Many of us keep a dusty box or drawer of cast-away tech, even if we don’t all treat them like antiques. These gadget graveyards fill up because we upgrade our phones, on average, once every 29 months and buy cheaply “disposable” tablets and other gear without thinking twice.
So what if you could give that old smartphone or tablet a second life? This week, I resurrected five old phones and three tablets dating back to the Samsung Galaxy S3, the iPhone 3Gs, and the first iPad. (Sorry, original iPhone, you’re beyond saving.) With a few simple weekend projects, you can awaken your tech Rip Van Winkles—and even save some money.
When you reuse an old gadget, you can also pat yourself on the back for resisting one of the tech industry’s biggest lies: that we need to keep buying new stuff. It’s bad for the environment, not to mention our budgets.
Some of us turn old devices into hand-me-downs for family who don’t necessarily need the latest and greatest. Children seem to be born infatuated with tablets, but you may have to lock one down before handing it to someone very young. (See this guide to making an iPad child-safe.)
If you’ve got a phone or tablet so old nobody even wants it as a gift, here are some of my favorite ways to make it part of your life again. None require breaking them open—just updating the operating system, and then downloading some apps. The hardest part may be finding the old charging cable.
Alarm Clock
A phone might no longer hold much charge—but plugged in, it can still be the world’s smartest alarm clock. There are apps like the $2 Wake for the iPhone that offer a gentle rise. Or, if you need more sadistic assistance, apps like I Can’t Wake Up for Android won’t let you snooze until you solve a puzzle. And even better than your current smartphone, it doesn’t blare with notifications and distract you from getting quality Zs.
Security System
Internet-connected cameras like the Nest Cam are popular for spying on—I mean checking in on—family and pets, or alerting you if there’s a burglary afoot. An old phone running on Wi-Fi can accomplish the same.
Picture Frame
If you’ve got the original iPad, it may feel slower than the Olympic Parade of Nations, but it still has a pretty fantastic screen. So why not just use it as a way to show family photos?
Prop it up on a shelf, plug it in, and open a photo album and tap slideshow. On newer iPads, you can even do this with a shared iCloud Photos collection, where you and other family members can keep adding new photos to the collection without having to touch anything
Remote Control
The best universal remote control is one that’s smart enough to know what’s on broadcast TV and streaming. A free app called Peel does that with an old phone or tablet that needs just Wi-Fi to operate. You do give up the feel of real buttons, but gain recommendations about what you’re most likely to want to watch.
