Breathing Life Into Old Devices

I own(ed) a lot of gadgets. I've sold a great deal of them on eBay to buy shitcoins in the bare market and, lately, dump on my gas meter. It isn't that I buy a lot of gadgets, it's just that I take good care of them and they don't break as quickly as they do with other people. The result being having a lot of now vintage tech sitting there in relatively good condition.

I find that many of them still work and can be used today. The only problem is that society has moved on around them, so they appear to be no longer fit for purpose when, in fact, they're as good as when I bought them, save some wear and tear.

Apple devices are notorious for this. They're so well made and so durable that they often outlast the technology their running. I still own my very first iPad from a decade ago and it still looks and feels like new after all these years. When I turn it on, it works just fine but I can't do much with it since most of the apps no longer work. I can still use it for word processing though, and drawing, and for those purposes, it works like the first day it was released.

To combat this phenomenon, Apple engaged in some dodgy acts to "encourage" people to upgrade to the next phone, which was released annually. The reached their dirty corporate hands across the Internet into people's private phones and sabotaged them by throttling them (slowing them down on purpose) to make it seem as though the phone was struggling. This was quite a big scandal back then and Apple came out to techsplain themselves and sort of issue a non-apology apology. "Batterygate".

Many people opted for Android phones because, back then at least, they represented more "freedom". First of all there was the variety of devices and software configurations to chose from, lower price, and the ability to customise and, more importantly, repair broken devices without losing warranty. Things have changed somewhat at Apple since Job's passing and a myriad lawsuits, and now the market is awash with 3rd party spare parts for Apple devices such as batteries, screens and camera replacements. It's very possible to fully refurbish an old device at a fraction of the price of buying a new one.

I decided to start using some of those gadgets again. I also realised that many people stick to their old devices, especially phones, as long as they still give them all they need. Not everyone is a tech geek or bleeding edge tech enthusiast. Some people just really want to use an iPhone, for instance, as a phone - to talk to other people and send text messages. For those purposes, even the original iPhone would do!

I found a genre of videos on YouTube showcasing old tech in the current year. I actually used to do this sort of video back in the day. I think I'm going to be making a few of those in 2023. I have a few gadgets that are at least five years old that I still use actively. I already have the next ten videos lined up in my head. I just need to find the time to actually make them. These videos get tens of thousands of views so, apart from being fun, I'm hoping to get a bit of passive income from them too.

Peace & Love,

Adé