I know some people still swear by their old iPods or film cameras. For me it’s a 15 year old Western Digital external HDD. Do you have any older gadgets or tech that you refuse to let go of?
I have this old PC I made back in 2014. It’s an AMD build can’t remember the processor, I use it as a multimedia pc hooked up to myain tv in the living room for watching movies shows and streaming, so the specs are low.
I recently updated to a AMD 5500 because the hardware was loosing support so it was time a for a whole new platform. I used the old case and video card from the 2014 build.
When I put the old video card into the new 5500 build I had a really hard time getting drivers for it for Linux Mint and I couldn’t figure out why.
It took me a while but that card I swapped over was a freaking Nvidia 8400 from like 2007. That card worked for 18 mfing years!
Then it dawned on me. When I build that computer in 2014 I put that 8400 in there as a place holder until I would have gotten a more up to date card… I just forgot and it’s been working diligently since then… I mean wow.
My ten year old desktop.
iPod classic. The fact that a 2009 device with a mini hard drive still works after dropping the thing like 100 times shows the absolutely ridiculously over engineered build quality on those things.
Same here, but my battery started to go out and puff up so I replaced it for a bigger one, put 1tb of ssd storage, a USB-C charger, and bluetooth. Now I don’t have to preload music from my +200gb library and I have room for a couple of movies :D
where did you source the USB -C mod?
How do you replace the internal storage with ssd storage? Is it easy? I was going to look into some more modern niche music players. I just really don’t want to use my phone. I love having the separate device.
Baskets and wheels.
i have a fully functional Kodak Brownie, 100 years old… but it requires ancient 117 roll film.
My home server has been running on a i7 960 with an Intel motherboard for many many years now.
my second monitor says 2009 on the back. still use it. like it more than my main 2016 one which is itself about to turn a decade old.
My 2005 Peugeot 206. Although it’s always at risk of stalling during heavy rainfall. And my wired headphones that are reliable all the time even though they get stuck in weird places sometimes.
Sony PCM-M10 field recorder Olympia Travel Typewriter Olympus mju2 point and shoot camera
Tech that still works, I’ll continue to use it till it dies. Then I’ll try to revive it, and if I can’t, then I’ll upgrade. My main PC is over 10 years old.
Original DS Lite.
I would pay hard money for someone to make essentially a 3DS successor PDA running Linux.
The potential is limitless.
Ayaneo made the Flip DS but besides being expensive apparently the battery life is a bit wanting- but at least these kinds of products are starting to be made!
Few years ago I did a full rebuild of a top-of-the-line tube radio from 1958 and use it daily in my living room. My stereo tube amp is from 1963 or 1964. Both sound astonishing.
My binoculars are from WW II - era. I had to realign the prisms when I got them but the optics are about as good as you can get.
I also use an iPod Nano 2Gen almost daily, I think I bought it in 2008 and the original battery can still hold enough charge for 4-5 hours of continous play. Incredible device with a neat perfect UI. The physical jogwheel can be operated through pocket fabric, so I can switch songs or adjust volume while running without even having to remove the iPod from my pocket.
A car without an internet connection.
Green/orange LCD screens, needle speed dials, just perfection.
My 1980 Honda XR500 is an absolute workhorse of a machine. Almost 47 years old (built 08/1979) and still effortlessly pulls wheelies on command. Very little wiring, and most of it is for the lighting to make it street legal.
An XR not an XL?
Yes, an XR. I wired in a proper lighting system.
I guess my ~10 manual car with no backup cam counts lol
2004 F150 and 2002 Spyder here. I’ll roll those until I can’t.
My thinkpad x220. One of the best laptops ever made
My wired headphones.
I hate the wires dangling around my ears and neck. So annoying lol
I hate constantly needing to charge headphones and dealing with bluetooth connection issues. Way more annoying lol
This, and the fact that no matter how good the headphones/earbuds are, their batteries will, inevitably, die after some time. Even if the drivers and mics are ok, you will not be able to use them anymore unless you can replace said batteries (which I don’t know if it is possible, particularly with earbuds). And if not, they transform in e-waste that cannot be recycled easily.
On the other end, I still have pairs of wired headphones and earbuds that I bought many years ago (some of them from the late 90s), that still sound as good as the first day.
Fairphone has headphones and earbuds with replaceable batteries. They’re pretty expensive, but show that the big players could easily provide the same level of repairability.
I use wired headphones at my desk, but I really don’t want to go back to wired for when I’m on the go.
I’d love a set of the Fairbuds, but they don’t ship to the USA 🫤