{"id":7949,"date":"2016-12-09T12:24:40","date_gmt":"2016-12-09T20:24:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.hellotech.com\/?p=7949"},"modified":"2024-07-15T14:03:27","modified_gmt":"2024-07-15T21:03:27","slug":"old-phones","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hellotech.com\/blog\/old-phones","title":{"rendered":"10 Clever Ways to Repurpose Your Old Phones"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>We all have old phones lying around somewhere, gathering dust as we speak. That\u2019s a given considering how fast hardware upgrades come, nowadays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you have one or two old phones that aren\u2019t good enough to sell or give away as a gift, do you dispose of them immediately? Not so fast. As it turns out, you can make brilliant use of old phones. Here are 10 things you can do with them that you probably never thought of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-turn-it-into-an-mp3-player\">Turn it into an MP3 player<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>You don\u2019t need a powerful processor or an excellent camera to listen to music. Fill up your old phone with all your favorite hits and get yourself a waterproof armband pouch. Now, you can take your old phone with you during your morning jogs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-use-it-as-an-alarm-clock\">Use it as an alarm clock<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>All you need is a simple mobile phone stand or a speaker dock to turn your old smartphone into a bedside clock. Don\u2019t forget to download a&nbsp;nice clock app, too. You can also transform it into a digital picture frame or newscaster by enabling Daydream mode in the display settings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-transform-old-phones-into-makeshift-surveillance-cameras\">Transform old phones into makeshift surveillance cameras<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Security cameras are notorious for having such a bad video quality. In that case, why not use your spare smartphone\u2019s decent camera for home surveillance? Keep an eye over your home using <a href=\"http:\/\/www.salient-eye.com\/\"><em>SalientEye<\/em><\/a> (Android) or <a href=\"http:\/\/www.presencepro.com\/\"><em>Presence<\/em><\/a> (iOS), powerful apps that turn your device into a motion detector camera. The best part? These apps will alert you via SMS or email whenever they sense an intruder (or your pet wreaking havoc).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-make-your-old-phone-a-universal-remote\">Make your old phone a universal remote<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Roku, smart lights, Apple TV, stereo sound system, Xbox One, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hellotech.com\/sonos-play5\/\">Sonos Play:5<\/a> speaker, etc.\u2014there isn\u2019t a shortage of devices that come with connected apps. Instead of stuffing those apps in your current mobile phone, why not put them in your old smartphone? Simply get rid of all its old apps and turn it into a dedicated smart home hub!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-mount-it-on-your-car-bike\">Mount it on your car\/bike<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In need of a GPS in your car or for your bike&nbsp;rides? Well, you don\u2019t need to spend a hefty sum! Load up your old phone with a navigation app that has offline routing capabilities and mount it on the dashboard or your bike\u2019s handlebars. Who knew GPS could be this affordable and accessible?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-use-it-to-run-car-diagnostics\">Use it to run car diagnostics<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Good garage apps you can readily download are aplenty. Some worthwhile ones like <em>OBD Auto Doctor<\/em> (<a href=\"http:\/\/www.obdautodoctor.com\/android.php\">Android<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.obdautodoctor.com\/ios\">iOS<\/a>) and <em>Car Diagnostics Pro<\/em> (<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/apps\/details?id=com.voltasit.obdeleven&amp;hl=en\">Android<\/a>) help you run diagnostics on your car. They require you to connect a wireless OBD adapter or OBD Wi-Fi cable to connect to your car\u2019s computer. Still, making old phones your new garage buddy is better than getting grease on your main handset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-dedicate-old-phones-to-science\">Dedicate old phones to science<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>We don\u2019t want to risk sounding cliche, but you can dedicate old smartphones to the pursuit of scientific breakthroughs. Just download apps like <em>Folding@home<\/em>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.htc.com\/us\/go\/power-to-give\/\"><em>Power to Give<\/em>,<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/boinc.berkeley.edu\/\"><em>BOINC<\/em><\/a> to donate your device\u2019s unused computer power to scientific research and calculations. All you have to do is let those apps run in the background and your old phone can help find the answers to some of life\u2019s biggest mysteries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-turn-it-into-a-portable-console\">Turn it into a portable console<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>When your old device has enough RAM to handle occasional gaming, you could very well make it an entertainment hub! Expand its memory with a fresh microSD card and fill it with all your favorite mobile games. You can even save a few full-length movies you can watch during long commutes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-donate-it-to-charity\">Donate it to charity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Find your old phone a new home by donating it to charity. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cellphonesforsoldiers.com\/\">Cellphones for Soldiers<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ncadv.org\/\">National Coalition Against Domestic Violence<\/a> are just two charitable organizations that can make use of your old phones. You can also look up local shelters to see if anyone is interested in giving your phone a new lease on life. It\u2019s certainly a noble way for your old pal to go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-recycle-your-old-phones\">Recycle your old phones<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If you just dropped your phone in water, you can still <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hellotech.com\/dropped-your-phone-in-water\/\">resuscitate it<\/a>. You\u2019ll have to dispose of it, though, when the handset is completely obsolete or beyond repair. But don\u2019t just hand them over to any less reputable recyclers or throw them in the trash bin. Read up EPA\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.epa.gov\/recycle\/electronics-donation-and-recycling\">electronics donation and recycling page<\/a> to know what proper recycling options are available to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Your old phones could be doing so much more than just collecting dust in a corner. In most cases, all you need is a little creativity to give your old buddy a new sense of purpose.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We all have old phones lying around somewhere, gathering dust as we speak. That\u2019s a given considering how fast hardware upgrades come, nowadays. If you have one or two old phones that aren\u2019t good enough to sell or give away as a gift, do you dispose of them immediately? Not so fast. As it turns out, you can make brilliant use of old phones. Here are 10 things you can do with them that you probably never thought of: Turn [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7974,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17582,17580],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mobile","category-tips-and-tricks"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v20.10 (Yoast SEO v20.10) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Don&#039;t Throw Away Old Phones: Here&#039;s 10 Ways to Repurpose Them<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Have old phones that aren\u2019t good enough to sell or give away? 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