In a world dominated by ever-evolving technology, keeping up with new trends can be a costly affair. The good news is that you don’t have to buy every newly released gadget. You can make use of old hardware and other supplies sold for cheap to make interesting and useful devices.

Beginner-friendly electronics projects only require basic circuitry knowledge, soldering skills, and a few readily available resources. You’ll be surprised by the potential you have, and you’ll wonder why you didn’t take the challenge before. Here are nine incredible electronics projects beginners can tackle with minimal effort.

1. MintyBoost

A MintyBoost serves as an alternative source of power for small gadgets. Whether it’s a phone, iPod, camera, or MP3 player, a MintyBoost can charge it. It’s a reliable power back up gadget that’s easy to make with resources such as 9V batteries, capacitors, diodes, a printed circuit board, an inductor, wires, a case, and a USB port.

The power generated by your MintyBoost depends on the amount of voltage in the batteries used.

2. Supercapacitor USB Light

Although a supercapacitor light can store energy longer than a simple capacitor light, it may not last you through the night. That’s why you need a USB connector to recharge the supercapacitor. Once you connect your supercapacitor USB light to a laptop, it’ll recharge and last longer.

This supercapacitor USB light project is easy and fun. You’ll need a 5.5V 0.1F supercapacitor, a male USB connector, 1K Ohm resistor, and a white LED.

3. Jitter Drive

In this Jitter Drive project, you’ll convert your USB drive to a moving and vibrating toy. How cool is that?

Although a jitter drive isn’t practical, it’s an exciting gadget that’ll boost your mood. Essentially, it’s a USB drive attached to a toothbrush head with a motor mounted to the circuit board. You can use capacitors or rechargeable batteries as a power source. Get introduced to soldering as you attach the switch to the battery.

Related: Tips to Reuse Your Old Hardware

4. USB Doomsday Device

There are some days when you wish you could reset the entire day or week. This USB doomsday device is what you need to release tension. Basically, this gadget is a program launcher that you can modify to do many other things.

The three levels of failsafe protection are the secret behind the operation of the device. Remember to remove and keep the keys safe when not in use. The project helps you get insights into the world of electronic engineering.

5. DIY Audio Mixer

This mixing console is a handy electronic gadget for modifying and combining audio signals, which are summed to produce combined output signals. These audio mixers can either be digital or analog, but we’ll focus on the latter in this project.

Although the project is a bit technical, hacking it is easy as long as you understand how different circuits work. You can advance the device by adding circuits for audio equalization. For this project, you’ll need a potentiometer, a capacitor, a resistors, one op-amp, a speaker, wires, and DC power supply.

Now that you have an audio mixer, you probably want to try another project that will take your home entertainment to the next level. Why not build a home theater?

6. TV-B-Gone

Although TVs are a great source of entertainment, they can be quite distracting if you want to get work done. Make this TV-B-Gone to help you turn on or off TV at your own convenience. This device will allow you to turn off almost all types of televisions, including the latest flat screen TVs.

This is a great project to introduce you to soldering in general. You’ll need materials such as a microcontroller, 8MHz resonator, a battery holder, a transistor, narrow-bean and wide-angle infrared LED, AA batteries, and a 150 ohm resistor. You can buy most of these supplies on eBay or get them from old electronics.

7. Mini POV v4

This MiniPOV v4 is a fun way to get you started on programming projects. You’ll need tools such as wire strippers and wire cutters, a printed circuit board, a soldering iron, AAA batteries, a microcontroller, and a computer for coding. In the course of the assembly process, you’ll also learn basic soldering techniques that you can apply in other projects.

Looking for fresh ideas for future projects that you can handle? Worry no more because we have creative ideas on how you can reuse your old PC.

8. RGB LED Mood Lighting

Unlike other projects we’ve covered on this list, this one is a bit complicated and needs a generous budget. However, it’s a worthy lighting project that’ll enhance your mood. This RGB LED mood lighting creates a calm atmosphere by slowly changing colors at different speeds.

Some important factors you should consider when making a RGB LED mood light include, the color of light, diffusion of light, temperature, and what smart things the light can do. You’ll need a transparent plexiglass, an ESP-O1 module, 5V power supply, a DC male plug, microcontrollers, multiple switches, LED strip, and a DC female plug.

9. Chapstick LED Flashlight

Don’t dispose of that chapstick tube yet, convert it to a practical LED flashlight. This simple gadget will come in handy to provide light in darkness, whether you’re hiking, looking for something under furniture, or walking at night.

A chapstick LED Flashlight has an enclosure that you can work with easily. Fix a switch at the bottom, a spring in the middle section, and a suitable bulb at the top, and you’re all set.

The materials you’ll need are a tactile switch, 470-Ohm resistor, a chapstick tube, a 12V battery, wires, battery holder, white LED, and a heat shrink tubing.

If you have extra resources idling around, check out these DIY air conditioner projects.

Start Small, Make a Huge Impact

The projects we’ve discussed here are quite practical because most of the resources needed are at your disposal. Get introduced to the fundamentals of programming, soldering, and assembling by trying some of the above ideas. As you reuse your old hardware, you’ll be playing a key role in conserving the environment.