Make Home Technology Serve You Longer and Save Money

The world of home technology and electronics is constantly changing, but you need to be mindful that older technology can work just fine. It all depends on what you need for you frugal living lifestyle.

Replace things for the latest in technology, and you waste money. Replace things when you need to, and you save money.

When personal computers became popular in the home, they used to be outdated every year or two for the average user. That isn’t true anymore.

So, plan on keeping your computer for many years even though improvements in technology are available. The industry has reached somewhat of a plateau where you can get more memory and more storage space, but we aren’t seeing major steps forward in technology that are necessary or highly useful for the average user.

Replacing a computer for the latest in technology really won’t buy you anything unless you actively use that new technology. Save money and hold onto that computer until newer technology can be put to good use.

My last computer provided good service for 6 years. Sure, it was slow by standards of the day, but I didn’t need a fast moving number crunching machine. What I needed was something that worked well with Word and Excel, and that was about it. Be mindful that I ran a business with this computer, so it wasn't discretionary, it was necessary.

As far as frugal living tips go, this one applies across a broad spectrum of home technology and home office equipment. You can apply this tip to phones, printers, copiers, fax machines, stereos, alarm clocks, microwaves and other electronics that you have. If it does the job, then save money by waiting to replace it until it is necessary.

Waiting to replace when it is necessary is a type of delayed gratification.

There's always going to be something faster, easier, smarter, sexier and better. That is how home technology evolves. It is up to us to make a reasonable assessment as to whether we need enhanced capabilities, or we just want something new.

Whenever I was on the phone with Verizon, the service representative would mention that my Timeport phone was old. She would emphasize the word "old" as if that word was a nasty and undesirable thing to even say. In response, I would always state the age of the phone and then immediately ask her age. They get the message quickly - something that is old doesn't necessarily need to be replaced.

Practice frugal living by pretending that your older home technology is like a Model T of years gone by. Operate it with pride and know that you're saving money.

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