Apr 30 2008
Retro Style In Bluetooth Technology
When I hear the term “retro”, I tend to have mixed feelings depending on the style they are referring to. For fashion, my stomach turns at the thought of bellbottom pants, french-rolled jeans and the “Madonna” look. However, when the music industry attempts to bring a classic rock sound in the form of a new group, I can get into that. As of late, the automotive industry hit a home run by bringing back the older style vehicles in autos such as the Dodge Charger and Ford Mustang. Now, in thinking of all the markets that retro is popping up in these days, the last place one would expect to see it occur is in the area of technology. After all, who wants to go backwards in technology? Especially when technological improvements are made in order to speed things up and make life more efficient and organized. Do we really want to cut back on those features in today’s high-paced society? I realize that companies need to add a new spin to try and get ahead in the marketplace, but sometimes I think they just come up with the craziest and senseless things just to capitalize on this ongoing retro campaign. I saw this proven true just the other day while doing a little online shopping for a new cell phone.
Remember when the cellular phone first came out, and how large it was? Think Zack Morris from Saved by the Bell, although I can’t believe I just used that as a reference point. Anyway, the original batch of cell phones were not very pocket friendly, couldn’t hold more than a dozen phone numbers, and did not come equipped with an earpiece or headset. Fast forwarding to today, the cell phone can fit in your shirt pocket, has more memory than the first laptop computer, and offers a wide variety of bluetooth wireless earpieces to accommodate all of those who do not like the hassle of holding a phone to their ear while they talk. It is this advancement that has me puzzled as to what direction we are moving in regards to technology.
ThinkGeek (www.thinkgeek.com) has introduced a new bluetooth device that is going retro, simply calling it the Bluetooth Retro Handset. This wonderful new addition brings us back thirty years to the old-style phones that used to hang on our walls, that were only available in either yellow or putrid green, and typically came with a 40-foot cord extension so that one could move about the house and trip up their siblings. It also poses the thought of “Where the heck are we going to carry this new wireless cell phone attachment?” Imagine, walking down the street, talking on the more comfortable bluetooth retro handset, and when the phone call ends, you stop to open your briefcase or purse to place the bulky handset to rest until the next call. Doesn’t this completely void the idea of making cell phones more portable and less hassle to lug around? Not only is it not pocket friendly, but who wants to walk around looking like a phone repair man with the belt clip I am sure they probably offer.
Of course, I am not completely missing the boat, and do realize that in today’s culture, a lot of people use their cell phone as the main phone line both on the go as well as in their homes. For those people, maybe I could see an interest in this new product. That way, you leave the handset at home and get the feel for it while working around the house. With its 30-foot range, we are still limited to the rooms we can enter with the invisible bluetooth “cord”; unless of course we carry the cell phone in our pocket while talking on the headset, thus creating more to carry around. For those people that really want to go back in time and don’t like all of the advancements in technology, by all means I say go check it out. This is probably for you.
Hey, maybe I am the crazy one here, but I think they completely went overboard on this one. Don’t get me wrong, I am sure they will sell millions, and I will be considered the oddball for my opinion. But I feel that my opinion stands for something, and I am sticking to it. You know what they say, opinions are like…well, I will keep that one quiet for now.
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[...] swiss army knife, you might ask? Well, ThinkGeek is at it again. I know I knocked them a bit in my prior post for bringing useless retro-feel gadgets into today’s high tech market, but that’s what [...]