Making good use of old or spare tablets/smartphones

[oj88]

you are correct, sir, in your bottomline.
but i side with the "creators".
it is the challenge, not the convenience, that drives these guys.
i am confident they can easily purchase the latest and the bestest. but that feeling of "creating where there was nothing" is not to be spiffled with.
i still have with me, my very first "home-made compass", made from an old hacksaw blade, 2 inch nail, and a piece of wood. i made it when i was a teenager. it also introduced me to my dad's workshop.

hi, pop, wherever you are. say hi to mom. merry Christmas.
(they both passed away 11 years ago.)

I was speaking from experience. To be able to come up with a solution for something that doesn't exist yet is one thing. Doing things the hard way when a more appropriate solution at equal or lower cost is available, is another.

Well before Waze and prior to owning a proper car GPS (and later a 2DIN Nav HU), I used a Samsung i780 Windows Mobile 6 for navigation. As there was no Windows Store then, all apps have to be side-loaded, including (not particularly proud of this) a cracked version of Garmin for WindowsCE. There will come a time, pretty much like what I realized, that frequent mounting/dismounting eventually becomes a chore.
In addition to my 2DIN Nav, I also use Waze on my phone. But since my phone (Sony Xperia Z3 Dual) has a charging dock that is semi-permanently attached to the vehicle, there are no wires or clamps/brackets to contend with.

Found the pic... from 8years ago.