Old Macs... what can I do with them?
Asked by
hearkat (
22922
)
November 29th, 2008
from iPhone
I have a G3 iMac that didn’t take well to my attempt to load Tiger a couple years back. I don’t know enough to try diagnosing and fixing it myself, so I bought a G5.
The G5 recently died (mere days after AppleCare expired, of course). They told me of was the logic board, which costs almost as much as a new machine to repair (funny how that works, no?)
So they’re both collecting dust now. Is there a market for older Macs? Would somebody out there want the dead one for “parts” like people do with cars? Any suggestions (beyond eBay) for where I could sell, donate, or at least recycle these machines? I also have old software, too (probably even older than the G3 and OSX stuff)... are there any Apple collectors or some-such people?
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12 Answers
I took all of my old tech stuff to my local county’s tech recycling center. I took a monitor, printer, scanner, computer (with the sensitive stuff removed), etc….
I would think if you live near a major metropolitan area (Philly?) there must be something comparable in your area.
If you have nothing like this, Staples will take your computer and recycle it for you for a $10 fee. See link
You can also contact Costco and investiate their recycling program. You can ship your stuff to them for possible in store credit. See link
The place I went to had thousands of these…they strip them down and recover and separate the stuff out for recycling.
A lot better than dumping it in a landfill or having it take up space in your home :)
Thanks, Snoopy! Those are kind-of my last resort options.
I’m hoping that since some Apple enthusiasts are a bit fanatical, I might be able to put them to better use. I’m hoping that some of the Apple fans among the collective might know of other options.
Ebay would be your friend if you want to sell them. (Also, doing a quick ebay search, I found a logical board for the g5 for $225…not quite the cost of a new G5 =) )
@perchick: the logic board requires special tools and training to install unfortunately.
Shreve Systems in Louisiana buys used Macs, don’t know about the conditions or shipping costs.
My G5 died over the summer, same thing (logic board). I came to the same conclusion as you about its repair cost, so I’ve been working on a low-end MacBook with four external drives connected to it. I hope to be in the market for a Mac Pro in a few months, fingers crossed.
If you’re not – and are not planning to be – using them anymore, building a macquarium is one option…..
(Or if you’re not interested in making a macquarium, I’d gladly buy the dead g3 off of you so I can make one haha)
We take donations to teach middle school children. What city are you in?
@PnT:
I have an Intel iMac I bought in the interim so both my son and I had desktops for a while. But since we’ve gotten iPhones, we spend less time on the desktop (especially me), so we’ve been making due with one.
@Perchick:
The G3 works, but crashed with Tiger on it. I had added Crucial RAM to it; but any repairs beyond that exceed my abilities. But someone with a little more know-how could probably get it functioning fully.
@Steve6:
I’m in NJ – directly between NYC and Philly. I spend most time in the Southern half of the state and in Philly with my beau. But one is totally dead and the other prone to crashes… do you take those, too? I may have an old Windows ‘95 laptop, too; that worked normally last time I booted it (probably 7 years ago).
ah I’d feel bad about taking a usable G3 to strip it out for a fish tank. However, I’m sure it wouldn’t be that hard to get it running again. You could consider going to some local computer stores and mac stores to place ads for it. You might be able to get some money for it.
eBay. Someone can always use what you can’t
I would say eBay but Craigslist is also good.
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