W e are in a foreign country. We need our google maps to navigate in the city of Brussels. We have charged our batteries to fullest and started a journey to the city centre. It was a beautiful day, brightened up with sunlight. M and I were excited to meet and catch up on stories. We stopped by a thrift shop. M bought a t-shirt and a lovely pair of leather gloves which are perfect for cycling in the winter. Very swiftly, we reached the city centre and met with another colleague M2. As time passed we visited a grand cathedral with church bells ringing. It was a perfect day...... well almost! Samsung Phone by https://www.facebook.com/mike.kavanagh.79 We carried old refurbished phones… M never bought a new phone. Like me, He grew up and went to university in a world without mobile phones. He started his reduce/reuse/repair journey about 30 years ago, so he never bought a new phone. Always pre-loved phones from friends who had bought new ones or second-hand reconditioned phones My story is
Repairing an old mobile is always a challenge. I collected an old Lenovo Vibe K5 Note from a relative. The speaker was fiddled-with in a botched-up repair surgery, later replacement of a part brought back the speakers of the phone. But it came at a cost of Rs 2500/-… My phone stopped charging. Now what do I do? Questions in my mind… Since the phone was not charging fully, my first reaction was to buy a 12Watt Veloce micro fast charger. But the phone still does not charge. Now I wonder if I need to change the USB cable. In my curiosity, I stumbled upon something… I remember seeing a mobile accessories shop near Siddi Syed Masjid at the western tip of Relief Road. The shopkeeper fiddled a bit with my phone and announces that the IC needs to be changed. I asked to give the phone back to me… I became irritated when I heard the IC word. This is invariably the reason given to nudge the customer to buy a new phone. He returned it to me with a ‘as you wish’ look. Someone suggested to