Joe

Interesting, but I believe requiring a largish pinch of salt.

1) The USA cannot be a large supplier for developing countries, because
the old sets do not comply with GSM standards which are used by most
countries other than the US (until recently)
2) The US GSM services are on a different set of frequencies to most
other countries (I've travelled much, worldwide, and the only countries
where I've not been able to use my mobile phone, not even with the new
GSM services, have been the USA and Canada).
3) If this guy has recycled 15,000 phones with a gross profit of $2
each, how has he paid 5 employees?
4) Do you have a mobile in a drawer, or otherwise replaced? I'd give
even odds that what motivated the replacement was a battery that had
gone dud, after a couple of years' use. What use is a mobile with a
battery whose charge disappears after 2 hours wait or during the first
call? If the battery needs to be replaced, then the costs mentioned go
out of the window. (And what does he do with the pile of NiCds, throw
them in a landfill?)
5) I've never paid $250 - 350 for a mobile. My last Nokia (new and
current model) cost a tad over $150. OK, it didn't have all the bells
and whistles which are probably 90% useless, anyway.

Good idea but I, for one, will not invest in his company!

Best regards,

Brian

PS Are cell phones used in jails?
Joe Fjelstad wrote:
>
> news analysis
> WHERE RECYCLED CELL PHONES RING TRUE
> A burgeoning business is developing in emerging markets where wireless
> is nearly the only way to call -- if you can afford a handset
> http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jul2002/tc20020725_6433.htm?c=bwtechjul30&n=link4&t=email