You can now purchase a technology trade-in plan when you buy a gadget from TigerDirect or CompUSA

If you're buying a new consumer electronics product from either TigerDirect or CompUSA, you can now lock-in a trade-in strategy (and some moolah or store credige) by buying a Guaranteed Buyback plan from TechForward at the time of purchase.

To refresh your memory, TechForward is an organization in Los Angeles, that offers a trade-in plan that guarantees the price you'll be paid to trade in a piece of technology within a certain time period. TechForward sends you a box, packaging materials and shipping labels. They take care of the recycling or refurbishment, depending on what's appropriate. All you have to do is send it in. For free.

The amount you get back varies depending on when in a product's lifespan you turn it in, up to a two-year timeframe. The catch is that the amount you receive back will be in the form of a TigerDirect store credit, so you'll have to buy whatever you're upgrading to from them. My blog entry from this past summer gives you a bit more background on the whole concept. You can actually buy the trade-in plans from them directly for a bit more flexibility.