%) keep these devices for fear of losing stored photos and memories, while another fifth of consumers keep their devices because they don't know what to do with them.
While receiving cash is the strongest incentive for respondents to hand over their phones for reuse or recycling, it is equally important to know that their data will be disposed of correctly.
The first figures from the GSMA global consumer survey on recycling and reusing mobile devices, which will be released at MWC Barcelona, the mobile industry's largest annual event in March, also found that:
- The average age of phones before replacement is around 3 years, with the vast majority of phones (75%) lasting between 1 and 3 years.
- Nearly 60% of consumers expect to buy their next phone within the next two years.
- Seniors use phones longer before replacing them, with more than 40% using them for more than 3 years.
- The top two factors driving phone replacement are 1) battery life (very important to 90% of consumers) and 2) poor performance or slowdowns (87%). 50% said they would replace phones just to get the latest model.
- 75% of respondents had at least one old phone at home that they did not use regularly and almost half (46%) had at least two old phones.
Encouragingly, almost half of consumers (49%) said sustainability is a “very important” factor in their next mobile phone purchase, and this is higher among younger consumers, showing that interest in devices more sustainable and circular mobile phones is growing.
Steven Moore, Director of Climate Action at the GSMA, said: “This extensive survey sheds light on how many of us around the world are more aware of the environmental impact of our phones, we want to use them for longer, but we also want safe and easy ways to exchange them responsibly. As these markets are expected to grow, this presents many opportunities for companies to innovate to meet this demand.”
Reuse and recycling are increasing points of focus for mobile operators around the world, as they move towards a more circular economy for mobile devices and network equipment: 16 mobile operators have signed up to the goals of the GSMA are setting the pace for mobile device circularity, and the goals of the recently launched GSMA Equipment Marketplace are helping operators reuse expensive and material-intensive network kits. Meanwhile, countries like Australia have introduced specific targets and even recycling plans for mobile phones, with positive results: survey results show that Australia has the highest mobile phone recycling rate in the world.
Recycling devices can reduce the need to extract new materials and avoid environmental impacts, while helping the mobile industry move towards its ambitious Net Zero goal by 2050. A refurbished phone has only a tenth of the environmental impact of a newly manufactured. The GSMA estimates that, if properly recycled, five billion mobile phones (just half of our latest estimate of idle devices) could recover $8 billion worth of gold, palladium, silver, copper, rare earths and other critical minerals. , as well as enough cobalt. for 10 million electric car batteries.
The use of such materials could help manufacturers develop stronger, safer supply chains and reduce the impact of mining operations on biodiversity and communities in sensitive global regions. At the same time, operators recognize that more work is needed to address concerns that prevent people from returning their phones, such as data privacy, the need to preserve valuable memories stored on devices, and the desire to keep a device. replacement.
For more information, see here and for full consumer survey results, see here.
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About the GSMA
The GSMA is a global organization that unifies the mobile ecosystem to discover, develop and deliver critical innovation for positive business environments and social change. Our vision is to unlock the full power of connectivity so that people, industry and society thrive. Representing mobile operators and organizations across the mobile ecosystem and adjacent industries, the GSMA offers its members three broad pillars: connectivity for good, industry services and solutions, and outreach. This activity includes advancing policy, addressing today's biggest societal challenges, supporting the technology and interoperability that make mobile devices work, and providing the world's largest platform to convene the mobile ecosystem at the MWC and M360 series of events.
We invite you to learn more at gsma.com
