Over the years, we’ve replaced a lot of really useful everyday items with newer stuff, but there are some things we should bring back to make life a little easier.
A second life for soda bottles
There used to be a kind of reward that came with getting a bottle of soda. You could take the empty glass bottle back to the store and get your deposit back. You wouldn’t exactly get a fortune, but still, it was nice to get some of that money back.
These refillable glass bottles aren’t as common in the United States as they are in other countries. It’d be a great idea to bring them back because it’d cut down on the amount of waste we’d make from plastic bottles, and it’d give customers some of their money back. That’s always nice.
The phone keyboard that actually clicked
There’s something to be said about the phones that used to have keyboards. BlackBerries, for example, had physical keyboards that allowed you to actually feel the letters you were pressing. It made typing feel very different from using a touchscreen.
There’s nothing wrong with using a touchscreen, of course. It’s just that the experience of physically pressing buttons makes each letter you type feel deliberate. You also wouldn’t have half the screen covered by a keyboard whenever you want to write something.
Somewhere to put the trash
It’s hard to believe today, but there used to be a dedicated place in your car for your trash. No, it wasn’t the cup holder, and no, it wasn’t the little compartment in the door. Some cars used to have an actual place for you to put a trash bag.
The 2011 Honda Odyssey was a great example of this. It had a flip-up ring behind the removable center console, and you could put an actual small trash bag in there. It’s unfortunate that we don’t have these anymore. They’d be really useful for long drives where children drop crumbs and wrappers everywhere.
Turning a key to start the engine
That’s not all for cars. Physical car keys haven’t disappeared, yet a lot of cars are now keyless, meaning you can just press a button to start your vehicle. You don’t need to put a key in the ignition to turn it on.
It’d be cool if we could bring back these kinds of cars because, believe it or not, they’re technically safer than keyless ones. Thieves can target certain keyless cars by using a technique called relay theft. They trick a car into thinking the wireless key is nearby. But with a physical car key, they don’t have that option.Â
The controls drivers can actually feel
In older cars, there was a little knob for the volume and another one for the temperature. You also had a proper button for turning on the heated seats. It’s not like that anymore, as nearly every modern car has a touchscreen menu for you to scroll through.
They don’t feel the same as the physical dials and switches did. Worse still, you have to take your eyes off the road to make any adjustments in a modern car. You can’t simply feel your way towards the temperature knob. No, you have to go through eight menus on a screen to get there. That’s dangerous.
Music without the phone
May 2022 marked the end of an era, as that was when Apple finally discontinued the iPod touch. It’s such a shame, really. Having a separate gadget just for music seems like a novelty, but in today’s world of streaming and subscriptions, an MP3 player seems a lot less hassle.
You simply buy your songs and put them on there. That’s it. No need to worry about having an internet connection or losing songs due to licensing issues. All the music’s right there for you, completely distraction-free.
A television that’s just a television
You can’t even watch the evening news on television without agreeing to a bunch of terms and conditions. Every TV is a smart TV nowadays, and while that can be good sometimes, we miss the simplicity of older TVs. They didn’t need accounts or software updates, for one.
You only had to plug it in to start watching. They didn’t collect your data, either, because there was no way for them to do that. A non-smart television would be a welcome change for those of us who just want to watch things.
Educational programs straight out of the box
In the 1990s, computers were often sold with educational software and creative activities. Similar programs do still exist, of course, but they don’t usually come bundled with any new computers. You don’t get Encarta 97 in the box, for example.
It’s a shame, really, because those were the days when computers were seen as a tool to help us learn. Technology was meant to teach us, rather than divide us. It’d be nice if we could go back to those days, and it’d start with companies giving us learning resources like this for free.Â
An actual ticket for the flight
There was a time when airline tickets came as actual pieces of paper instead of electronic tickets. It was kind of satisfying having the whole journey printed out in front of you. But these days, you’re unlikely to get a physical ticket at the airport.
Don’t get us wrong, digital bookings sure are convenient. There’s no denying that. It’s just that having a paper ticket made the whole journey feel more real, and it also gave you another souvenir to put in the scrapbook. You’ll have to fight to get an actual ticket nowadays.
Waking up with the radio
Even the way people started their mornings was different in the past. Old alarm clocks used to come with actual radio stations, so you could hear your favorite song or catch the weather forecast as you woke up. It was so refreshing.
Yes, you can still buy these kinds of devices, but they’re nowhere near as common on bedside tables as they used to be. Most of us reach for our phones first thing and start doomscrolling while we’re lying in bed.
Keeping the week in your pocket
Pocket diaries fell out of fashion because they were replaced by phones and other technology. But maybe it’s time to bring them back. For one, they come without any distractions, and for another, physically writing down the items on your to-do list helps you remember them better.
The research shows it, too. A 2021 study found that people who used paper notebooks recorded schedules faster and performed better on simple memory questions than people using digital devices. Perhaps we should start actually writing things down again.
Sources: Please see here for a complete listing of all sources that were consulted in the preparation of this article.
10 products past generations swore by that aren’t around now
Many products parents once trusted were considered normal, useful, and safe at the time. They were used in homes, schools, and daily routines without concern. Today, those same items are banned, recalled, or unthinkable due to health and safety risks, showing how much standards, science, and awareness have changed over the years.
10 products past generations swore by that aren’t around now
