Don't buy Christmas pressies says tech shop

Don't give your loved one an iPhone for Christmas, a second-hand blender will do
Don't give your loved one an iPhone for Christmas, a second-hand blender will do

Worried about the effect that electronics have on the environment? Or perhaps you're just counting your pennies while banks are tumbling?

Then make this a regifting Christmas, says Nigel of online green gadget emporium, Nigel's Eco Store.

He's launching a regifting forum that lets tree huggers and Scrooges swap unwanted techy presents instead of chopping down plastic forests and harvesting LCD fish to make this year's sought-after gizmos.

Bah, humbug

Nigel says, "People might think regifting makes you cheap, but I think it shows you have top green values. A study by the WWF revealed that in the last three decades, we have consumed a third of the world's natural resources, so we need to be more thoughtful about the way we use everything."

If you've got high tech gifts to shift and have never heard of Craigslist, eBay or Amazon Marketplace, you can log on to the new forums at www.nigelsecostore.com/forum and post details of your unwanted gift, or of an item you are trying to get hold of.

Unsuprisingly, Nigel goes on to say, " Can't find what you need on the regifting forums? Try Nigel's Eco Store top five Christmas gift ideas...", which include such disposable, luxury nonsense as cardboard iPod speakers and solar-powered fairy lights.

As we type, there are currently zero items in the regifting forum.

Mark Harris is Senior Research Director at Gartner.