You won't believe these 20 phrases that modern technology has made extinct
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Ah, yes. Who hasn't uttered a romantic 'you hang up first' and anxiously awaited the other's reply to see who would be the first to break?
As technology continues to evolve, so does our language - whether we like it or not.
Join us on a little trip down memory lane: we bet you'll reminisce on some of the phrases we've used in the past before modern technology changed everything!
● Roll down the window: With our cars now having automatic windows, it's no longer necessary to physically lower it ourselves! We still say this but only in our vintage ride.
● Check the answering machine: We no longer need to inspect a physical answering machine - voicemail on our mobile phone is proof of that. Apple's latest iOS 17 takes it one step further by allowing you to listen to the voicemail before deciding whether to take the call or not, a feature that's been available on Android phones for a while.
● Dial 013: Used to need a person or business' phone number? You've heard of 013, right (or was this just a thing in NSW)? Now, all you need to do is a quick search online and you'll get the details you need in no time.
● Beep me: Forget pagers, they've been replaced by having an active mobile in your pocket at all times.
● I'll tape it: Modern times call for new modes of recording - enter digital recorders and streaming services, which have all but made the VHS tape and cassette a relic of the past.
● Find a payphone: Remember having to look for a public phone booth when you didn't have your mobile phone with you? With everyone now having a mobile, the days of it being commonplace to find a payphone are long gone. But did you know that the remaining Telstra public phones offer free calls to landlines and mobiles?
● Get the film developed / Don't waste the film: All too familiar with a scenario where you take pictures, wait a fortnight only to receive images of you looking ghastly. Not anymore! With digital cameras and smartphones, we get to see our images right away and in vivid detail, too.
● Look it up in the White or Yellow Pages: With the arrival of online directories, those hefty books have been replaced by quick online searches - no more thumbing through countless pages!
● I'll fax it to you: Who even owns a fax machine anymore?!
● Drop a coin in the jukebox: Gone are the days of paying to play our favourite songs at bars and restaurants. Heck, some Gen Z-ers probably won't even get what that's all about.
● Burn a CD: Nothing was greater than the mixtape gift, or its successor the burned CD. With cloud sharing, streaming, and playlists now available, 'burn a CD' is slowly falling by the wayside.
● Dial-up tone: Younger generations won't understand the sheer agony of waiting for a connection only to have it abruptly cut off if someone called ‘the landline’!
● Turn the channel knob: Before TV remotes, the only way to watch something else was to physically adjust the dial. Was it hard to find the channel you wanted? Oh, yes.
● You've got mail: AOL's classic phrase itself is a relic; with all the emails we get now, who could bear the sound of someone sending us a message?!
● Save it on a floppy: Do you remember your old computer when it was so slow and useless unless you saved your work on your 3.5-inch floppy disk? Now, almost anything and everything digital you ever need is stored in your pocket and accessible instantly.
● Hit the pound key: Nobody says this anymore - it's all about the hashtag now!
● I need new batteries for my Walkman: Oh, the days of Sony's Walkman. Now we charge our devices before using them and no longer have to wait for new batteries!
● Remember to defrag your computer: Nowadays, most of the maintenance work for computers is automated, so there's no need to remember to defrag your device.
● Put the antenna up: From 'rabbit ears' atop TVs to the manufacture of the boombox, we used to have to hold antennas to get a clear picture or signal. Ah, the good old days!
We bet you've said at least some of these phrases at some point in your life... so why not take this as an opportunity to brush up on some tech know-how?
What are other phrases that were commonly used back then? Let us know in the comments below!
As technology continues to evolve, so does our language - whether we like it or not.
Join us on a little trip down memory lane: we bet you'll reminisce on some of the phrases we've used in the past before modern technology changed everything!
● Roll down the window: With our cars now having automatic windows, it's no longer necessary to physically lower it ourselves! We still say this but only in our vintage ride.
● Check the answering machine: We no longer need to inspect a physical answering machine - voicemail on our mobile phone is proof of that. Apple's latest iOS 17 takes it one step further by allowing you to listen to the voicemail before deciding whether to take the call or not, a feature that's been available on Android phones for a while.
● Dial 013: Used to need a person or business' phone number? You've heard of 013, right (or was this just a thing in NSW)? Now, all you need to do is a quick search online and you'll get the details you need in no time.
● Beep me: Forget pagers, they've been replaced by having an active mobile in your pocket at all times.
Modern technology has made some common phrases used in the past extinct. Credit: Unsplash
● I'll tape it: Modern times call for new modes of recording - enter digital recorders and streaming services, which have all but made the VHS tape and cassette a relic of the past.
● Find a payphone: Remember having to look for a public phone booth when you didn't have your mobile phone with you? With everyone now having a mobile, the days of it being commonplace to find a payphone are long gone. But did you know that the remaining Telstra public phones offer free calls to landlines and mobiles?
● Get the film developed / Don't waste the film: All too familiar with a scenario where you take pictures, wait a fortnight only to receive images of you looking ghastly. Not anymore! With digital cameras and smartphones, we get to see our images right away and in vivid detail, too.
● Look it up in the White or Yellow Pages: With the arrival of online directories, those hefty books have been replaced by quick online searches - no more thumbing through countless pages!
● I'll fax it to you: Who even owns a fax machine anymore?!
● Drop a coin in the jukebox: Gone are the days of paying to play our favourite songs at bars and restaurants. Heck, some Gen Z-ers probably won't even get what that's all about.
● Burn a CD: Nothing was greater than the mixtape gift, or its successor the burned CD. With cloud sharing, streaming, and playlists now available, 'burn a CD' is slowly falling by the wayside.
● Dial-up tone: Younger generations won't understand the sheer agony of waiting for a connection only to have it abruptly cut off if someone called ‘the landline’!
● Turn the channel knob: Before TV remotes, the only way to watch something else was to physically adjust the dial. Was it hard to find the channel you wanted? Oh, yes.
● You've got mail: AOL's classic phrase itself is a relic; with all the emails we get now, who could bear the sound of someone sending us a message?!
● Save it on a floppy: Do you remember your old computer when it was so slow and useless unless you saved your work on your 3.5-inch floppy disk? Now, almost anything and everything digital you ever need is stored in your pocket and accessible instantly.
“Save it on a floppy”: your old computer was so slow unless you saved your work on a floppy disk. Credit: Unsplash
● Hit the pound key: Nobody says this anymore - it's all about the hashtag now!
● I need new batteries for my Walkman: Oh, the days of Sony's Walkman. Now we charge our devices before using them and no longer have to wait for new batteries!
● Remember to defrag your computer: Nowadays, most of the maintenance work for computers is automated, so there's no need to remember to defrag your device.
● Put the antenna up: From 'rabbit ears' atop TVs to the manufacture of the boombox, we used to have to hold antennas to get a clear picture or signal. Ah, the good old days!
We bet you've said at least some of these phrases at some point in your life... so why not take this as an opportunity to brush up on some tech know-how?
What are other phrases that were commonly used back then? Let us know in the comments below!
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