Ongoing History Daily: The next old technology that may become new again

In 2007, vinyl was pretty much dead. The format was barely hanging on thanks to a dwindling number of diehard collectors and DJs who refused to give up on their SL-1200 turntables. But then Record Store Day was founded the following year, and vinyl is once again the best-selling physical music format. What was once old and busted became the new hot hotness.

We might be seeing something similar with younger demos today. They grew up in a completely digital and always-connected era. But many are looking to old tech due to their sheer physical nature. That includes digital cameras, flip phones, and surprisingly, compact discs. The impact of this back-to-the-basics movement hasn’t shown up In sales figures yet, but Gen Z seems to want low-tech stuff like CDs.

Will they make a comeback like vinyl did? I guess we’ll see.