So many devices are general purpose computers that are treated like a specialized device. eg: modern games consoles. A Nintendo 3DS is an ARM11 board. You can

So many devices are general purpose computers that are treated like a specialized device. eg: modern games consoles. A Nintendo 3DS is an ARM11 board. You can run Linux on it. Most people don’t because it doesn’t look like a “computer.” And because they wouldn’t know how as it takes a very specific skill set to make it work. They do get reused a lot because gamers of that era tend to value them… but a device like that could have tons of useful applications to extend its life. A fold-up computer with built in wifi that runs on battery? Nice. With enough around you could run a low-power mesh network in an emergency to keep communication open between folks that are separated. But such repurposing is far outside of most people’s reach. Especially when we’re trained to think of these things as products. Phones are another one. An iPhone 5 could easily be repurposed into a firewall or other application to extend its usefulness and lifetime. It’s a general purpose computer crippled into being a product though.