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Ask HN: Which old, functional, electronics do you have?

by jconley on 9/13/22, 4:38 PM with 65 comments

I’m investigating a project to up-cycle old, unused, electronics that are functional. Specifically anything that can run custom software. Mobile phones, tablets, laptops, etc.

Do you have any of those? Just comment below with what you have lying around, if you wouldn't mind. I have a couple laptops dating back to 2013. A couple tablets and a couple iPhones more than 5 years old.

  • by PopAlongKid on 9/13/22, 5:14 PM

    I'm currently typing this on a 2008 Sony VAIO FW series laptop, running Windows 10. It has a physical wifi switch, among other great features. (but very slow even with 6GB of RAM, I use it at the kitchen table mostly to read the news because I don't care much if it gets abused, and the battery is good for only about 10 minutes even at full charge),

    I have a Palm Pilot V along with charging cradle and data transfer cable, must be at least 20 years old but I haven't fired it up for a number of years, but pretty sure it will still power on and I have installable software files in my archives.

    I have an old tower PC with Win 2K installed, last fired it up maybe five years ago. I also have a rackmount generic PC from 2005 which works fine, running Windows XP.

    Compaq Presario notebook from 2005, with Linux Mint installed now, built like a tank, cost almost $1,300 in 2005 with 512MB RAM.

    I have my Samsung feature phone (slider with full QWERTY keyboard), it boots up just fine but no longer connects to anything with the end of 3G service earlier this year.

    I use an old iPad for running authenticator apps, not sure how old but it will no longer receive software updates from Apple.

    Have a working Sony PS2 in storage, and still use a PS3 to play Bluray discs and access internet streaming.

  • by dusted on 9/13/22, 7:17 PM

    I'm not a minimalist, and I'm somewhat possessed by my possessions.

    Stuff that comes to mind:

    A few commodore 64's, a vic 20, C128, IBM 5155, RS/6000F80, Apple SE/30, Power Mac G3, Libretto CT70, ipaq hx4700, hp streambook 11, Lenovo T420, Olivetti M6 460 Suprema, Gameboy, Gameboy Color, Gameboy Advance, Playstation, Playstation 2, Playstation 3, Super Nintendo, Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360, Atari 2600, A couple Dell Optiplex 755, Victor V386MX, amiga 500, atari 1040 (not fully working, to be repaired).

    On top of that, the hifi stuff, vhs players, a betamax, a video 2000, a few laserdisc players, crt tv's, various computer monitors, reel to reel players..

    Some laptops and other crap, and some modern PC's and some rack servers and switches.. Probably less than 200 working items.

    That said, I'd not donate anything, unless to someone who could appreciate it deeply.

  • by duffyjp on 9/13/22, 6:36 PM

    I have a PowerPC G4 Powerbook with 3+ years of uptime.

    https://old.reddit.com/r/VintageApple/comments/vhk4xy/12_pow...

    I test all my shell scripts on it to ensure the maximum of cross compatibility. You can't leave the PPC folks behind.

  • by rocket_surgeron on 9/13/22, 6:20 PM

    I use a Digital AlphaStation 200 4/233 (1995) as my home's NTP server.

    edit: and a Macintosh LC III that is my SimCity/SimCity 2000 machine. That's all it does-- sit in a corner and wait for me to want to play a game of SimCity.

  • by mikewarot on 9/13/22, 5:18 PM

    I've got an old laptop that sometimes serves as a VAX 11/780 when I'm nostalgic and want to run VAX/VMS 7.3. Pretty much anything that can be mated to an SSD is useful these days.

    Offtopic: I just bought a Western Electric touch tone desk phone to hook to our "phone line" provided with our Cable Internet. I needed something that could withstand our household. (They're not as careful as I am, my stuff lasts 10x longer)

  • by epc on 9/13/22, 4:49 PM

    I have all but two of my cell phones dating back to 1995. Unfortunately I didn't keep the chargers for many of them so while they should be functional I can't really confirm that.

    Also have a Mac SE from 1990. Booted the last time I tried (~2020). Somehow avoided the capacitor apocalypse.

    Am finding many of my early Apple iPads won't charge and won't turn on at all even if plugged into a charger. Am assuming if the battery is hosed they won't do anything. As a general thing I've found that mobile devices won't turn on if the battery is dead or removed, seems constant across Nokia/Sony/Motorola/Apple.

    I went through a frenzy of ditching old equipment about a decade ago, until then I had a collection of IBM Thinkpads dating to the late 1990s as well as some Apple PowerBooks as well as an Apple //e from mid 1980s. Ditched the older game consoles as well, unfortunately.

  • by rootbear on 9/13/22, 7:39 PM

    The oldest functioning electronic computing device I have is a Nokia N800 Internet Table, ca. 2007. I never wrote anything for it beyond a shell script or two, but it was possible to write custom code for it. I never owned any of the classic 8-bit consoles. I do regret letting go of my first computer, a z-80 based Ampro Little Board that ran CP/M.

