Changing Technology – does anyone have a CD player these days?

CDs have been available as a digital audio format since the 1980s and sales peaked at the turn of the millennium with tens of billions of discs being sold across the world. However, in the decade that has passed since that climax the sales have dropped by half and the once mighty CD is clearly drifting out of popular usage. CDs are being squeezed out of the market by digital downloads, proliferated by services like Apple iTunes and now by streaming services such as Spotify.

When CDs arrived and kicked out analogue formats like tapes and vinyl records, many people took the time to replace their entire record collections with the new format that would never degrade in quality over hundreds of plays. This is obviously a costly process, but the good news is that digitising your existing music collection is much easier. You can pop an audio CD into your computer and rip the tracks from it, turning them into individual files, which you can load onto your portable media player or mobile phone for free-roaming entertainment. Once your music is on your hard drive you may feel that the CD itself has become redundant, but you will still be left with a vast collection of discs cluttering up your shelving space and presumably a CD hi-fi system that you rarely use.

You could simply let this stuff fester and gather dust if you have the room, but there is another way to get rid of the redundant formats and associated devices which is not only convenient but can also be financially beneficial. There are recycling companies like Music Magpie and its German counterpart where customers can reap rewards for selling CDs. You will finally be able to get rid of that awful pop mix you have had since 1996 and clear out your attic or garage in the process.

The simplicity of these services is what really makes the difference. All you need is a stack of CDs, a laptop and a few minutes of your time, because entering in the barcode of each disc will tell you how much it is worth and a running total will be kept. Once you have complied the list of CDs you want to sell you can print off a freepost label or have one sent out to you so that you can box them up and ship them off free of charge whilst awaiting your payment.
If you are selling a CD collection of 50 or more disks, a free, registered courier service is available, making it easier than lugging all your disks down to the post office to send!

CDs that are old and unlikely to have any resale value can be taken to the dump, but leaving them to rot in a landfill is inefficient and environmentally unfriendly because the plastic they contain can stay in one piece for hundreds of years. That is why using a recycling service to get rid of your unwanted CDs is far more sensible. They have value because the materials they contain can be reused for making various items including car headlamps and coat hangers. You can choose to have the money paid directly to you or alternatively, you might want to choose to donate all of your earnings straight to major charities associated with recycling companies. This is a truly altruistic use of your old CDs and something that many people choose to do if they can afford it.

If you are going to completely detach yourself from physical media and get rid of your old CD Walkman, hi-fi or other playback device, you will need to consult your local council’s website to find out the best way to dispose of it safely. Usually, the nearest major recycling centre to your home will allow you to take electronic goods down and send them off to be stripped of their valuable components to be reused in an eco-friendly way. Because of the components contained within CD players you may be obliged to recycle them rather than dump them to avoid hazardous leaks, so please act responsibly when doing so and always check with the authorities if you are uncertain of the right course of action.

There is no doubt that the age of the CD has well and truly departed, because even those who buy discs will probably convert them into digital audio files for their iPods rather than popping them in their CD players to have a listen. The death of a format does not need to be accompanied by a mass dumping because the recycling facilities exist so that you can recoup a little cash and do some good for the planet in one fell swoop.