High on this year’s list of resolutions was clearing out old technology that had long passed its best-before date. Everyone – myself included – has a pile of old devices taking up space in drawers, gathering dust and generally just being useless.
Some have fallen out of favour, others no longer get software or security updates, and some are broken beyond worthwhile repair.
What to do with old devices though? Are they simply destined for the scrap heap? Not necessarily.
Your old tech may be beyond support, but if it is still working, you could transform it into something new.
RM Block
Your smartphone, for example, may have outlived its usefulness as your everyday phone but it still has a lot of powerful components. Phones can become security cameras, using apps such as Alfred or Manything. The latter is only for Apple devices, and only for iPhone 6s or newer.
Another option is to use it as a dash cam for the car, using an app such as iCam. The powerful camera in the devices, plus a decent battery life, means that, paired with a secure windscreen mount, they are a good replacement for a stand-alone dashcam.
Once a device’s end-of-support date has come and gone, you don’t get updates for bugs or regular security patches, nor do you get new features. Over time, the devices grow stale at best and become a security hazard at worst. But hardware wise, they may still be fully functional and not quite ready for the scrapheap.
So what can you do? There are some options to refresh old devices with new, open source software.
For laptops that may be losing Windows 10 support later this year, there are a few free options. There are several versions of Linux that you can install on a laptop relatively easily, replacing the out-of-date Windows with a fresh operating system.
There are plenty of options – Mint, for example, or Zorin OS
Google’s Chrome OS Flex can also be installed on old Windows devices or Macs, giving you fast boot-up time, and automatic background updates.
There are similar options for other devices. When Google dropped support for its first- and second-generation learning thermostats, it turned the smart devices into thermostats that only support local control. That meant no remote control, or integration with voice assistants.
A new initiative then sprang up that restored some of those smart functions. The No Longer Evil project give the thermostats a new interface and brought back the ability to adjust temperatures, switch modes and monitor its status in real time.
If you no longer have a use for a device, you can always pass it on to a new owner. Apps such as Olio, for example, see neighbours give away or loan items they no longer use, saving things from landfill and eliminating the need to manufacture new ones.
If you feel there may be enough value to it, you can sell devices such as phones to companies such as Swappie, Refurbd or CEX. Vodafone also offers a trade-in programme for devices, as does Three.
Recycling
If it is really end of life, send it for recycling. WEEE centres around the State will take smartphones for recycling.
Before you give anything away, however, there are some important steps you should take, even if your device is destined for the recycling bin. That includes wiping the data securely, removing any memory cards and making sure that you aren’t leaving anything important in the storage of your old smartphone or laptop.
Back up: Before you start cleaning down devices, make sure your data is safe. Once the data is wiped, it is gone, so make sure you have saved everything you need from your devices before you hit the factory reset button.
If you take the advice of tech experts, you already do regular backups, so there won’t be a huge amount of work to do. Mobile devices already perform regular backups of important information – from your contacts and saved passwords to photos. Still, it is best to perform a full back up of the device, and give yourself plenty of time just in case.
Unpair wearables: If you have any wearable devices linked, such as watches or activity trackers, unpair them from the old device. This will help prevent problems pairing them to a new device later on.
Sign out of accounts: Don’t trust that the factory reset to remove all the accounts from your laptop, tablet or smartphone. In fact, in some cases, failing to properly sign out of an account could prevent a new owner from using the device. Newer phones will require you to sign in and remove the owner’s account before a new one can be added – a handy antitheft procedure, but a nuisance if you have forgotten to remove your old phone from your Find My account, for example.
And just for good measure, revoke the device’s status as a trusted device. For Apple, you can remove its access through the Apple account page online (account.apple.com), or through a specified Apple device if you have enabled certain security features.
For Google, go to myaccount.google.com on your browser and tap on devices. That will show a list of devices that have access to your Google account, and allow you to sign out of ones you no longer recognise.
Memory cards: Factory resetting a device may not wipe everything. Removable memory cards may not be included when you are deleting data, meaning that photographs, documents and other personal data may be left behind and easily accessible to whoever has it next.
For most people, this may not be an issue; fewer smartphones allow you to expand storage with memory cards than they did in the past.
While some operators have switched to e-Sims, most Irish phone users will still have a physical sim card. A factory reset will remove the virtual Sims, but don’t forget to take out any physical sim cards before you donate the devices, even if they are long expired. They may still harbour some private information, such as contacts or text messages.
Factory reset: Once you are sure that you are ready to get rid of the device, whether it is to a new home or to the recycling centre, it is time to securely wipe the data from its internal storage.
Most people will use a simple factory reset to restore the device to its previous condition, wiping personal data and putting it back to the original set-up mode. Is a factory reset enough to keep your data secure?
It depends on the device. Modern smartphones encrypt your personal data using hardware-based keys. Once you factory reset the device, it deletes the encryption key – no encryption key means the data is unreadable. That makes it more difficult to recover the data, although it is not a 100 per cent guarantee.
For Apple devices, that can be found in the Settings menu, under General> Transfer or reset iPhone. Android users can find the option under Settings > System > Reset options, or Settings > General management > Reset for Samsung users.
If the device is locked or the phone won’t start up properly, you may need to put it into recovery mode.
For Android, you need to switch off the phone, and hold down the power and volume down buttons (for most models, some will involve the volume up key instead) until the recovery menu appears. You can then use the volume keys to select the Wipe data option and use the power button to confirm.
The same process for Apple devices is a little more complicated – you will need access to a Mac or a Windows laptop, running the latest version of iTunes. Connect it to your laptop via the appropriate cable and open iTunes. For newer iPhones – iPhone 8 or later – press and release the volume up button, then the volume down button, and press and hold the side button until the Connect to computer screen appears. You should then be able to wipe the phone of its data.
Unless the device you are disposing of predates the encrypting of devices, the factory reset should be enough to prevent usable personal data from being recovered. If you have an older phone that doesn’t automatically encrypt, experts recommend encrypting the phone first and then factory resetting it to destroy the data.
If it is a Windows PC you want to reset, it will depend on what software it is running. In Windows 10, go to Settings > Update & Security > Recovery and look for Reset This PC. Windows 11 has the same option under Settings > System > Recovery. Older devices running Windows 8 have it tucked away under Settings>Change PC settings > Update and recovery > Recovery. Ignore the refresh PC option and go for a full reinstall.
Mac computers have a different process. Older models need to be put into recovery mode by restarting the machine and holding down Command and R. Then use the Disk Utility to erase the drive and reinstall MacOS. Newer machines – those running on Apple chips or with Intel T2 security chips – go to System Settings > General > Transfer or Reset.
Sometimes software won’t do the job, for example where the device can no longer be turned on. If you have particularly sensitive data on your device, you may also feel wary about trusting a factory reset.
In that case, the best way to ensure data is unrecoverable is to go for the scorched earth option. The ultimate safeguard is to remove the storage drive or media and physically destroy it.
