There are few staples of modern technology more widespread than the infamous electronics drawer. It seems that every house has that strange place where all electronics go to die, with a very simple explanation: they might come in handy later.

Well, usually they don’t. The drawer becomes a graveyard of old electronics and just keeps filling up with all the old phones, tablets, cameras, and whatever else served its purpose and gets replaced with a newer, better model.

However, this drawer does not need to keep filling up. You could, of course, simply sell your used electronics and get back some of your money, but that’s not the only thing you can do. Old tech can be a tinkerer’s dream, and with a bit of elbow grease, you can expand your tech arsenal with some handy, home-made gadgets.

Digital photo frame

Making a digital photo frame is a staple of upcycling. It’s a great first step you can take into the world of creatively reusing old tech. The project is easy and doesn’t require a lot of experience with electronics or any tools.

There are millions of fully functional smartphones and tablets still lying around in people’s homes, usually forgotten in some long-forsaken drawer. Even though they might be too outdated for their designed use, making them into a digital photo frame can perfectly utilize their processing power and gorgeous screens to showcase your favorite memories.

It’s also a project that scales well to your tinkering experience. The easiest version requires you to simply set up a photo carousel on your phone’s screen and think of some kind of a stand. DIY masters can think of creating custom frames or transferring the hardware into another chassis, or even scaling it up to TVs or monitors.

USB mouse flash drive

Hide your files in plain sight

It seems like nowadays, everyone has a pile of flash drives in their electronics drawer. They turn up in various goodie bags, promotional materials and other stuff that just finds its way into every home.

Even though in your day-to-day life you’re probably transferring files over the internet nowadays, these tiny storage devices can still be useful. One of the cool things to do with them is turn them into something a bit more interesting.

The idea is really easy. You take an old, wired USB device, such as a desk fan, a mouse or a keyboard. You take it apart, and do the same with the USB stick. Then you de-solder the original connections, and solder the flash drive PCB to the end of the USB cable of the device.

You can make that project even easier if you buy a USB extender cable. In that case you just need to plug the USB stick into the extender cable. Replace the original cable of the device you’re converting with this extender, making sure that you can hide the USB stick inside. When you put it all together again, it should work instantly, without any software tricks needed.

The project is, again, really simple and can make for quite a shock for everyone seeing you download your hidden files from your unassuming desk lamp.

DIY home decor

Land of pure imagination

Sometimes, you don’t have to keep the “electronic” part of upcycled electronics alive. There are various projects that utilize old devices’ parts without keeping them operational, relying instead on their unusual aesthetics.

In this case, your imagination is the only real limitation. From making robots out of old PCB parts to creating stylish coasters that use CDs as their base, you can really make everything. Don’t limit yourself when it comes to the size of your creations too. People swear by vintage CRTs making stylish fish tanks, and certain aesthetics could welcome shelves made out of old PC cases or laptops.

Finally, you can also breathe new life into your space by adding some retro touches. An old cabinet radio makes for an excellent bedside table or a cabinet that can compliment your room’s decor.

Home security camera

Let the old phone be your eyes and ears

If you’d prefer a project that’s both extremely useful but also a little bit more of a challenge, turning your old smartphone into a security camera might be an ideal choice for you.

Modern smartphones, even a couple of years old now, still have much better sensors than security cameras. That’s why using them to monitor your house’s surroundings is a no-brainer, especially since you don’t have to pay extra to use them wirelessly as well.

All you have to do in order to get your home ready for its new security position is find a security camera app that matches your needs with its payment model, backup, and all the other details.

Hardware-wise, though, you don’t have to change anything with your device. The only time you’ll be using tools is to mount a phone holder somewhere it can see the area you want to secure. Then, route a charging cable to the smartphone, make sure it’s protected from the elements, and start recording!

Old computers can be awesome servers

Your NAS, your rules

It seems that subscription models are finally catching up with people’s wallets and many users are turning to alternative solutions for their streaming or storage needs. Instead of a monthly payment for cloud storage or a streaming service, you can make your own versions with old PC hardware you can find lying around.

Setting up an old PC or a laptop as a media server is surprisingly easy. Only a few steps are required to free you from the shackles of subscriptions.

First you’ll need to make sure the device you want to turn into a server still works. Focus mostly on storage drives, and make sure they are in good condition. If you think the storage capacity is too low or the disks could be approaching their death, you can easily find spare drives used for a few bucks – or invest in something new.

After installing an operating system dedicated to media storage, such as FreeBSD, you have to go through a straightforward setup to create your media pool and connect your server to the network.

After that, all you need to do is install Plex, Jellyfin or other streaming apps in order to make your own streaming platform, or look into self-hosted cloud storage solutions such as Nextcloud.

Note: The process is straightforward and easy, but still it requires a bit more than just basic knowledge of hardware and software. If you make a mistake you could end up harming your device, so attempt it at your own discretion.