A recent study conducted by Fraunhofer Austria in partnership with refurbed, Ireland’s top online hub for refurbished gadgets, highlights a striking revelation: around 7.6 million smartphones currently lie unused in Irish homes. Of these, approximately 5.1 million remain recoverable, with the potential to return rare and valuable raw materials, like 102 tonnes of cobalt, 5.1 tonnes of gold, and smaller yet significant amounts of tin, tungsten, magnesium, and palladium, back into the supply chain. Collectively, these neglected devices hold an estimated material worth of €18.5 million, based on pricing from February 2025.

The study extrapolated from broader European data, where 643 million idle devices exist across households, 211 million of which could still be professionally refurbished. If recycled, these gadgets could yield staggering amounts of critical materials, over 5,000 tonnes of cobalt, nearly 130 tonnes of magnesium, and more, including enough gold and palladium to make a tangible dent in Europe’s resource dependencies.

Despite the opportunity, recovery rates remain dismally low. Globally, only about 7.5 per cent of smartphones are recycled; in Europe, the figure is marginally higher at roughly 10 per cent. Most outdated phones remain stuffed in drawers or illegally shipped abroad, contributing little to a circular economy. Calling for action, refurbed’s co-founder emphasised that “there are real treasures in our drawers” and urged policymakers and businesses to establish stronger incentives, enhance take-back schemes, and invest in advanced recycling technologies to unlock this hidden wealth and bolster sustainability.