The oldest tech you still use

[MGibster]

I've got some speakers my dad bought in 1982 that are still in use today.

 

[Lanefan]

Most of my audio setup is fine Radio Shack equipment from the late 1970s. Still works, but doesn't get used much these days.

A lot of my still-working music gear (keyboards etc.) is late-1980s vintage, cheap at the time and not worth much now.

I'm a huge fan of Sony MD technology from the late 90s-early 00s. Best physical (as opposed to digital) music storage ever, and the little portable players run for ages on a single AA battery. Best of all, they'll record via analog cable straight from a stereo, you don't need a damn computer getting in the way.

 

[MoonSong]

Still upset my dad threw away the old TRS-80. I would power it back up every few years and it still worked. But then he went through a big de-clutter project and threw it out.

My Dad would keep his brother's Atari ST (I guess a 520 FM model) around the house. It was the first computer I got to use and learned to code on it. One day my uncle came and took it back. I still miss that machine. It was my first computer love. (The second one was a small Lanix Netbook that accompanied me through college until it finally died out. The keyboard/trackpad ribbon cable got so damaged to be unusable and it would no longer detect the battery. It got recycled last year. The current one is a Thinkpad x140e running Linux)

I just want Retrogames to be done with their fullsized Amiga replica to move on to the ST.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

A spoon.

 

[Echohawk]

I still have my (working) Commodore 64 from the early 80s, and my (working) HP scientific calculator from the mid-90s, but can't say I actually use either of them regularly. Probably the oldest tech still in regular use is a USB 2.0 charger with eight ports. That thing has been in nearly daily use since somewhere in the early 2000s.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

We had an old Apple laptop for business use that I had eventually loaded with a couple of old FPS games. We junked it at a tech recycling place last summer.

…and 2 days later, I realized that I could have wiped the business stuff from the drive and completely repurposed it as a retro gaming device.

 

[MarkB]

My Dad would keep his brother's Atari ST (I guess a 520 FM model) around the house. It was the first computer I got to use and learned to code on it. One day my uncle came and took it back. I still miss that machine. It was my first computer love. (The second one was a small Lanix Netbook that accompanied me through college until it finally died out. The keyboard/trackpad ribbon cable got so damaged to be unusable and it would no longer detect the battery. It got recycled last year. The current one is a Thinkpad x140e running Linux)

I just want Retrogames to be done with their fullsized Amiga replica to move on to the ST.

Yeah, Atari ST was my chosen brand during the Atari / Amiga days, even though I'd previously had a Commodore 64. I still remember it fondly, many hours spent playing Elite II, Starglider 2, Carrier Command among others.

 

[Koloth]

Realistic Minimus 7 speakers - 1 pair is primary computer speakers, 2nd pair - rear speakers on surround setup, 3 pair - speakers in shop. First two pairs were purchased in the 80s. Last pair a couple years ago from a local Habitat for Humanity thrift store.
Realistic subwoofer from the 90's - part of the surround setup.
1980s mfg General drill press made in Canada purchased via govt surplus auction.
Wooden icebox with ice cards to hang in window - currently used to store booze. Not currently used to keep things cool. Just a cool place to keep liquids. Parents bought and refinished in the 70s. Don't know mfg date.
Princess type phone 80s mfg - used on landline. Landline generated via VOIP off the ISP fiber box. Cell reception here sucks.
Mom's cast iron cookware - might have been her mom's before.
1975 Chevy PU - in many ways, better PU then the new mfg US PUs. Has a true 8 ft bed and doesn't require a step ladder to enter.
LED flasher box made in 80's as college electronic project. Been blinking mostly continuously since. (555s were used).

 

[Ryujin]

Hmmmm..... How about same high speed internet provider since 1996?

 

[Cergorach]

I have some 30 year old tech stuff lying around, like one of those MS forcefeedback joysticks, but never use it anymore, the same for the collection of old smartphones. My smartphone/tablet is 6 years old, so are two of my mini PCs. But some other devices are significantly newer than that. Some of my 3D printers might be a bit older, maybe a decade. One of my Eizo monitors is 11 years old... I might reuse my 11 year old workstation for the occasional task.

The issue with most of the old tech stuff is, it just isn't that good anymore, it draws a lot more power, bulkier and heavier. Imho no one is rocking a CRT TV anymore, unless you're a hardcore retro gamer. The same goes for old consoles. We started on an old Atari 2600 in the early 80s, which was really cool at the time, the same goes for the C64 and the Amiga 500 we got, and as a child I went on vacation with our GameGear... I still feel nostalgia for those things. And no matter how cool a GameGear looked, I'll live vicariously through the YouTubers that share their hardcore retro gaming experiences. For the retro stuff, I emulate, I have a Retroflag GPi Case (one that looks like a gameboy), it has a RaspberryPi Zero 2W in it and is more powerful then any of the old consoles. For that GameGear 'experience' I have a Steam Deck and can play old retro stuff on there or modern titles like Diablo 4 or Path of Exile 2... Looking at how big and how much power my 11 year old workstation draws, then looking at my modern Mac Mini M4 Pro, it's day and night and see very few reasons why I should continue to (daily) use such old tech when I don't have to.

The days of having to upgrade your PC or replacing your smartphone every year or two have been behind us for a decade or two... So I personally do a lot longer with smartphones, tablets and PCs then I did 25 years ago. But there is a limit to that, and I doubt that many are rocking 30-40 year old tech as a daily driver... Heck even cars are considered old at that point!