Cheerful Frugality and Outdated Technology
If you need a cheap TV, boy, have I got a deal for you...
Frequent thrift shoppers have probably noticed shelves full of analog televisions donated in the last few months. You can't watch programming without a converter box, but that's a functional, frugal solution to anyone who needs a TV for movies or cable.
Likewise, we recently resurrected our VCR for summer entertainment. While library DVDs are in short supply and/or scratched, rows of children's VCR tapes sit idle. I've found quality titles from Kipper to Konos homeschooling for fifty cents at the thrift store. In this case, old technology is giving us access to information we wouldn't have on DVD.
I'm hanging on to my car's audio tapes for the summer, but I'll be saving space with a (secondhand) Ipod when I get my act together.
Think about what you need, and consider older technology for its bargain price. If all you need is function...
- Ask yourself if you're throwing good money after bad (repairing an older computer when a newer, updated version could be had for not much more).
- Check your circle of friends. Is anyone getting rid of a cell phone or an older gaming system?
- Assess the savings of older technology. Both rabbit ears and reel mowers get the job done.
Where does older technology work in your routine? When does upgrading make it worth the cost to your family?
Want more like this post? Read on!
- Cheerful Frugality Sorts Shoes I'm definitely a minimalist when it comes to shoes, but ...
- Cheerful Frugality Plays Outdoors Earlier this spring I decided to let my garden dreams...
- Cheerful Frugality Hits The Road With gas under $2/gal, frugal families may be traveling again...
- Cheerful Frugality In The Lean Times This week I listened to a conversation between 2 friends. "Beans...
- Cheerful Frugality Evangelizes It's out of my mouth before I can stop myself....
6 Responses to “Cheerful Frugality and Outdated Technology”
July 13th, 2009 at 9:17 pm
i still have a “turntable” and those vinyl record albums from the 60’s-80’s…and they are still being played and enjoyed by all…
July 13th, 2009 at 11:21 pm
Just the other day, I donated my old TV to a thrift store.
I recently upgraded my TV — for free — by being at the right place at the right time. No need to have an extra TV set sitting around, ya know?
July 14th, 2009 at 7:16 am
We keep an older TV with VHS/DVD player for our boys. They love getting old VHS movies at the library, too!
I wish I could find an old reel mower, I love those!
July 14th, 2009 at 8:14 am
I have a dvd/vcr player and recently found some old Blue’s Clues videos, my daughter loves them.
My son also found some old vcr tapers he’s watching for the first time- Toy Story.
July 19th, 2009 at 5:56 am
We used older cell phones (bag phones) until the cell phone provider refused to provide service for them any longer. They still worked fine and often had a stronger signal than the newer phones.
Our TV sets are from the early 1970’s and the mid 1980’s. The one from the 1970’s works better.
My husband can fix older VCR’s, and he often finds them inexpensively. The newer ones aren’t meant to be fixed–deliberately–so he avoids those. We have also picked up cassette recorders at yard sales. As others have said, we find VHS tapes at yard sales–often from people who have “upgraded” to a newer technology.
He also repairs one particular brand of vintage turntable. (This isn’t meant to be an ad, I’m just trying to respond to the comments.) Turntables and vinyl records are going through a new wave of popularity with collectors–if you walk through a mall music store here, you might be surprised to see how many new releases are out on vinyl–and how expensive they are. (Needless to say, most of our records were also bought used.)
July 19th, 2009 at 5:58 am
By “cassette recorders” I meant music cassettes–not VCRs.
Leave a Comment