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Quill Pens
Quill pens were used as writing tools to write letters, documents, etc. Quill pens were most used and popular in the 15th century. Quill pens became obsolete as ball point pens were more efficient and preformed with higher quality. By the late 19th century, many resorted to ball point ink pens, rather than quill pens. -
Typewriter
Typewriters provided the service of business communication such as documents efficiently. Typewriters were most popular during mid 1880's. They then became very obsolete during the 1980's when many office workers began using computers and desktops. The modern computer was much more efficient than a typewriter, which made them obsolete. -
Paper Road Maps
Paper road maps provided the service of sense of direction and time. Very popular from 1160 B.C up until it became obsolete in the late 1900's, maps were reliable but could be more convenient to use. Paper road maps became obsolete as GPS systems were available and a resourceful use of cell phones. -
Payphones
Pay phones provided the service of communication as many people didn't have a portable phone to use in public. The reason of this is because at the time, families often shared a house phone. Pay phones then became obsolete as phones began to evolve, making it more accessible to bring in public places. Pay phones thrived in the 1950's as large cities had pay phones at every corner. Pay phones then became irrelevant in the late 2000's as everybody owned their own phone. -
Overhead Projector
Overhead projectors were used in many classrooms to display an enlarged image. Overhead projectors were popularized in the late 1950's to the early 1960's. The reason these became obsolete in the 2010's is because they were replaced by smart whiteboards and other similar classroom technology. -
Blockbuster
Blockbuster stores provided the service of video rentals. Individuals would rent films and game services from this rental chain. Blockbuster was most popular throughout the 1990's to the early 2000's. In the early 2000's, streaming services like Netflix became popular, affecting blockbuster chains into becoming obsolete. -
Phonebooks
Phonebooks were tools to find numbers of different businesses, addresses, and people. Phonebooks were most popular during the 1900's as smartphones were not available. Phonebooks stopped being sold on October 14, 2010. This is because the demand for phonebooks were very low as phones evolved, and printing all of the paper was just unnecessary. -
Encyclopedias
Encyclopedias provided information and research on a variety of topics. Encyclopedias were a great source of information in the 18th century, when they were most popular. The reason encyclopedias became obsolete is because of the high tech internet access that became available. Encyclopedias then became obsolete in March of 2012 when it was announced that new prints would no longer be produced. -
Disposable Cameras
Disposable cameras allowed those to capture memories through photos, without the hassle of buying an expensive high quality camera. These were most popular during the 1980's to 1990's. The reason these became obsolete in the late 2010's is because as smartphones evolved, camera quality improved. Meaning, expensive cameras that preformed the same as the newest iPhones were not necessary. -
iPods
iPods were portable media players, most often used for music. iPods popularity peaked in 2008 as that was the period they had most sales. Apple discontinued the iPod in May of 2022. Although, iPods truly became obsolete in 2017 as media player apps such as Apple Music & Spotify became popular.