Local start-up on a mission to keep cellphones in use for longer

Singaporeans are replacing their phones every 2.7 years, contributing to some 2.9 million mobile phones being stowed away, a new study shows.

- Sarah Koh

But one Singapore start-up is hoping to change this and keep phones in circulation for five years here. This will be even longer than the global smartphone replacement cycle of 3.5 years on average.

Cinch plans to meet this target by renting out instead of selling the devices to consumers, ensuring that the returned units at the end of the rental period are refurbished to get a new lease of life with another user.

"We're trying to extend the useful life of these devices beyond the average refresh rate," said Mr Mahir Hamid, chief executive and co-founder of Cinch, which commissioned the study to better understand consumer behaviour.

Its study, conducted between late 2024 and early 2025, involved interviews with firms that handle e-waste and used devices, as well as a survey of 500 Singapore-based respondents.

Fresh from raising US$28.8 million (S$37 million) in funding led by Monk's Hill Ventures, Cinch is now actively pursuing consumers, letting them pay a monthly fee to rent the latest premium models of phones, laptops and other devices. Cinch will also foot 90 per cent of the repair cost of devices damaged due to accidents.

For instance, the latest Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge with 512GB storage is available from Cinch for a rental fee of $70 a month over two years. At the end of two years, consumers would have paid $1,680. The same model can be bought from Samsung for $1,808.

An Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max with 512GB storage can be rented from Cinch for $120 a month over 12 months. This will amount to $1,440 at the end of the year. The same model costs $2,199 upfront from the Apple store.