Although refurbished smartphones are now part of everyday retail, many consumers remain unsure about the quality behind the label. French refurbisher Reborn is tackling that trust issue head-on by opening its newly opened in Nice. Unlike many players in the secondary market chasing automation, Reborn firmly believes in the power of human hands to deliver quality and that belief guides everything they do.
Skilled hands, not robots
In contrast to automated refurbishment lines, Reborn’s process is almost entirely manual. Technicians, not machines, handle the processing, diagnostics, repairs and grading. “You can’t replace human judgment with sensors,” says Sylvain Dermineur, head of refurbishment in an interview with Lesnumeriques.com. “A robot might tell you a speaker works, but it won’t catch a distortion only a trained ear hears. There will never be better contact than that of a technician.”
At Reborn, every phone, up to 3,000 per day, goes through manual testing, from touchscreen sensitivity to microphone clarity. Technicians assess 54 checkpoints and often decide whether a battery, less than 80%, or component needs replacement based on hands-on experience rather than algorithms.
Repairs with care and context
Once assessed, smartphones are disassembled and repaired. Reborn does not rely solely on original components but uses compatible high-quality parts when needed. Apple iPhones, which make up 80% of the company’s volume, are never fitted with lower-quality screens or batteries, a strategic choice that only an experienced human team can consistently enforce.
Grading with human nuance
The final step (SecondaryMarket.news: should not be the first step?), grading a phone’s cosmetic condition, is entirely based on visual and tactile assessment by trained staff. Reborn adjusts its grading criteria based on customer feedback and market trends, something no automated system can replicate. This level of human judgment is key to the company’s France Qualité Service and RecQ certifications: a independent quality labels earned through hands-on excellence.
From the workbench to retailers
Once tested, repaired and graded, smartphones are packed in recycled cardboard boxes and sent to retailers like Fnac, Orange and Electro Dépôt. Only 5% of devices are deemed unfit for resale – and even those are harvested for usable parts. Of the 450,000 phones processed yearly, less than 1% goes to waste.
Preparing for a transparent future
Looking ahead, Reborn supports the EU’s Digital Product Passport, launching in 2027, which will make repair and refurb histories accessible to all buyers. The company is also expanding, with 7000m² of new space planned to become Europe’s largest human-led refurbishment site.
Via: Lesnumeriques.com
Market
Trade-in
Repair
Refurbishing
