u/Popular_Discussion18

So, if you don't know, the Target bin is that recycling bin inside a Target store for phones, mp3 players, and ink cartridges.

Often people look through there, and find some great phones.

I even found a whole laptop in there once.

So, the key detail is the bin should be unlocked. Because if it's unlocked, then you can just open the door and dig in there all you want. Because digging through that tiny hole in the top is a headache. Most of the time, the bin is unlocked, because customers always ask to throw in bigger stuff and they just leave it unlocked so they don't have to bother unlocking it every time.

To find the good stuff, you usually have to dig in deep into the bin. Past all the cables, batteries, and other random junk that gets thrown into there.

Don't try to be over-expressive. Simply open the bin, and as soon as you get a phone then place it in a bag or something. Make it look like it's normal, so that no one overly cares about you looking in the bin. Most of the times the employees don't care, but especially the janitors, if they walk by they will warn you occasionally, because of course they manage the bins. If an employee asks you to stop or leave, then just do, because if you don't it could result in a trespass warning or something like that. Better luck next time if an employee catches you!

In the bins, you have to be kind of aggressive because pushing away a ton of batteries just to see the bottom...

And don't go to the small-format Target stores. Those usually don't have the phone bin at all, in my experience. Stick to the Targets inside malls or the giant standalone stores if you want a high success rate. Malls and standalone stores naturally get more traffic than small stores, meaning way more people are likely to drop them in.

Androids with no password are the best case. Go into settings, accounts, remove the Google account, and then go and factory reset it.

And, if a Android has a password, look up the model to see how to get into Recovery mode, and you can wipe it from there. But usually that triggers FRP (Factory Reset Protection), which makes the phone a useless brick unless you manage to bypass it some way.

Even if a iPhone has no password, if it's logged into an iCloud, check in settings whether find my iPhone is on or off. If it's on, then it's going to get activation locked. If it's off, then you can most of the time just restore it safely. Use iTunes, or if that fails, more reliable is 3uTools.

And beware of swelling batteries, common in older phones, because they have the risk of a fire hazard.

So, in my experience of a Target phone bin digger, this is usually what you have to deal with. Good luck with your Target bin finds!