What to do with an old laptop?

Faith

I've got an old Sony Vaio vgn-nr11s knocking about and I want to get rid of it. I bought it in late 2007, I think, and stopped using it in early 2010. Since then, it has pretty much sat in a cupboard.

It still works fine (although the battery won't really hold a charge), but I assume it's too old for anyone to want to use. If I were to sell it, what's the best way to go about that (online/cash converters etc)? How do I figure out how much it's worth?

bonzodog2

http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Spares-Repair-Faulty-laptop-sony-vaio-vgn-nr11s-pcg-7z1m-screen-lid-/321410569768?pt=UK_Computing_Laptops_EH&hash=item4ad5901628
is a faulty and incomplete one, it sold in June on ebay for 39 GBP

Stick it on adverts/donedeal and see what response you get. I presume its running Vista, still good for OS support for a while. Some people don't need the latest and greatest kit.

I'd ask 100 euro, but it would be a good idea to consider if you have any sensitive personal data on it, maybe do a factory restore on it or completely wipe it with Dban and do a clean reinstall. (If thats within your abilities)

solomafioso

This article might help too (for more ideas).

http://lifehacker.com/top-10-ways-to-repurpose-your-old-laptop-1522986846

Faith

Really helpful replies, thank you!

It'd be fun to repurpose it, but I'm emigrating next month so it has to go.

I'll wipe it with DBan shortly. I assume I have to reinstall Windows then?

Faith

bonzodog2 wrote: »

maybe do a factory restore on it or completely wipe it with Dban and do a clean reinstall. (If thats within your abilities)

/sigh

The laptop is running Windows Vista, and for some reason, it will not boot from a CD/DVD. I've done all the correct things, and this seems to be a problem with the Vaio. There's a suggestion that enabling Legacy boot will solve that, but that doesn't appear possible with Vista .

I've wasted the whole afternoon on this now, and my fear is that even if I manage to wipe the hard drive, I won't be able to re-install Windows. Are there any other options for getting rid of sensitive information without wiping the OS?

bonzodog2

Its probably not as good as dban, but Ccleaner can do free space wiping too. Get it to remove all temp files, then check in C:\Users\User\AppData\Local\Temp and other locations.

Create a new Admin account, log in to that and delete all others

If you've used a browser other than IE, all the better - uninstall it before wiping free space with ccleaner.

If it weren't a VAIO (of that era anyway), you could just remove the HD, but with a slightly newer VAIO I acquired recently, you need to mostly dismantle the laptop to get to it. Nice one Sony, not.

Have you checked if a factory restore is possible/easy?

Overheal

Host a website/server with it?

woodturner

In a similar situation myself. Mine's a VGN N21e.

woodturner

In a similar situation myself. Mine's a VGN N21e.

woodturner

In a similar situation myself. Mine's a VGN N21e.

Faith

bonzodog2 wrote: »

Its probably not as good as dban, but Ccleaner can do free space wiping too. Get it to remove all temp files, then check in C:\Users\User\AppData\Local\Temp and other locations.

Create a new Admin account, log in to that and delete all others

If you've used a browser other than IE, all the better - uninstall it before wiping free space with ccleaner.

If it weren't a VAIO (of that era anyway), you could just remove the HD, but with a slightly newer VAIO I acquired recently, you need to mostly dismantle the laptop to get to it. Nice one Sony, not.

Have you checked if a factory restore is possible/easy?

Thank you! I'm using CCleaner right now, and it seems that a factory restore should be straightforward enough to do

woodturner

Could you let me know how to go about doing a factory restore? I wouldn't be very computer savvy. I've removed some stuff from it but want to completely wipe it.

Faith

woodturner wrote: »

Could you let me know how to go about doing a factory restore? I wouldn't be very computer savvy. I've removed some stuff from it but want to completely wipe it.

It'll vary from computer to computer, but for the Vaio, all you have to do is hold Alt+F10 when the computer begins to load.