CRACKED smartphones, slow laptops and outdated cameras can be given a new lease of life.

For nine days, people can dispose of unwanted tech in an environmentally friendly way, safe in the knowledge it will go to a new home.

Donors can also rest assured no one will ever be able to access any data which might once have beenon the hardware.

Brighton and Hove City Council’s pop-up Tech Takeback store open its doors for the first time this morning.

It is at the bottom of North Street, Brighton, between clothing shop Jaeger and convenience store Well Done.

Unwanted computers, laptops, phones, cameras and cables can be dropped off to be safely disposed of, and safely and professionally data-wiped free of charge.

The tech will then be available from free online reuse network Freegle, given to charities to distribute, sold to people less able to afford new tech or, if the equipment is beyond repair, dismantled for recycling.

This is the second time the council has run such a scheme. In December the first Tech Takeback store was visited by 420 people and a total of 1,036 items were dropped off, weighing a total of one and a half tonnes. and equal to a carbon saving of 4.5 tonnes of CO2 emissions – equivalent to the energy needed to produce 44,440 plastic carrier bags.

Councillor Saoirse Horan, deputy chairwoman of the city’s environment, transport and sustainability committee, said: “The first tech-take back shop was a massive success and we’re looking to collect even more unwanted tech to either reuse or recycle.

“We all have old or unwanted tech collecting dust in our drawers or cupboards at home. What better way to have a post-Christmas clear out than giving it a new lease of life or having it recycled?”

The shop is run by the city council, free online reuse network Freegle, circular economy environment specialists SOENECS and computer data erasure experts EraseMyData.

Cllr Horan said: “Many people think if they simply delete everything on their computer, or reset their phone to ‘factory settings’ then the data is completely gone. However, only by getting data professionally and expertly wiped can people be reassured their personal data has been safely and entirely erased.”

The project is funded by £25,000 the council won from the WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Local Project under the Distributor Takeback Scheme.