Thanks to TikTok and Instagram Reels, kids today are digging into their parents’ “vintage” clothes, toys, and gadgets to see what life was like for them in the 1990s and share their findings online. For ’90s kids, it’s been fun being reminded of yesteryear, but it’s also eye-opening that those once-beloved gadgets are now obsolete.
The ’90s was a colorful time for kids, where everyone carried Lisa Frank backpacks for school, and when they became teenagers, they were interested in beepers and Palm Pilots to contact their friends and loved ones. However, the world of tech has changed drastically over the years, and today’s kids would not recognize some of the items ’90s kids were obsessed with over the years.
Nokia 8210
The Nokia 8210 was one of the more popular cell phones to have in the ’90s. At this time in technology, most phones did not have the ability to browse the internet, download apps, share directions…etc…
Compared to phones before the 8210 (which came out in 1999, according to WhatMobile), this version was smaller and came in cool colors instead of black. All the popular characters in the ’90s sitcoms had the Nokia 8210. Now that kids today have two choices for phones (Apple or Android), they’d never recognize the popularity of a Nokia 8210.
PalmPilots
Cnet noted that the first PalmPilot was released in 1996, giving adults and business professionals a new way to communicate with people instead of in-person or on the phone. In essence, the PalmPilot did things a computer could do but in a person’s hands.
It was a Smartphone before Smartphones came out. PalmPilots could check emails, work on documents, and offer games… PalmPilots also came with a writing utensil that only worked on a PalmPilot screen, which users loved. A businessman glued to his PalmPilot was an ongoing cliche in ’90s movies but it’s missed now that Smartphones kicked PalmPilots to the curb.
I-Zone Pocket Camera
In the ’90s, disposable and expensive cameras, professional cameras were the only way to take photos. Cell phones did not have cameras attached to them until the 2000s. There was even an adaptation for Game Boys that allowed users to take pictures, which was a huge deal.
However, in 1999, the disposable camera became cool with the I-Zone Pocket Camera. Instead of getting the film developed, the camera printed out polaroids on the spot. The pictures came out small (1.5×1), which teenagers loved because they could fit these small pictures in their lockers, journals, and wallets. Since phones have cameras attached to them in 2023, it’s rare that they’d know how to work an I-Zone Pocket Camera.
Yes Bak
Yak Baks were used in some of the more forgotten shows from the ’90s but should be rewatched to be reminded of how cool they were. Aimed toward children, the Yak Bak was a toy that was released in 1994, according to Industrial Industries World Radio on YouTube.
The Yak Bak was a voice recording toy that fits in the palm of a hand, which sounds simple, but was all the rage for kids. Kids could record up to six seconds and play back their recordings for proof. They later improved to add sounds and music to the recordings, which only made kids want these devices more. Kids today are overstimulated and wouldn’t appreciate the oversimplified genius of the Yak Bak.
Beepers
ThoughtCo. explained that pagers (also known as beepers) came out in the early ’20s, but they didn’t become popular or useful until the late ’80s and early ’90s. The beeper is a forgotten gadget from the ’80s and ’90s that deserves some respect. Before cell phones were popular, adults had beepers that clung to their belt loops or pockets.
To contact someone with a beeper, a person would use their landline telephone (or email) to contact the paging number. When the message was sent, the beeper would, well, beep and would flash the person’s phone number, email, or code — urging the holder to contact that person. This was the closest thing to texting ’90s kids could get.
Hit Clips
There are a few modern movies with a ’90s vibe out there, but they wouldn’t be fully authentic without a Hit Clip. Created by Tiger Electronics, Hit Clips was a digital audio player that fits in the palm of a hand and plays 60-second clips of popular songs (not full songs).
The speakers had strings attached where users could clip their mini CDs, so they could play an array of clips whenever they wanted. At the time, ’90s kids didn’t care that it wasn’t the full song, but kids today wouldn’t understand the hype around only 60 seconds of play.
Sega Game Gear
Gamers today have most likely heard of Sega, but have they heard of Game Gear? The small, handheld gaming console came out in 1990 and was an instant rival to Nintendo’s handheld devices.
What made the Game Gear amazing in the ’90s was that the screen had color instead of the generic black or white (or green and white) and it was a little bigger than Nintendo’s Game Boy. The Game Gear did come with criticisms though like its long shape and short battery life. But for a short time, Sega’s Game Gear ruled gaming.
Sony Discman
After the success of Sony’s Walkmans, the company released the Discman. In the ’90s, cassettes were still widely listened to but CDs were becoming the future, which was where the Discman came into play.
The Discman was larger than the Walkman, but it was the cool new gadget ’90s kids wanted. Kids today would never understand the importance of a Discman because they have their music on their phones or through apps. However, in 1999, the Discman took off when pop stars like Mandy Moore performed while carrying the Discman in their music videos.
Sony AIBO
The late ’90s and early 2000s were a time when robots were being talked about openly, which turned into robotic toys for children. Sony’s AIBO was an introduction to the robotic dog. The AIBO series has changed its dogs over the years, but in the ’90s, it was a thick, metal-looking dog that could sit, walk, and growl on command.
The robotic dog did not come cheap, which made it all the more popular for kids who not only wanted a robot but wanted a dog too. A toy like this should have made it on to Netflix’s The Toys That Made Us because of how popular they were.
Floppy Disks
Kids today will see a floppy disk and say it looks like the save icon on most of their electronics, which is ironic because that’s exactly what the floppy disk did before computers could save things themselves.
IBM noted that the first floppy came out in the ’70s, but by the ’90s – they were everywhere. They were even needed for school assignments. Floppy discs were used to save and backup files long before USBs were used. At the time, floppy discs were tech products that teens loved, but these days, they’re a thing of the past.