15 Vintage Tech Ads

JimLynch writes "Tech ads just aren't what they used to be. Sure, you have your robot phone wars and naked spokeswomen in bathtubs (what was she selling, again?). But missing are the cheesy songs, silly slogans, and giant gadgets that made the tech ads of yesteryear so wonderful to watch. Check out these 15 vintage tech commercials for yourself. If all the obsolete technology doesn't put a smile on your face, surely the cameo by a young William Shatner will." Apple's "1984" is included, and it has a strange and unanticipated resonance these days.

Comments

Priceless

[WrongSizeGlass]

I'm not sure which one I laughed at more, the MS-DOS 5.0 upgrade or Steve Balmer mocking himself while pitching Windows 1.0.

Re:Priceless

[ReneeJade]

The MS DOS 5 Upgrade rap commercial makes me ashamed to be Caucasian. That guy was a Navin Johnson, tuna fish sandwich eating, with the crusts cut off, and a twinkie for dessert kind of Caucasian. I could actually visualize Bill Gates clapping his hands and stomping his foot, almost in rhythm with the video, just like Navin.

I don't feel so good now.

I'm fairly certain the MS DOS 5 one was meant to be a bit silly, a bit of a joke. And for that reason I think they pulled it off well. I thought it was one of the less dorky ones. You can tell that MS put a fair amount of money into it.

Re:Ill-Informed Public

[lemur3]

you must recall what 'tech illiterate' meant back then.

back then you got a 'computer' and it came with a big book of BASIC code telling you how to code your own games! right out of the box!

now? you get a 'computer' and the odds of you coding your own games are quite unlikely.. even most 'literate' computer users wouldnt know where to start

Re:Ill-Informed Public

[Ethanol-fueled]

Not every family had the money for those toys back then.

Technical literacy had little to do with it. None of my peers had trouble learning, navigating, and exploiting the Apple ]['s or the early Macs at grade school.

Re:Ill-Informed Public

[bughunter]

you must recall what 'tech illiterate' meant back then

Back then it meant 'the parents'. Those commercials are mostly aimed at the parents of teenagers who wanted a computer. I know I constantly begged my parents for a Trash-80, but I never got one. (By the time the Amiga and the Mac came out, I was making my own purchases.)

Today the young computer-literate parents are grown up and buying their own toys. Thus, the commercials now are more practical and informative, since their audience will be the users, too.

Re:I'm sorry

[NekSnappa]

Wow. Just wow.
This just goes to show that the trendier something is when it's made, the sillier it will look in the future.