How To: Hack Your Old Computer Mouse into Retro Wireless Bluetooth Mouse!

Since most devices these days are mobile and wireless, a lot of people have a bunch of old hardware from a decade or two ago sitting around unused, just wasting away in dusty boxes.

Look familiar?

If you have an old mouse (or several) lying around, you can turn it into a wireless Bluetooth mouse in a few quick steps, just like Instructables user UnconventionalHacker. Using simple tools like a screwdriver, soldering iron, Dremel, and some tape and glue, he performed a tech transplant between old and new mice.

First, he disassembled them and took out the motherboards. Then he removed the wire from the old mouse and attached the lens to the new motherboard. Next, he removed some of the pegs from the inside of the old Apple mouse, then glued the motherboard inside it along with a AAA battery to power it.

The result is a retro wireless mouse. Sounds a little like a paradox, doesn't it?

If you'd like to try it for yourself, make sure to visit UnconventionalHacker's project page for the full tutorial.

You could do this with just about any old mouse, I'd imagine. Why not try one of these?

I'd really be impressed if someone came up with a way to make this Engelbart's Mouse wireless!

If you think this is cool, you'd also like Haptic Hacking's DataBot mouse that lets you "feel" your data, or this stylish mouse made of felt. There are tons of ways to modify a computer mouse, including changing the LED color and pranking your friends with this stinky mouse trick.

What other creative uses can you come up with for old mice?