"Trade in three old phones for an iPhone" goes viral, reporter investigates the truth

Recently, the market for recycling old mobile phones has been booming, with prices continuously rising. The topic “3 phones for one iPhone” has even trended on social media. Some merchants claim that scrap phones with shattered screens or that won’t turn on, which used to be worth only a few dozen yuan, are now valued at hundreds of yuan. Are old phones really that valuable? Is this price surge a widespread phenomenon, and what factors are driving it?

Not all categories are rising uniformly; significant differences in growth rates exist

On social media, some merchants have posted videos showing that some scrap phones are now badly damaged, with recovery prices that used to be 10 or 20 yuan now reaching around 500 yuan. As long as the mainboard inside the phone isn’t broken, these scrap phones can be used for exchanges—three or five scrap phones can be traded for an iPhone.

Old phones have suddenly become highly sought after. Currently, some recycling industry practitioners on social media are promoting this trend as a selling point. On-the-ground investigations reveal that the recent price increases in old phone recycling are not uniform across all categories. Different brands, models, and configurations have experienced varying degrees of price growth.

Field visits to multiple official second-hand platforms in Beijing show that the overall market for recycling old phones has not experienced a widespread price increase. Staff members explained that the so-called price hikes mainly target certain older models’ CPU chips. Another recycling platform staff confirmed that official quotes have not fluctuated significantly, and the high prices circulating online do not match actual recycling prices.

Recent improvements in phone recycling, but limited in scope

Official recycling platforms have not seen significant price changes. So, what about individual merchants? One merchant told reporters that there has been some improvement in the recent period, but the change is limited.

According to the quotes provided by merchants, the model with the largest increase saw its price rise from 70 yuan to 170 yuan, while most other models experienced increases of around 40 to 50 yuan.

Digital product review host Mr. Tan explained that the reason for the rising prices in old phone recycling is due to the overall upward trend in memory and chip markets. Some second-hand phone recyclers have found new channels for storage and chip-related components. Compared to Apple phones, Android devices have higher hardware compatibility and versatility, which also contributes to higher price increases.

Further analysis by digital economy scholar Liu Xingliang indicates that the price rise is not just hype by merchants but results from multiple factors, including changes in the global industrial chain and market supply-demand imbalances. The core driver is the shortage of storage chips caused by the explosive growth of the AI industry.

Liu Xingliang explained: “Traditional storage is being compressed, supply becomes tighter, and prices naturally rise. Old phones contain a large number of disassemblable storage chips, which suddenly turn old phones into ‘mines.’ Now, recyclers look at phones not just for usability but for memory size and chip model. Even if the phone doesn’t turn on or the screen is broken, as long as the mainboard is intact, it has value. Essentially, component prices are being revalued. There is a market amplification effect and emotional bubbles, which is why some extreme claims like ‘3 old phones for one iPhone’ are circulating. Prices are indeed rising, but not to such an exaggerated extent—many high prices are limited to specific models.”

Liu Xingliang reminds ordinary consumers to view the recycling prices of old phones rationally and avoid blindly following trends. Rumors claiming “all old phones can see a price surge” or “easily cash out thousands of yuan” are unrealistic, so do not have overly high expectations. Additionally, consumers should choose legitimate recycling channels and ensure personal privacy security.

(Edited by: Wen Jing)

Keywords: Mobile Phones