What to do with old computers?

O

Orz

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I'm sure we all have some ancient computers sitting around, what is the best thing to do with them?
 
I always used to tinker with them, but now I'm older I'd rather play with a fast, new machine. I've got 2 old laptops sitting around, before I would be setting up servers with them etc, but now I don't have time and I'd rather play a game or watch a film :)
 
I've an old laptop and a desktop here myself which I really don't use anymore. Although, I still use the desktop sometime especially when I need to use a software that I don't have installed on my new laptop or need to get a file from there. Aside that, it's pretty much just there and since I'm not someone who sells my stuff just like that, I guess it's going to be lying around there forever.

Perhaps, I could auction them out in several years to come for a lot of money(I'm just joking).
 
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Since the 1990s when I got my first computer, these were always stored in different ares of the house. However most of them were already broken, with missing parts used to enhance the next new one, and so on.

Over time I had like a dozen of computers (including laptops and desktops,) monitors and probably hundreds of keywords and mice because these two later tend to last very little in my hands.

However the story of the stored computers passed away some weeks back, when my sister decided to sell all to a recycling center nearby home. They paid $1 USD per kilogram, not by the worth an old computer or its remaining pieces could have.
 
My son tinkers with them. Whats left over we donate to a local place that takes any computers & parts and recycles or restores them. The only employees they have are the disabled. I love that company because they provide jobs for those who normally can't find jobs.
 
Old pc process is very slow. old does not spot the many browser. and does not installation software. I don't have time and I'd rather play a game or watch a film
 
How ancient is ancient? I would usually suggest to just buy the components that would make it more usable for today's use although if it's mostly unusable (very old), I might just junk it.
 
If you plan on giving them away, you should spend a day or two cleaning them up first. Try and restore them back to factory condition, then get all the updates for Windows downloaded, then wipe the drives clean to remove any chances of old materials being retrieved off of it. You can do this after formatting it with Windows too.
 
If they have any good components that you may need; take them out and keep them, sell the rest.

If it doesn't have any good components; either sell it or donate it to a charity.
 
I'm getting a car soon and for some reason I'm considering putting a laptop in the dash and have it connected to my mobiles hotspot because I have unlimited data. I could then plug the laptop into my sound system. Pretty crazy idea but a cool way to use an old laptop.
 
There's a place in my city where I can recycle old electronics and stuff. But I have two computers that I'm still holding onto. I can't remember the age of the oldest one, but its original OS was Windows 98. I think it's 9 years old. It's a ThinkPad and it's still a solid machine. I have been thinking about getting my feet wet with Linux by installing a light version of Linux on it.
 
If you don't work in the IT industry then i recommend selling it as soon as possible. Technology changes so rapidly that the value of your computer will probably have dropped already by the time you finish reading this message! If the computer is unsellable then either keep it for parts as things like the PSU might break down and it's useful to take things from an old computer, or give it to charity (assuming it is usable). Law in the UK states you can't throw IT equipment away - it needs to be recycled so if you want to throw it out find an IT recycling company to collect and dispose.
 
I usually recycle my old computers, which I would use each one of them until they would no long be turned on. I hardly change to a new computer because of the higher price, which I would use it until the end of its life.
 
Repurpose them as home servers, or use them as a seedbox/FTP storage. They're also convenient if you need to cannibalize some parts, old drives and PSUs are always handy. If you're planning on getting money for them though, you might as well sell them as soon as possible. Hardware prices tend to drop pretty fast, and the machine you could've sold for a couple hundred bucks might be worth half of that by the end of the year.
 
I usually keep them because one day I might need a spare part to repair an existing computer and it will be cheaper that way other than buying a new one. But for those that are damaged and seem worthless, I simply recycle them.
 
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