Describe a piece of technology you use often

The technology I use most often is my laptop. It's not a new one, actually it's a second-hand business laptop, quite heavy and black, with some scratches on the cover. But it is still very fast for my work.

I have it since four years. I bought it from a computer market in Agargaon, in Dhaka, when I was in my first year of university. I didn't have enough money for a new one, so my elder brother helped me to choose a good used one.

I use it for many things. The most important is my freelance work, I design logos and social media posts for small companies, and some of them are in other countries. I also attend my online classes with it and I write my assignments. In the evening sometimes I make video call to my cousins who live in Malaysia.

It is very useful for me because it gives me a income. With the money from freelancing, I pay my university fees by myself, so my parents doesn't have to worry. Also, last year I changed the battery, so now it can work during the power cut for about four hours, and that is very important in Dhaka. Without this laptop, I think my life will be much more difficult and I would depend on my family for everything.

The piece of technology I use most is my laptop, which is a second-hand business model, fairly heavy, a bit scratched, and definitely not something you'd show off. But it's reliable, and for what I do it's more than fast enough.

I've had it for about four years now. I picked it up from one of the big computer markets in Agargaon, in Dhaka, in my first year at university. I couldn't stretch to a new one, so my older brother, who knows far more about hardware than I do, came along to haggle and check it over.

These days it's basically my office. I do freelance graphic design, mostly logos and social media graphics for small businesses, and several of my clients are abroad, so I'm often on it late at night because of the time difference. I also use it for my online lectures and assignments, and at the weekend I video-call my cousins in Kuala Lumpur.

The main reason it's so useful is that it's how I earn money. My freelance income covers my tuition fees, which means my parents don't have to, and that independence matters a lot to me. On top of that, I had the battery replaced last year, so it now lasts four hours or so during a power cut, which in Dhaka is far from a small thing. Honestly, if it broke tomorrow, I'd lose my income and my classes at the same time, so I look after it rather carefully than I look after myself.

The gadget I'd struggle most to live without is my laptop: a second-hand business machine, built like a brick, scuffed at every corner and about as glamorous as a filing cabinet. But it's never once let me down, which is more than I can say for most things I own.

I've had it for just over four years. I bought it in my first term at university from one of the sprawling computer markets in Agargaon, in Dhaka, where you can find almost anything if you're prepared to dig. A new one was way out of my price range, so my older brother, who can spot a dodgy hard drive at fifty paces, came with me to bargain and inspect every port.

It's effectively my workplace. I freelance as a graphic designer, mainly logos and social media artwork for small firms, a fair few of them overseas, so I'm often working at midnight to catch clients at the start of their day. It's also where my lectures and assignments live, and on Friday evenings it's my window onto my cousins in Kuala Lumpur.

What makes it so valuable is that it's my livelihood. The design work pays my tuition, which has taken a considerable weight off my parents and given me a kind of independence I'm quietly proud of. I also had the battery replaced last year, so it now keeps going for around four hours through a power cut, and anyone who lives in Dhaka will tell you that's not a minor detail. Put simply, if it gave up tomorrow, my income and my education would go down with it, so I treat it with rather more care than I treat myself.