Choose the right expert at the right price, anytime day or night, at PC World Expert Help . Computer disposal firms declined to take the machines, saying they were already loaded with castoffs that weren't year 2000-compliant. Charities and schools said 133 MHz was too slow for them. The rest went to recyclers that dismantled them and sold the scrap copper, gold, and glass. Only 39 percent of 102 information technology managers surveyed by Computerworld said they have a consistent, companywide policy for dealing with retired hardware.
People continue to ignore the situation.
Gartner says 114 million PCs were sold last year, and another 133 million will be sold this year. And they'll all need a final resting place in a few years. Without a plan in place, PC disposal is a scramble for IT departments. Many companies actually end up spending money on machines that are no longer worth anything, either by paying recyclers to haul them away or by warehousing them for lack of a better idea. Meanwhile, some recyclers, which buy used gear to resell or dismantle for scrap, are so flush that they're turning away business.