Tech-on-the-Cheap: Repurposing Old PDAs
Ah, the personal data (or digital) assistant. They were all the rage back in the 90’s. You were high tech with that 160×160 monochrome screen and 1MB of memory. And at those boring meetings you were always the one who looked busy, when in fact all you were doing was playing solitaire.
Okay, so that was a long time ago, but since then we have seen the evolution through color, connectivity, PDA phones, and now smart phones are the personal data assistants of this age.
Odds are that somewhere along the road you have acquired a few of these devices that fit into this category. But it is also likely that you do not use more than one or two at a time. Here’s a few ideas for that aging PDA that’s just dying to be used again.
1. Alarm Clock
A modern cellphone works great for an alarm clock, but sometimes you want something more reliable. Something… bigger. Most dedicated PDAs had decently large, backlit screens that work great in the dark. It may be a waste of horsepower, but I’ve found old PDAs to be very useful alarm clocks that don’t glow obsessively in the dark.
You can also set multiple alarms, usually by using the calendar app. Have a different schedule on Sundays? Set a recurring alarm for Sundays only.
Newer (not really old) PDAs should also allow you to use your own music, albeit with a little help from additional software.
2. Photo Frame
Looking for a small digital photo frame? Me neither, but for some reason people keep buying the little buggers. I can’t understand paying upwards of $40 at a regular store for a 3.5 inch display. I have a 3 incher on my PDA!
Obviously you’d want a color PDA, since photos don’t usually look so hot on the older monochrome screens. If you don’t care what it looks like, a cradle (which usually came with most PDAs) would do just fine. But if the cradle doesn’t sound too good, you do have a few options for your frame: wood/metal photo frames cut to fit, gluing a small stand to the back of the PDA, or just some really good adhesive. The latter two are fairly easy, since you are just sticking something to the back, either for wall mount or table display. The wood or metal frame is more tricky; rarely do photo frames match the screen size, so will probably have to disassemble it and cut to fit. But all of those options are as cheap as $1, so the cost still isn’t high.
Make sure that whatever option you choose will have power. Some PDA cables are rather clunky, but if you’re going cheap you sometimes have to make sacrifices.
The added bonus of this setup are possibilities for video and music playback. Not all models support those features, but it is more common. Speaking of music….
3. MP3 Player
When I was using an old Tungsten T during high school, I was shocked one day to realize I hadn’t used it for anything except music for a whole week. I was still glad to have it over a dedicated MP3 player since it did have games and productivity software, but it was still a shocking realization.
If your PDA is MP3 capable, why not use it as an MP3 player? These make great starter players for kids, and since they normally use flash memory they can be used while running or jogging.
4. Universal Remote
I remember when I first heard of Logitech’s Harmony remotes. I thought they were cool, but the first one I saw started out at $100. Yikes! Nowadays they still start at $100 and go clear up to $400, just for a remote! But long before I had heard of the Harmony, I had already converted my PDA into a cheap universal remote.
This one is really going to depend on the hardware. Most older PDAs have infrared transceivers, usually for sharing data. (That was way back before Bluetooth and Wi-Fi were common.) The great thing is that most televisions and compatible media players use infrared for their wireless remote controls.
Software such as NoviiRemote can receive the IR commands from a remote and then repeat them on your command. You can even customize the layout of the remote and store hundreds of different remote profiles. Now some new televisions and media devices use different technology for their remotes; the PS3 uses Bluetooth so this won’t work for PlayStation 3 fans. But most other devices will work just fine.
The only not-so-cheap problem here is that not all remote software is cheap or free. The Novii software starts at $17, but it seems to be the best I’ve found. (Not that I’ve looked too hard, it’s been a while since I went shopping for remote software.) Search around a bit, and maybe you can find equivalent software for free. Heck, if you’re lucky some of the Sony Clie line had the software built-in.
