A fully automated recycling machine will give you hard cash on the spot for your unwanted mobile phone, MP3 player or tablet.

The ecoATM uses a camera to check your device for physical damage, hooks it up to its own internal computer to check whether it is still working, and then works out how much cash to offer you.

ecoATM in use

It also has the ability to check that devices which are offered have not been reported as stolen to stop criminals using it to get money for other people’s phones and mobile devices.

Personal data such as information from your drivers license or credit card can also be collected as well as your fingerprint, photograph and digital signature can all be captured by the device to further guard against fraud.

Currently the ecoATMs are only available in the USA, with the majority of them in California but the San Diego-based company plans to roll them out across the rest of the U.S. during the year.

The system works when you put  your unwanted gadget in its tray which it then identifies it using a camera to check it against a 4,000 device database.

It then offers you a cable to plug in your device in order to check whether it still works or not and finally you get an instant quote  determined by what a network of hundreds of electronics-recycling companies are willing to pay for it.

If you accept the quote, it delivers the cash and if you don’t then you get your phone back.

According to the company website:

“ecoATM is the first and only company to create an automated self-serve kiosk system that uses patented, advanced machine vision, electronic diagnostics, and artificial intelligence to evaluate and buy-back used electronics directly from consumers for cash or store credit.

“ecoATM’s eCycling stations provide a convenient trade-in solution that:

• electronically and/or visually inspect virtually any consumer electronic device,
• connects consumers in real-time with a broad worldwide secondary market to ensure best pricing, and
• pays consumers immediately in cash and/or store credit, and
• automatically administers trade-in / trade-up promotions for retailers and manufacturers.

“ecoATM’s goal is to forever alter the current wasteful life-cycle of consumer electronics. ecoATM addresses this eWaste challenge through convenience and immediate incentives to consumers.”

The company says that the interest for the ecoATM devices from outside the US is ‘substantial’ but wants to focus on building up its presence within the United States before moving onto the international marketplace.

More information is available from the ecoATM website.