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Free Geek Vancouver
Categories: Local Services IT Services & Computer Repair Local Services Community Service/Non-Profit Shopping Computers Education Tutoring Centres IT Services & Computer Repair, Community Service/Non-Profit, Computers, Tutoring Centres [Edit]
1820 Pandora StVancouver, BC V5L
Neighbourhood: Grandview-Woodlands
(604) 879-4335
- Hours:
Tue-Sat 11 am - 6 pm
- Price Range:
-
$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Parking:
- Street
10 reviews for Free Geek Vancouver
10 reviews in English
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Review from Edward L.
I always have a soft spot for Free Geek, as they were one of the only places until recently where you could take your old computer and electronics and know that it wasn't going to end up in some landfill.
Parking is available in front if you're there to buy something in their thrift shop, and in the rear if you're there to drop off some donations / old electronics.
This place also trains other less fortunate people (as well as volunteers) to dismantle computers, so it keeps people out of trouble, and even rewards them with free computers and parts as they put their time in here. Everybody wins.
And of course, if you need stuff to keep older computer running, they pretty much have everything, and the stuff (other than RAM) is usually dirt cheap. It is freaking AWESOME.
The world seriously needs more places and people like these. -
Review from Melissa E.
Vancouver, BC
3/23/2012
i'm moving so every day i discover some piece of equipment/paraphenalia/memorabilia/clothing that i chose to not deal with by shoving in a corner of my apt. needless to say i wasn't surprised when i realized i still had not disposed of my old Dell laptop from several years ago. it died a quick death after a solid and fulfilling 6 years of life (jeezus remember the day when they made things to last longer than 1 year!?). hard drive died and fixing it made no sense with the new low cost of laptop.
anyhoodles. looked up how to recycle/donate laptops in Van and Free Geek popped up first. i checked it out and seemed good.
i assumed when i arrived i'd have to fill something out or talk to someone.
nope
walk in. drop it off. out the door. total time lapse = 20seconds!!!
SO EASY!!! HOORAH!!! love. -
Review from Barry M.
4/9/2012 1 Check-in Here
I can't think of a more hassle free way to get rid of the old PCs I was hoarding up thinking I'd have some use for someday.
PCs need to be brought to the back alley entrance where there is parking. -
Review from Pi F.
Vancouver, BC
Updated - 3/5/2012
One thing to add to my Free Geek Vancouver review, they are very serious about properly sorting and ethically recycling the assorted parts of hardware that they don't/can't refurbish. Add on to that, that they are a very caring contributor to the broader community and you can't go wrong with supporting these folk.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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11/10/2011
Nothing particularly to add to the previous reviews, except to say that Free Geek Vancouver also… Read more »
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Review from Peter S.
Nothing new to ad to the reviews. Just some second hand geek praise for this awesome East Van business.
I wish more people knew about Free Geek.
Don't throw out your old computer stuff. I know we all have something LCD, RAM, or plug-in-able collecting dust in our storage rooms. Recycle it, and help someone in YOUR community have better access to all things Geeky!
I have brought a number of laptops and monitors here over the years. Even a web-cam and USB dock. I knew someone out there could use them, I just had no idea how or who. These Geeks have the hookup! -
Review from Katie F.
2/16/2011
Thanks to yelp and an article in 24Hours last year that made me aware of Free Geek!
Good place to donate your electronic items so they can be re-used instead of being tossed in the landfill. It's nice that they offer education to those who are interested. They take a wide variety of items, but unforunately have stopped taking in the old CRT monitors as of a month ago.
A few others had CRTs in their vehicles when we dropped off some items and were redirected to the Return-It depot a couple of blocks away. -
Review from Sachi M.
I'm glad I came across Free Geek on Yelp! I donated some computer parts piling up around the house. There was no hassle - no filling out or signing any forms. Just pulling up to the back door on the alley and bringing it to the counter inside.
I had to get rid of some old computer parts, but they were too good to treat as garbage. For example, an LCD monitor that turns on and displays correctly for a second, then turns off. These guys must know how to fix that and put it to good use!
Their site explains what they do volunteer-wise, but I really appreciated the details about what they accept and how they would prefer to have it. I also brought in a cel phone charger.
Hardware isn't my avenue of geekery, so I wasn't excited by the "store" in the front. But if you lost a power supply to anything, this might be a good place to check. They had tons.Listed in: FTR (or Second or Third)
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Review from Marc D.
Vancouver, BC
11/21/2008
Ok, I confess. I'm a closet geek. Well, maybe not so closeted. I love techie things (except Microsoft). I also love good causes (probably why I don't like Microsoft). Free Geek is both.
This Vancouver chapter of the international Free Geek community is a nonprofit community organization that reuses and recycles donated technology to help reduce the impact of the dangers of waste electronics.
They provide computer education to anyone that wants it for free, help train people with technology job skills for free, provide free Internet access to anyone that stops in, and offer a program to give you a free computer if you volunteer 24 hours of your time to help their efforts. Yes, a free computer for 24 hours of helping a good cause.
Their primary focus is on reuse of computer equipment. They take donations of old computers, then break them apart, test all of the components, and rebuild working fully tested machines. They also take any extra working components and put them up for sale in a thrift shop type atmosphere. This is a great spot to find that hard to find additional memory for an old PC, an extra network router, or even entire PCs at ridiculously low prices (something like $25 for a low end computer up to about $150 for a newer faster machine). All of the items they sell have been thoroughly tested.
They also take a certain percentage of the computers they rebuild and provide them through free hardware grants to community organizations (mostly non-profit and social change organizations).
Free Geek focuses on using open source software, and the majority of the PCs you can find them selling or granting for free use Ubuntu Linux, and come fully loaded and ready to go with Open Office suite, various music and graphics programs, Firefox, a torrent client, and several dozen games. They also offer a free class on how to use your new computer. Even though these are older machines, since they are running on Linux they run at similar speeds to newer machines running Windows.
They operate the organization following the same open source community principles. It is democratically run in a very non-hierarchical way, with all major decisions being made in open forums. The volunteers help decide the priorities and policies of Free Geek through consensus.
Also, for those interested in learning about Linux, they offer a free drop-in session on the first Wednesday of each month called "Windowless Wednesday" where they welcome all people to come for free to get and receive help about Linux, wireless access, installing Ubuntu, hardware issues, etc. It is a free for all where you write a problem on the white board and someone comes and tries to help you.
What's not to love? Free computers. Free training. Saving the environment. Killing Microsoft. A Vancouver geek's dream!Listed in: Free Vancouver Wifi, Geek alert
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Review from Michael C.
Vancouver, BC
7/10/2010
This place is the geeks version of a dollar store. It can really get geeks to salivate as they probably wish they could actually roll around in a pile of keyboards and LCD monitors.
Now you don't have to pay to get rid of your old IT stuff and don't be like those red necks who likes to leave it at someones curbside/alley.
You can get free education to get a better job, or learn about other operating systems other than Windows. Your PC can zoom at twice the speed without being handicapped by a Windows operating system.
A friend of mine picked up a dinosaur blue print printer for $100 so he didn't have to pay $40 each time he had to get it done. That Brontosaurus must have weighted 300 lbs. Better in his house than mine or a landfill I say.
This place has a few floors and filled with geeks this must be heaven for some hell for others.Listed in: Have Loonie or Toonie will buy…
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Review from Erin U.
11/11/2011
just found out about this and gave them some speakers earlier today, awesome place!1 awesome staff, tell your friends and save the envoronment!!