    The oldest electronics I have are from the '60s and earlier, in various states of repair. I have a preamp and amplifier that I believe still work. I also have some of my dad's old equipment such as his Heathkit VTVM and audio signal generator. I have his ancient (1930s?) voltmeter that would probably work if I could get a 22.5V battery for it. And I have a non-functional '30s era Atwater Kent multi-band radio.

  • by skyyler on 9/13/22, 6:12 PM

    I use an X220t laptop-tablet daily.

    I still have a large collection of PowerPC based macs, though I rarely use them these days. The G4s and G5s can still browse the internet with a special fork of firefox, and they're still good for playing the small library of games released for them.

  • by saltcured on 9/13/22, 6:25 PM

    Do you have existing e-waste collection centers in your area? The local one in our county runs its own store where you can buy electronics they have picked out of the stream. Similarly, thrift stores run by local charities who take physical donations will also be repurposing electronics they receive.

    I imagine that perusal of such places could give you a sense of what surplus equipment is being dumped in the community. You might even be able to chat up the workers and get a little better sense of how much waste is cherry picked versus sent onward to its destruction.

    However, I also imagine these are also your competitors if you are trying to validate an idea based on collecting useful "junk" from people.

  • by anthonyhn on 9/14/22, 6:27 PM

    I have a Nokia N900 running PostmarketOS [0]. The Nokia N900 is a great device, it has a sliding keyboard, touch screen, pen stylus, removable battery and micro sd card. PostmarketOS is an Alpine Linux-based OS using i3 as the window manager, so it doesn't take up a lot of resources (N900 only has 256 MB of RAM, every byte counts) and provides a lot of room for customization.

    [0] https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Nokia_N900_(nokia-n900)

  • by tacostakohashi on 9/13/22, 5:19 PM

    I have a whole drawer full of android phones with broken screens, or in some cases bad headphone sockets, flakey USB sockets, etc.

    Some software to turn these into gadgets like a surveillance camera, doorbell camera / intercom, walkie talkie, etc would be cool. Basically the equivalent of a Nest camera / doorbell using the camera, and not using the screen so much (although its often still useable, just a bit too annoying for frequent use). It would be nice re-using some broken, "free" hardware, so if it gets damaged/stolen it doesn't really matter, those Nest / equivalent devices are not cheap.

  • by qazwsxedchac on 9/13/22, 6:26 PM

    TI-59 programmable calculator (the one with a magnetic card drive) from 1981.

    The most remarkable thing about it are the manuals: They are an excellent introduction to programming, simple algorithms, and explain the need for documentation.

  • by eimrine on 9/13/22, 4:59 PM

    > I have a couple laptops dating back to 2013.

    I have Lenovo x220 and this is my favorite laptop which does not afraid careless carrying in the middle of my backpack.

    > Mobile phones

    > Specifically anything that can run custom software.

    My old phones (none of them is smartphone) cannot run custom software except of java midp 2.0

    > Ask HN: Which old, functional, electronics do you have?

    First what is coming to my mind is a beautiful 3-way stereo twice as old as me with paper diffusors. I never consider replacing them with anything else because despite they were built before hi-fi standard started existing, this sound is beautiful if you do not need basses.

  • by pomatic on 9/13/22, 7:32 PM

    Some random tech items from my collection: A (British) 1920's candle-stick phone count? With a rotary dial, still works just fine. An Edison phonograph - missing its original horn (I have a homemade replacement), plays wax cylinders just great. A brass carriage lamp (streching things a bit), and an oil based motorcycle lamp. A 1960's Teas Maid, in full working condition. I'm sure I've overlooked various items, but those are the most interesting pre-1980's items I own.

  • by ungawatkt on 9/13/22, 6:06 PM

    The oldest fitting the actual question (though an n64 and GBC can run custom software technically), and the most interesting thing is a 32bit netbook circa 2011, samsung n150. I wish it were more useful but the 32bit limitation has made it not worth the effort for a while. Also fill in the unsurprising collection of android phones, and a handful of older rpis (zeros without wifi and a 2).

  • by actually_a_dog on 9/13/22, 6:19 PM

    I've got a Raspberry Pi 2, a ~10 year old Samsung Android media player, an iPhone 6, a 5 year old Chromebook, and another older Windows laptop. I also just recently bought a ~10 year old Mac Mini to play around with as part of a little project I'm working on. I suppose technically my TV might count: it's a SonyXBR-55X900E from 2017 running Android.

  • by saruken on 9/13/22, 7:17 PM

    I have an iPad 4 that's mostly used for email and reading HN/blogs in bed.

    My daily Linux machine is a Thinkpad T430 from 2012.

