Key Takeaways
- Older laptops are cheaper, saving hundreds of dollars compared to new models.
- Upgrading older tech is easier with numerous online tutorials and forums.
- Re-purposing old laptops helps cut down on e-waste and benefits the environment.
While it’s easy to get excited about the latest laptop, there’s something to be said about committing to an older machine. Here are just a few reasons you may want to forgo that shiny new model in favor of something with a few more miles on it.
1 The Case for Older Laptops
Maybe it’s my age, or perhaps I’m delving hardcore into my old tech era, but today’s modern laptops just don’t get me jazzed up like they used to. Sure, they’re cool and all, with their standard promise of thinner, lighter, and more powerful, but there comes a point in which those terms become less of a boon and more of a liability.
That’s why I prefer older laptop tech—and not just because they’re great for things like media servers. For my purposes—namely, writing articles, researching, surfing the web, and watching YouTube—many of the older laptops still work a treat. Plus, they have several advantages over their newer counterparts.
2 Older Laptops Are Cheaper
First, older machines are almost always less expensive—like, hundreds of dollars less expensive, especially if you purchase one from places like eBay or Facebook Marketplace.
Take my T480s ThinkPad, for example. It’s almost seven years old, and it’s still going strong. I got it second-hand for less than a third of what a new MacBook costs. And after upgrading the RAM and the hard drive, it still came out to be less than half the cost of a newer model.
3 Older Tech Is Easier to Upgrade
If you want to upgrade an older laptop, chances are someone has already done the same and documented it on places like Instructables or YouTube. Having someone walk you through the steps to repair an old computer is almost always easier than trying to figure it out yourself.
Which means you’ll have to exert less effort to get the job done. Plus, there’s the added satisfaction of knowing you’re the one who was solely responsible for the customization.
4 You Get to Cut Down on E-Waste
Sure, repairing an old machine isn’t the only way to cut down on e-waste. And re-purposing an old computer isn’t going to save the world. But rescuing an elderly laptop from a landfill does help to cut down on toxic substances that can leech into the soil and groundwater.
According to the Columbia Climate School at Columbia University, e-waste from electronics can contain toxic chemicals such as mercury, cadmium, beryllium, and other hazardous chemicals. These chemicals can contaminate groundwater and cause harm to the environment.
If you frequent places like Reddit, you’ll run across numerous communities devoted to using old technology. The r/ThinkPad subreddit, for example, has close to 200,000 members at the time of writing. This means if you have a problem, you can easily get help from a strong community of people who have been where you are.
That doesn’t just apply to Reddit, though. There are countless forums across the internet for folks who are interested in old tech. From restoration to buying and selling, with an established community, you can often get better and more in-depth support than you would be able to if the device were new. Not to mention all the cool projects you can make with an older laptop.
6 The Old-School Cool Factor
Look, I’ll admit it: sometimes I like older computers because they stand out from the crowd. They’re cool in the way that vintage music players are cool. Owning and using one says something about you to other people. It makes you stand out among the silver, MacBook-toting, corporate crowd.
Not that there is anything wrong with those people. But even Steve Jobs suggested that people “Think Different” every once in a while. Plus, if vintage stuff is cool, then why not let that extend to your laptop?
Overall, an older machine has plenty of benefits. And while I’m sure there are certain disadvantages—no AAA gaming, for example—there are also countless reasons to embrace well-loved machines. New and shiny is great. No doubt. But, for me, at least, I’ll be rocking my vintage laptop until it decides to give up the ghost. Then I’ll probably go out and buy another one.
