Episode 593
Morning 6-Pack - Old Tech Like Sony Walkmans
Sony's bringing back the headphones that came with the original 1979 Walkman — retro look, skinny metal headband, orange-and-blue foam pads, and yep, wired. They say they even recreated the original sound (fancy way of saying don’t expect heavy bass), they use USB‑C so you can’t actually plug ’em into a real Walkman, and they’re $60 with a $20 Stranger Things special. I love the vibe of resurrecting old tech, so I rattled off six other things we ditched way too soon: landlines (nothing says “I’m mad” like slamming an avocado‑green handset), boomboxes (earn your tunes by lugging a 30‑pound stereo), typewriters (liquid paper highs, baby), VCRs (all that rewind/fast‑forward drama to freeze on that one Basic Instinct scene), car cigarette lighters (basically being a blacksmith in your own ride), and photo booths (a cozy little terrarium with charmingly moldy carpet). It’s dumb, nostalgic, and I’m here for it — bring back the weird stuff.
Takeaways:
- I riff on Sony bringing back the OG Walkman headphones — wired, orange+blue foam, full retro vibe.
- They're $60 with a $20 Stranger Things edition, connect via USB‑C, and Sony says they recreated that low‑bass original sound.
- I joke about spotting someone's favorite album by the bulge in their pocket and how wired headphones dodge pairing drama.
- I count six old techs we ditched too soon: landlines, boom boxes, typewriters (hello white‑out), VCRs, car cigarette lighters, and photo booths.
- Photo booths get my number one comeback pick — tiny private terrariums, moldy green floor and all, pure nostalgic gold.
Transcript
It's haystack.
Speaker A:And this morning's morning six pack has to do with old technology because we've, we've apparently reached the point where technology is so advanced we're going to buy the old stuff again.
Speaker A: with the original Walkman in: Speaker A:And if you're old enough to remember the Walkman, you may remember commercials like this one.
Speaker B:The Sony Walkman is a tiny stereo cassette player with truly incredible sound.
Speaker B:Put on a Walkman and see the world in a whole new light.
Speaker B:The Walkman from Sony, the one and only.
Speaker A:1970.
Speaker A:Just a little before my time.
Speaker A:Back when, back when portable music was a revolutionary idea.
Speaker A:You could identify somebody's favorite album by the bulge in their pants pocket.
Speaker A:Sony's new headphones look almost entirely like the originals.
Speaker A:They've got those skinny little metal headbands, those orange and blue foam ear cushions and a wire.
Speaker A:That's right, wired headphones are back in.
Speaker A:No Bluetooth, no charging, no spending 20 minutes trying to figure out why your headphones have been connected to your wife's car instead of your phone.
Speaker A:You just plug them in and Sony says they've even recreated the original sound, which is kind of a polite way of saying don't expect any bass.
Speaker A:They're 60 bucks and for an additional 20 bucks you can get a special Stranger Things edition.
Speaker A:Now of course they connect using USB C so you cannot plug them into your old Walkman.
Speaker A:Still, I love the idea of bringing back old technology.
Speaker A:In fact, I've got six more things that we abandoned way too soon.
Speaker C:Well, gather round folks.
Speaker C:It's the time of day when we laugh and smile in a light hearted way.
Speaker C:Tune in for the giggles and let's kick back.
Speaker C:Here comes the fun.
Speaker C:It's the morning six pack.
Speaker A:Six more pieces of old school technology that we abandoned way too soon.
Speaker A:Number six, landlines.
Speaker A:I mean there's no better way to convey your anger on a call than by slamming down an avocado green handset.
Speaker A:Number five, boom boxes.
Speaker A:You want to listen to music in public, then you've got to lug a 30 pound apparatus to the park and earn it.
Speaker A:Number four, typewriters.
Speaker A:If only because it gives us an excuse to have liquid paper which delivers an epic high.
Speaker A:Yeah, I'm talking about white out, you know what I mean?
Speaker A:Number three, VCRs, which is you got fast forward, play, rewind, pause.
Speaker A:You learn how to use all those button to freeze on that one scene in Basic Instinct.
Speaker A:Number two, car cigarette lighters.
Speaker A:Kind of like being a blacksmith in your own car.
Speaker A:And the number one piece of old school technology that needs to come back, of course.
Speaker A:Photo booths.
Speaker A:It's like a private little terrarium in there, right down to the moldy green stuff growing on the floor.
