Best Buy launches trade-in program for Microsoft Surface

Best Buy has launched a Microsoft Surface trade-in program that offers users a minimum $200 Best Buy gift card for trading in their first-generation Surface RT or Surface Pro.

According to the Best Buy "Surface Trade-In" page (which I found via a link on The Verge), users will receive a gift card up to $350 in value for their Surfaces, depending on the shape they are in.

To find out how much they can get, users can visit a participating Best Buy Store or use the links on the site to calculate their trade-in value. "If your item has no Trade-In value, we can recycle it for free," according to the site.

Here's what the Best Buy quote calculator (which is for all kinds of devices, not just Surfaces) says it will offer for first-generation Surface RTs and Pros:

Surface RT (32 GB): Good condition: $150; Fair: $105; Poor: $67.50; Not Working: $0
Surface RT (64 GB): Good condition: $175; Fair: $122: Poor: $78.75: Not Working: $0
Surface Pro (64 GB): Good condition: $315; Fair: $220.50; Poor: $141.75; Not Working: $0
Surface Pro (128 GB): Good condition: $350; Fair: $245; Poor: $157.50: Not Working: $0

The Surface trade-in kicked off on October 6 and runs through October 21, which is the day before the Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2 go on sale at retail.

The Best Buy trade-in frequently asked questions site says those interested in participating must be 18. Original accessories (like charging cables) should be included. I'm not clear whether Type/Touch covers are figured into the value, but given Microsoft and retailers sell those separately, I'd think not.

Hmm. I am kind of tempted to trade in my Surface RT and use the card toward a Surface 2...