These eight now-unnecessary technologies have had their time, yet they still leave the rest of the world shaking their heads wondering why they are still around. The results that these products give have been replaced by modern-day inventions that took off and substituted the old for the new. So why haven’t the lives of these “ancient” gadgets ended yet? Here’s why we think their time is up.
1. The Fax Machine
In the 1980s, life got a lot easier for businesses who were able to put away the postage stamp and send documents through a fax machine, cutting down the travel from days to minutes. But decades later these huge machines are still sprinkled around the office, and business cards still list fax numbers. Some say it’s because of security and ability to send signed documents, but bottom line is the slow, screeching, and unclear messaging system has got to go.
Replacement: E-mail; billions of e-mails are sent out every day, so why stand around a bulky machine when you can shoot over a quick message in cyberspace?
2. The Pager
For some reason, there are still 2 million proud pager owners out there who use the 1950s communication devices for alerts. Pagers stick around for a few minor reasons: they are reliable, inexpensive, and they only promote urgency. Doctors and emergency workers make up most of the pager owners, but it still doesn’t seem like enough to keep the pager around.
Replacement: Cell-phone alerts; there is no way we can place a number on how many cell phones and smartphones have been sold in the past decade, but with networks set up anywhere it’s easy to reach someone in a time of need.
3. Cable Television
There’s no point in sitting through blaring commercials when you can just watch your favorite show on demand. In a day where time is everything, it’s interesting to see how many people are still paying for cable television when commercials eat up 10 minutes of a half hour show. Besides that, cable is expensive and it’s unlikely that people are watching the amount of television that they pay for.
Replacement – Hulu, Netflix, and other Internet streaming websites; these websites ask one payment of $7.99 and give users an unlimited amount of shows to watch on demand.
4. The CD
CDs are notorious for scratching and skipping when mishandled. They are fragile and bulky, especially when compared to the other portable music players we have become accustomed to carrying around. When Apple’s Macbook Air was released, users were stunned to find that Apple would launch a line of laptops with no disc drive.
Replacement: iPods; who would’ve thought that a 4-inch box could hold up to 160 GB of music and videos.
5. The Roll of Film
Besides the hipster movement taking over regions of the country, there doesn’t seem to be much of a point of a roll of film that takes time and costs money to buy and develop. Around 35 million rolls were sold last year and it’s amazing to think that rolls of film have made it this far with the raise of digital cameras, high-definition smartphone pictures, and the countless apps that mimic the disposable feel.
Replacement: Smartphones; with a camera up to 13 megapixels, smartphones are easily accessible, thin, and fast for sharp picture taking.
6. The Portable Radio
Portable radios are good for playing the news or top radio hits, but there’s no point in lugging around a bulky radio when all of those uses are covered by new and improved products. Our news feed has shifted from news on the 8s to twitter alerts and waterproof speakers that can hook up to iPods for the beach. If you’re missing the excitement of the radio, there’s an app for that, of course!
Replacement: Smartphones; these slabs of plastic can do it all from streaming an AM/FM station, to plugging into speakers, and connecting to Twitter and government alerts for important messages.
7. The Land Line
Although this argument can be controversial, the money and installment of house phones are almost irrelevant in today’s day in age. With the popularity of cell phones and the mass amount of owners, it’s rare to find someone without a cell phone in reach. Having to pay two phone bills is a lot for families or people living on their own, causing people to ditch their land lines.
Replacement: Cell phones; portable phones can be used for in-house and out-of-house calls.
8. The PDA
Popularized in the beginning of the millennium, Palm Pilot devices were the best place to store data like calendar appointments and contacts. But with all the technological clutter we have to hold onto, the PDA is pointless when every use can be accessed from a cell phone. There is no need for another device to hold onto.
Replacement: Cell phones; with a calendar just waiting for appointments to be booked and an address book allowing the user to set pictures and ringers for that contact there is no need for a PDA.
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