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Life Before The Smartphone

Author Tee Gentry
This is the Olympus voice recorder. This was life before the smartphone.

It’s an Olympus VN-4100PC digital voice recorder. I found it in a cabinet in my office while cleaning. Yes, this is a voice recorder. I was surprised to see they still sell them on Amazon.

It made me think about how far technology has come. Most of the reviews on Amazon about this product date back to 2007-2008, so let’s start there—life Before The Smartphone.

In July of 2007, Steve Jobs announced that Apple would reinvent the phone. The rest, as they say, is history. The first iPhone was released on June 29, 2007. The price was $499, and it had a whopping 3.5-inch display—and a 2-megapixel camera. By the way, the iPhone Pro Max now has a 48-megapixel camera.

Life Before The Smartphone

I was talking to some friends about life before the iPhone; if you wanted to record something, you would need a device like the Olympus; if you were traveling, you’d need an atlas or map to get directions; and for pictures, you’d have to pack a camera. Now, it’s all on our phones, not to mention your calendar and all the apps and features we now take for granted.

One could argue that at least we had more conversations then and didn’t keep our faces in our phones all day, but the technology is very cool to me. What you can do on smartphones still blows my mind, and they keep improving.

A friend said, “In the 70’s, you never heard someone say, I lost my phone”.  So true. In the 70s, the phone was attached to the wall, usually in the kitchen, and it had a 1-foot cord attached to the receiver, and that’s as far as you could go. Now, if you’re like me, your phone stays with you 24/7.

I think I’m gonna go now and record something on my Olympus VN-4100PC.

Things That Make Us Feel Old

Let me start by saying… I don’t feel old.  Also, I’m 35.  When I was younger, sure, 35 sounded old.  But now that I’m here, I definitely don’t feel old.  There are days I still feel like I’m in my twenties.  Until someone brings up certain things that remind us of our age.  And let me tell you, it’s like a smack in the face when people think these things mean we’re old.

Now we can thank BuzzFeed for putting together a list of things that if you did them growing up, they say you are “officially old as dirt.”  They have a list of 40 different things… but I’m just going to share a few of them that I can relate to.  You can check out the full list HERE.

Here Are Just A Few Things That Make Us Feel Old:

  • MapQuest

    Oh yeah… I definitely printed out MapQuest directions MANY times back when I was younger.  GPS wasn’t really a thing, and it definitely wasn’t in almost every single vehicle!

  • Home Phones

    I don’t know many people who still have a home phone anymore.  But back in the day, when you were mad, there was nothing like being able to slam that phone down!

    Teen girl talking on the phone

    Photo: Comstock/Getty Images

  • Push Pops

    Are these still around?  Because when I was younger, I definitely remember loving a Push Pop!  Did anyone realize back then that we were eating ice cream out of a toilet paper roll?

  • Playing Car DJ - With CDs!

    We collected a lot of CDs throughout the years… and had to have somewhere to store and play them.  The car was perfect.  You either had one of those visor CD holders or a binder full of CDs.  And chances are… there were a lot of homemade mixed CDs!

    CDs in a binder storage bag

    Photo: TimArbaev/iStock/Getty Images Plus

  • Channel 3

    You had to set the TV on channel 3 to play a movie or video game!  Back before the days of multiple inputs on TVs!

    https://twitter.com/OriginInsider/status/377217123417735168

  • Manually Doing Things...

    Like rolling down a car window! Or rewinding/fixing a cassette tape!

    Hand crank, non-electric, manual car window in a dove grey color an old vehicle.

    Photo: Kara Knight/iStock/Getty Images Plus

  • Cassette Inserts

    I was always so disappointed in there weren’t lyrics in the cassette insert!  How else would I ever know all the words?!

    Reading the lyrics on the cassette insert.
    byu/thismurrigirlcares innostalgia

Tee has worked with KICKS 99 for over 24 years as Operations Manager and Program Director and is on-air each afternoon 3p-7p. When he’s not working, you’ll find him traveling the back roads, taking pictures, and searching for the next dive diner. Favorite place to visit? That’s easy. Folly Beach, SC. He’s usually there at least a few times a year. He lives in North Augusta and on Saturdays in the fall, you’ll find him cooking out and watching his Clemson Tigers. Tee likes to write about travel, Augusta local dive bars and diners and destinations in the Carolinas, as well as new business.

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Author Tee Gentry
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