    I daily drive a 1993 Saab 9000 -- Can it run custom software? The electronics (HVAC, lights, wipers, etc.) are controlled by a Raspberry Pi, so kind of?

    And some old phones lying around, including a working Razr and a Palm Treo that can still sync with Windows 10(!)

  • by Nomentatus on 9/13/22, 9:36 PM

    Not programmable examples:

    Ancient mp3 player that uses regular AAA size batteries. Still in use, now and then. Not being able to economically replace batteries has doomed many other devices I've owned.

    Got rid of a forty-year old Sony alarm clock with a snooze alarm that auto-reset for the next day just this year, for reasons of weight; it still worked well and was in use.

  • by quickthrower2 on 9/14/22, 5:33 AM

    I think my cheapo refurbished Dell Optiplex is from around 2013. With an SSD and some extra RAM it is more than capable of modern workloads. The processor is about half the speed of what you get with middle of the range laptops these days, and with the processor not being the bottleneck most of the time it is a non-issue.

  • by maremmano on 9/13/22, 7:07 PM

  • by metadat on 9/13/22, 8:40 PM

    An IntelliVision console.

    https://static.techspot.com/articles-info/2210/images/intell...

    The games are very primitive but can still be fun!

  • by nickd2001 on 9/13/22, 7:10 PM

    1992 NAD 3020i hi-fi amplifier. Used most days. Still sounds great. Does that count? ;). How about a "Tesco Value" Microwave (yes that really was the brand), bought for £22 in 2006, still used many times a day?

  • by cagey on 9/13/22, 10:41 PM

    HP11C calculator (1981) might be the oldest. I occasionally use it for a quick calc just because.

    HP16C of similar vintage also.

    edit: And an HP71B (1984) which is definitely programmable (assembly and BASIC; I don't have the FORTH module).

  • by haunter on 9/13/22, 8:12 PM

    Casio PB-770 pocket computer from 1984 http://pocket.free.fr/html/casio/pb-770_e.html

  • by giantg2 on 9/13/22, 4:56 PM

    I have a laptop from 2012 that I use. Modded original Xbox would likely count. Most of my other old electronics are not computerized or capable of running custom software (at least nothing modern or extensive).

  • by tanseydavid on 9/13/22, 7:15 PM

    Most of my electronic music equipment continues to function after 20+ years. Specifically the units that are self-contained, with embedded software systems that are not dependent in any way on a computer.

  • by moomoo11 on 9/14/22, 5:16 PM

    My parents got me a iPod 30gb when I was in middle school. I still use it as my music player in my car.

    I’ve had to change the battery, and the iPod is quite beat up. But it works great.

  • by ninefathom on 9/13/22, 7:45 PM

    - Toshiba PocketPC PDA, circa '03 or so

    - RPi 1 B+

    - Apple PowerBook G4 (Al)

    - Some old Samsung non-Android smartphone, circa 2010 or so

    - Older Android-based Amazon Kindle tablets

    - Older bargain bin Android tablets (think RCA)

    - Pre-iPod MP3 players (think Diamond Rio and similar)

  • by RalfWausE on 9/13/22, 8:29 PM

    I have an Atari Portfolio wich is now nearly as old as i am... its the closest thing to an "heirloom computer" i can imagine and an irreplaceable aid in my daily work

  • by Ekaros on 9/14/22, 6:33 PM

    Not sure if My Palm T3 boots anymore. Don't think I have a cable around anymore, probably need to dig up my parents tash.

    Nokia N810 might still work as would 7650...

  • by aorlandogit on 9/15/22, 2:30 AM

    1966 Fender Princeton Reverb guitar amplifier, hand wired w/ vaacum tubes and a spring reverb tank, works really well.

  • by zdimension on 9/15/22, 3:04 PM

    Got an old Burroughs C3155 calculator from 1971, fully functional. More reactive than Windows 10's calculator.

  • by booboofixer on 9/13/22, 5:48 PM

    Motorola Moto G first gen (release date 2013) Ipod touch 5th gen (release date 2012)

    Edit: Ah you want to run custom software, nevermind the ipod then.

  • by akulbe on 9/14/22, 10:37 PM

    Define old?

    I have a ThinkPad P1 Gen1. Got it in 2018 - it's a beast - and still runs just as well as on day one.

  • by dan_hawkins on 9/13/22, 6:46 PM

    1980 JVC R-S77 Stereo Receiver, 2nd oldest would be my first computer ~1991 Atari 65XE.

  • by type0 on 9/14/22, 10:55 AM

    You can up-cycle 3DO game console with FZ1-ODE optical disc emulator

  • by Blackstrat on 9/14/22, 11:30 PM

    TI-51 from 1973. Still works flawlessly

  • by BOOSTERHIDROGEN on 9/14/22, 5:29 AM

    iPod Shuffle 1st gen

  • by lagrange77 on 9/13/22, 7:24 PM

    iPhone 1

    HP 48g