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10 Signs Your Electronics Are Outdated

Updated on May 11, 2012
Jeannieinabottle profile image

Jeannie has been writing online for over 10 years. She covers a wide variety of topics—hobbies, opinions, dating advice, and more!

Time For A Trip To Best Buy?

We now live in a crazy modern age in our society. I feel like the second I buy a new electronic device, it is outdated the next day. I remember buying a new computer for college (many, many years ago) and before the computer even arrived at my house, an updated version was already available on Dell's website. Fortunately, computers do not age quite as fast as they once did, but other electronics seem to be fading away quickly. For those of us that used to be "cool" and keep up with electronics, it can be an especially difficult time for us. As I get older, I get tired of learning about every new device. I daresay it is impossible to keep up, unless, of course, you are a 13 year old boy with parents that buy generous gifts.

For the rest of us, some of us have just given up. I like to have some new electronic devices, but I'll tell you what... my old Nokia phone that doesn't even take photos gets better reception than most cell phones out there. I don't care if your cell phone can download 10,000 songs at once or if you can play Angry Birds on it; if your phone gets terrible reception, it really doesn't matter much, does it? So for those of you that have all the latest electronics, you can read this list and laugh. But for the rest of us that know we probably need to buy some new electronics, this hub is for you. Please check out the 10 signs your electronics are outdated.

1. You still have to use the rewind button on devices.

You know what I mean. You are jamming to your favorite song on your Sony Walkman and want to hear it again. Guess you are going to have to hit that rewind button to listen again. An even better idea is if the song on the other side in the same spot is really good, you can flip the tape over, listen to that song, and then flip the tape back to hear your favorite song again.

Let us never forget the joy of rewinding those VHS video tapes in the VCR. Remember the cute stickers on all the tapes you'd rent at Blockbuster that said, "Please be kind and rewind"? Oh, good times! Bonus points to you if you still have a Beta VCR.

2. You have headphones, not earbuds.

Those big, bulky headphones would just kill a good hair day, but they were fun, weren't they? If you are still using the headphones, you might want to try the earbuds. I was one of the last people to convert over, too, but they do work well. Earbuds don't mess up your hair! The only negative aspect is people often don't see you are wearing them and still feel the need to talk to you on public transportation even if you clearly do not want to be bothered.

3. Your portable devices are actually larger than a small TV.

If your back is breaking just because you are trying to take some music with you, it might be time to update your electronics. If you are carrying around a boombox, that is awesome if you are forming your own breakdancing crew, but otherwise, you might want to get something a little more compact. Even a Sony Walkman or Discman is looking a little silly now.

4. Your phone has a cord and is attached to a wall.

We've all seen adorable old television shows with the one phone. The phone is usually in the kitchen, it is mounted on the wall, and it has a long cord. The cord has been stretched as far as humanly possible, but still, someone using it looks like she is tied to the wall by her ear. Oh, what fun memories!

However, if you are still living this way and that is not a memory for you, you might want to update your home phone. I am not one of those people that will try to convince you to get a cell phone. Oh, no, I hate them, too. But at least get yourself a cordless phone. Trust me, you will thank me for that advice one day.

5. You have to take your film to be developed.

Cameras are such wonderful electronic gadgets, but digital cameras are even better. If you have to still hunt down a Ritz camera in your area to develop some simple photos of your cousin's graduation party, you might want to consider buying a digital camera. Leave cameras with film to professional photographers. The rest of us don't need all that jazz.

6. You have to set a timer to tape your favorite programs.

If there is no such thing as On Demand or a DVR in your home, you are probably still taping TV shows on a VCR, aren't you? Come on, admit it. You are setting that timer and coming home from work to make sure your Ghost Hunters marathon taped, aren't you? You know you will be kicked back watching that video tape and fast forwarding through the commercials. It is OK. Somewhere, in many homes across the world, there is a dusty VCR that still gets used more than we care to admit.

7. You don't have anything with an "i" in the name.

Everyone else is talking about their iPod, iPad, iPhone, blah, blah, blah. The only "i" you know about is eyeglasses and that is not what anyone is referring to at all. It seems s if everyone has some type of Apple product. Even if you are not getting on board with the Apple scene, you might want to consider upgrading your electronics. There are many lower-priced computer tablets, cell phones, and MP3 players. You might want to consider investing in one of them when you get some extra cash.

8. All of your portable devices require a ton of batteries.

Are you going through batteries faster than paper towels in your home? Do all of your portable electronic devices take about 6 giant batteries? Even when using fully charged batteries, do you find they only work for about 4 hours?

If any of this applies to you, trust me, you need some new electronics. Many new portable devices hardly take any batteries at all. In some instances, they require no batteries. You simply charge the device by plugging it into an electric socket or a computer. I will admit, I did not want to get on board either, but the money saved due to no longer constantly buying batteries is well worth it. Also, most electronic devices last an incredibly long time just using one charge. Give it a try and I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

9. You've gotten tangled up in a tape recently.

When you are listening to your favorite song, it is a total drag to hear the whole song warble and then hear the dreaded "spit out" from the cassette player. Tapes have a way of getting tangled up in machines. It is completely annoying. This torture does not just stop with audio cassette tapes. You will find the same thing can happen with older answering machines, 8 track players, and VCRs. It is a sad sight seeing the tape unwound from the cassette. No matter how much you try to rewind it back into place, it just never works.

10. You have to walk across the room to change the channel.

I still argue one of the best inventions from the 20th century is the remote control. If you don't have one, your life is pretty rotten. By all means, please go out and buy some electronic devices so you can change the channel, increase the volume, or skip songs without getting up.

It is even more annoying if you have to use the dial to change the channels on your TV. The channels never flip by fast enough. How can you possibly channel surf under these circumstances? Do yourself and anyone that visits you a favor by buying some electronic products from this century. No one should have to get up to change the channels. No one!

Copyright ©2012 Jeannieinabottle

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