What do people usually do with spare Android phones? Any practical use cases?
I’ve been thinking about practical ways people reuse spare or unused Android devices instead of letting them sit in a drawer. I’ve seen cases where phones are used for testing, monitoring, background tasks, or other always-online purposes after a one-time setup. No user interaction, just keeping the device connected and running. Curious what real-world use cases others have actually found useful. Are there setups that worked well long-term, or things to avoid? Not trying to promote anything here — genuinely interested in how people approach this. 7 comments on Hacker News.
I’ve been thinking about practical ways people reuse spare or unused Android devices instead of letting them sit in a drawer. I’ve seen cases where phones are used for testing, monitoring, background tasks, or other always-online purposes after a one-time setup. No user interaction, just keeping the device connected and running. Curious what real-world use cases others have actually found useful. Are there setups that worked well long-term, or things to avoid? Not trying to promote anything here — genuinely interested in how people approach this.
I’ve been thinking about practical ways people reuse spare or unused Android devices instead of letting them sit in a drawer. I’ve seen cases where phones are used for testing, monitoring, background tasks, or other always-online purposes after a one-time setup. No user interaction, just keeping the device connected and running. Curious what real-world use cases others have actually found useful. Are there setups that worked well long-term, or things to avoid? Not trying to promote anything here — genuinely interested in how people approach this. 7 comments on Hacker News.
I’ve been thinking about practical ways people reuse spare or unused Android devices instead of letting them sit in a drawer. I’ve seen cases where phones are used for testing, monitoring, background tasks, or other always-online purposes after a one-time setup. No user interaction, just keeping the device connected and running. Curious what real-world use cases others have actually found useful. Are there setups that worked well long-term, or things to avoid? Not trying to promote anything here — genuinely interested in how people approach this.
Hacker News story: What do people usually do with spare Android phones? Any practical use cases?
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Reviewed by Tha Kur
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January 04, 2026
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