The technology from previous decades gets a bad rap. Seen as inferior or simplistic compared to the advancements that we enjoy today, society might just be missing the bigger picture here. If it wasn’t for those so-called basic electronics and technological breakthroughs, we simply wouldn’t be where we are today, zooming around in driverless cars, video chatting with friends in Japan, and grocery shopping without barely glancing up from our favorite streaming service. We’ve compiled a list of 24 groundbreaking vintage gadgets that just begin to scratch the surface of how far-thinking technology really was in the 1970s and 80s.
#1: Sony Walkman (1979)
The “OG” of personal music devices, the Sony Walkman changed our lives forever. No longer tethered to our home stereo or even our car stereo, the Walkman enabled us to go about our day while keeping our beloved music in our ears. We suddenly had our own personal soundtracks to our lives, all encased in a compact system that could literally attach to our belt.
