I have in my possession several old Blackberries that I would like to donate/recycle, except I discovered bulging batteries in two of them which render them unchargeable. Is there a way to wipe a device without battery power? Do you just pull the SIM card? Do I take them to my grave? ; )

I can't be the first person to encounter this, but I'm also not interested in purchasing new batteries solely for this purpose. These are relics but I also don't want any data or old emails floating around.

Thanks!

Buy a cheap battery you can find them anywhere, online and random stores.
Sadly you can't hook your device to a power cable to turn it on without a battery. Therefore you need a battery.
I assume that the batteries you have still work somehow, but won't charge. So try using a power cable while the battery is in it. It should work.

Via CB10 on Z10STL100-2/10.3.0.296

Thanks for the prompt reply, Omar. I was hesitant to charge the batteries as they were bulging so much the back cover was popping off and didn't want to risk them exploding (I googled it, and that can happen). These Blackberrys are very old and even buying a cheap battery could easily cost $15+ with shipping/handling. Is removing the SIM card an option?

Exactly how old are these phones?

I would have a hard time believing that anything older than a "brand new and boxed 9900" would be worth anything more than a paper weight. If your security is so important, don't be cheap, and find your self a used battery, otherwise....... destroy the useless phones.

Or take them to your cell dealer for recycling for battered women (Verizon does this) they take them as they are

Sent from my Note 3

Thanks for your insights, but you could provide the same info without the insinuations and assumptions. : )

1) Issue at hand is privacy/security, NOT resale value. I was only looking to donate the phones via Verizon or an organization that gives them to soldiers abroad and/or domestic violence victims and didn't have much confidence this would be done on my behalf, especially since two of them have no working battery. I have no idea how to 'destroy' a phone. I thought I could just remove the SIM cards. Perhaps I will immerse them in water instead. Problem solved.

2) Cost is a very big issue when you're out of work and I hope it's something you never have to experience. Huge difference between being cheap and having extremely limited disposable income.

Thanks -- that was what I had intended to do (I am a Verizon customer). But without a working battery, I didn't trust that the devices would be wiped. Trust me, I know there is no resale value (unless a museum is curating an exhibit of early technology) but they do contain quite a bit of personal and sensitive information. I never thought about the batteries dying -- and none of them use the same one. I always kept my last phone as a spare ... now I have four. Finally had to retire my last Bold and I upgraded to a Samsung. It pained me to do it (I *loathe* the email and typing on a touchscreen) but not having broad access to apps was complicating life. I guess as a last resort, I can drown the ones without batteries in water and toss them. ; ) Thanks again.