Smartphones. Streaming. Digital everything. It’s too much. Don’t you just want to feel the simple joys of old-school technology. While the devices we’re talking about today may have become obsolete, they hold a special place in our hearts. Whether it’s the tactile feeling of typing on a typewriter or the excitement of flipping over a vinyl LP, these bygone technologies remind us a time when everything was a little more simple and a little more real.
Vinyl Records
Before you could stream literally every song ever online, vinyl LPs reigned supreme. Listening to an album on vinyl wasn’t just about the music; it was a whole experience. From carefully placing the needle on the record to flipping the album to the B-side, vinyl required patience and attention. The warm, crackling sound of a vinyl LP is something that no modern streaming service can replicate. It’s no wonder that vinyl has seen a resurgence in recent years, there’s just something special about an LP.
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Rotary Phones
Long before cell phones were glued to our hands, home phones were a household necessity. Folks had rotary phones and push-button models, but the experience of sitting in one place and chatting with a friend for hours just hit different when you were attached to your home phone. There was something endearing about the way the whole family had to share a single line, or two if you were really balling. Home phones have all but disappeared, but there are days when we wish we could go back to this simple technology.
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Typewriters
The satisfying click – clack of the typewriter keys is a harmonious sound that writers will never forget. Before word processors and laptops, typewriters were the ultimate tool for writing letters, books, and everything in between. Typing on a typewriter required precision, and there was no delete key—mistakes were permanent unless you had some trusty correction fluid or you just felt like burning through a bunch of paper. Even though typewriters have been replaced by more efficient tools, there’s just something so aesthetically pleasing about these tools that we can’t get enough of.
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Answering Machines
In the days before voicemail, answering machines were our way of catching missed calls. These little devices would sit next to your home phone, recording messages on cassette tapes or digitally if you were lucky. There was something exciting about coming home and seeing the blinking light, indicating you had messages waiting. You’d press play, and a robotic voice would announce, “You have 2 new messages.” It may seem quaint now, but answering machines were the must-have item of the ‘80s and ‘90s.
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Pagers
Before smartphones forced us to stay connected at all times, the world had beepers, or pagers if you prefer. For a brief period of time these pocket-sized devices were considered the height of convenience, allowing people to send short numeric messages or alert someone to call back. Doctors, businesspeople, and teenagers alike used beepers to stay in touch. Beepers may seem incredibly basic by today’s standards, but at the time, they were the coolest way to take part in portable communication.
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