Dom Corriveau

Computer hardware I use

Posted on Dec 8, 2025

We are a low income household and live extraordinarily frugally. Therefore the limited money we have goes towards the kids, pets, and taking care of the house. All computer needs are secondary, so almost everything I have is secondhand, given to me from friends and family members who have upgraded.

I’m very happy with what I have and I’m proud of what I can accomplish with old hardware.

In addition to being low income I also work hard to reduce ewaste. Saving old hardware from the trash is a passion of mine, so I often refurbish hardware and give it away to anyone who needs it.

Below is what I am currently using for hardware.

Primary desktop

I bounce around machines a lot, so saying I have a primary desktop is a loose interpretation of whatever I’m using when sitting at my desk. This can change at any time, but this is the machine I spend the most time on.

Laptop

Just like my desktop, I change laptops all the time based on whatever is catching my eye at the moment. I don’t have the cash to buy a new laptop, so this is always a used device I got from a friend or family member who was getting rid it.

At the moment my primary laptop is a Dell Latitude 7490 circa 2018.

  • CPU: Intel i7-8650U (4 core; 8 threads) @1.9GHz/boost to 4.2GHz
  • 16 GB DDR4-2400 RAM
  • (1) 512 GB unknown m.2 SSD
  • Onboard screen: 15" 1920x1080
  • Primary OS: Debian 12 + XFCE (A clone of my desktop)

Homelab

I am an avid self-hoster and use a GMKTec G3. I love this little PC. It has user upgradable RAM and dual m.2 slots (one 2280 and one 2242).

NAS

A year ago I splt my homelab and NAS after a major drive failure. I haven’t had the best luck with an AIO build, so I separated them which also allowed me to better utilize the NAS with the other machines in the house.

The NAS is built from an old SFF Dell that I have heavily modified.

Other

These are the other computers I have lying around that don’t get used as often: