Parents may not be cool in the eyes of their gen Z kids, but their old-school tech is.
It’s all systems go in the tech world, with Meta to launch Sam Kerr-powered AI chatbots and Apple’s mixed-reality headsets – designed to ‘make meetings more meaningful’ – about to drop.
Unfortunately a key worldwide market, generation Z, is turning away from high tech in favour of low tech, no tech or old tech.
Here’s a rundown of the trend, and why it matters.
Dumb phones
The most obvious example is the resurgence of the dumbphone. Yes, modern takes on those flip or brick-shaped phones popular 15-20 years ago are back and in the hands of gen Z.
According to a recent report from Counterpoint Research, the sales of ‘feature phones’ (as they’re more politely described) are on the rise and will reach 2.8 million this year in the US. The report cites increasing mental health concerns among younger generations about the use of social media, which also plays out in increased interest in digital detoxes, unplugging and minimalism.
Around the same time, another Counterpoint report forecast that 2023 will be the worst year for smartphone sales in the past decade.
Nokia phones manufacturer HMD Global also reported the same trends in its global smart-versus-dumbphone sales.
Dumb rings
While dumbphones are a reaction to the negative aspects of social media, the ‘pear ring’ is a response to the negative aspects of dating apps. The pear ring is a plastic turquoise or violet ring (depending on your sexual orientation) worn to tell other singles that you are open to IRL conversations and connections.
It has no app or digital component (that is the point). While Pear, the company that makes the rings, has not released any numbers, the first three releases have sold out and rings are being spotted all over the world, including in Perth.
Vintage tech
Along with these new takes on old technologies (see also the Paper Shoot Camera, a minimalist digital camera inspired by 1990s disposables that is blowing up on TikTok), gen Z is also infatuated with vintage tech.
Old iPods, camcorders, record players, video game consoles, cassette players and even point-and-shoot cameras are being grabbed from closets and op shops and being put back into use.
The trend can be seen as an extension as gen Z’s obsession with 1990s fashion, where these items not only become vintage fashion accessories, but ways of recreating the 1990s aesthetic.
Remember the 1990s? Its aesthetic was all about imperfection, authenticity and realness; a counterpoint to the filtered, performative, high-resolution perfection that has become the norm on social media and beyond.
A simpler time
Gen Z’s love affair with 1990s technology and fashion suggests a desire to return to a time before smartphones and social media, and all the complexity and feelings of disconnection, depression and anxiety that come with both. Not only are young people sharing these feelings online, but social media and mental health researchers are also coming to the same conclusion.
The originals
So why does this matter?
Young people always adopt new technologies and trends well before they become mainstream. Even social media was once entirely the domain of young people.
Back in 2007, when I had just begun my PhD research into Facebook (which at the time was the coolest thing ever and only used by teenagers and university students), there was an ongoing moral panic in the media about young people ‘oversharing’ on early social media sites. A decade and a half later, it’s young people leading the backlash against peak social media.
Not only does this trend matter for technology companies and brands engaging with gen Z, but it’s also a signal for society as a whole: a potential hint as to why Meta’s metaverse and its disembodied attempt at human connection in virtual reality was such a spectacular flop.
Indeed, vintage tech is not really about tech at all. It’s about a desire for authenticity, balance and real human connection … with gen Z showing us all the way.
• Dr Kate Raynes-Goldie is a cultural anthropologist specialising in human communication, innovation and AI. She is also a keynote speaker, Certified LEGO® Serious Play® Facilitator and the creator of SUPERCONNECT®