10 things to do with an old laptop
Laptops are the next best thing created by man. They’ve really been a huge relief to mankind. But even with it being man’s best friend, there comes a point in your life that you’ve got to let that old laptop go no matter how much you love it. Letting it go by selling your old laptop or gifting it out. Either way, it boils down to you replacing that old machine in favour of a shiny new computer.
But if your old laptop’s working well, then throwing it out won’t be the best move. It’s not only bad for the environment but it might contain sensitive information. You might be tempted to trash it or recycle but if that laptop was built any time in the last decade, you’d be surprised by how much life you can get out of it.
What do you do with an old laptop?
Basically, there are a number of good uses for old laptops. A bit of DIY (do it yourself) work can turn a laptop into just about anything and it’s a huge bonus if the hardware is still good. Let’s take a look at some cool and practical ways to get that old laptop running again.
As a Home Theatre PC
One of the easiest things to do with an old laptop is to use it as an HTPC. The idea is to turn your laptop into a home theatre that serves the home. All you need to do is connect it to a TV or a large screen using a connector preferably HDMI or any other option available and voila!. From recording broadcast TV stations to watching Netflix on the big screen, you’re good to go.
Put a smile on someone’s face
Another easiest way to use your still working old computer is to make someone else happy! You could offer the computer to your group in church or ask friends, family, and people in your community whether anyone needs a computer for simple tasks. On the other hand, you could donate your laptop or computer through an official organization. In some countries, giving your computer to a charitable cause is an allowable tax deduction, One thing you’ll definitely want to do is completely erase the hard drive and reinstall the OS from scratch. .
Turn it into a webcam
You need to keep an eye on something in your house while you’re away but don’t know how to go about it? It’s really easy to turn your old laptop into a surveillance camera. All you need is an internet connected to the laptop with a built in webcam and some free software. As a surveillance camera, you can easily use it to monitor kids, pets, babysitters, the outdoors or just about anything else. Keep in mind that you would probably need an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) to ensure that it stays on if the power goes out.
Home Entertainment Center
Most computers built in the past 10 years have DVD or CD burners, hard drives, USB slots, and multi-media systems for music, videos, and pictures. Why throw all that out? Convert it into a home media center instead! This essentially involves wiping your computer of anything not relevant to music and movies then putting all your media on it movies, music, pictures, or what have you.
Great for Skype
Your old laptop is also great for video conferencing. A fresh install of a Windows 10 will do the trick. Microsoft owned Skype is included there and is accessible via the desktop or the browser, but any browser works with services like Zoom Meets or Google Hangouts.
Dismantle it
Sometimes, there’s not much else you can do but take it apart and save what you can. At the very least, you should be able to get a hard drive out of it, which you can turn into an external drive with a good enclosure.
Make money
Lastly, If you have no need for it, don’t trash it. If it’s in good working order you can make some cool cash by selling that old laptop. Someone out there is looking to buy a laptop and your old PC, at the right price, may be just what they need. Just make sure you permanently delete the data before selling it.
Do you have any other ways to make use of your old PC? Please drop your comment below.
