Society has always been in a constant state of evolution, which has been accelerated even further in the technological revolution of the last decade. Many once-essential things are quickly becoming obsolete, just like the following 17 things that will disappear from everyday use in the next ten years.
Cash
Contactless card payments and mobile phone payments have all but killed off cash, the once-dominant method of payment worldwide. A study by the Pew Research Center has found that just 14% of Americans use cash for all of their payments nowadays, with 41% not using cash at all!
Parking Meters
Now that almost everyone uses their smartphone daily, local councils are beginning to phase out the traditional parking meter in favor of an app-led payment system. Some parking lot operators are even opting for a camera-operated system that automatically logs your car’s registration plate and the length of your stay.
Hard Drives
Floppy disks were the first victims of computer technology’s modernization in the 2000s, followed by USB sticks and portable hard drives. Now, cloud-based storage, which makes data almost impossible to lose, is also showing the exit door for the latter two products.
Sat Navs
Just 15 years ago, people would talk about how physical road maps were soon to be obsolete thanks to the emergence of satellite navigation systems that could be attached to your car window. However, these systems are now built into cars and phones, making the last generation of satellite navigation systems seem dated.
Phone Booths
Before the days of mobile phones, people would make their phone calls while out and about using phone booths dotted around towns and cities. As you can imagine, the number of active payphones in the US has dropped significantly, with only six active payphones left in Washington, D.C., as NPR reports.
Checks
Checks have almost disappeared entirely from society because of the ease of online banking and contactless card payments. They are still occasionally used by older demographics, but ask someone under the age of 21 how to fill in a check, and they’ll likely stare back at you blankly.
Newspapers
Mobile phone news apps are rapidly suffocating traditional print media, as people can have access to breaking news just moments after it surfaces. People don’t want to wait until the next morning to find out more information anymore; it’s simply too slow for the modern world, so newspapers will soon be gone.
Passwords
With most technology products having fingerprint scanners and facial recognition, signing people into their phones in milliseconds, passwords could well be on their way out within the next decade. There will be no more racking your brains trying to remember passwords, and frankly, we can’t wait!
Physical Bank Branches
The efficiency and convenience of online banking have begun to negatively affect physical bank branches in towns and cities across the US. As with many aspects of modern life, the technological inadequacy of the older generation seems to be the only thing keeping most branches alive.
Landline Phones
The demise of the landline phone and the speed at which it happened is one of the most shocking effects of mobile phone popularity. Statistics reported by The Washington Post show that only 2% of Americans use a landline phone, compared to 80% in 2008!
Stationery
Thanks to the digitalization of pretty much everything, very few people require pens and pencils to write documents these days, so stationery shops will soon be forced to close their businesses. Academic work and official documents are now handed in over the internet, making stationery obsolete.
Charging Wires
Wired products, in general, are starting to become a bit old-hat. Most people are glad they no longer have to sit for an hour trying to untangle their earphones. Wired chargers are also likely to disappear in the next decade, being replaced by charging plates that power up your device wirelessly.
Linear Television
With subscription-based streaming services such as Netflix and Disney+ becoming people’s primary source of entertainment in the evenings, it won’t be long before linear television disappears from most people’s lives. It seems to be propped up solely by live sports events, which may eventually have their rights snapped up by streaming sites.
Data Roaming Charges
Up until fairly recently, if you used your mobile phone to make a call while abroad, you would have been charged an incredibly hefty sum. Thankfully, as the world becomes more connected, more and more providers are eliminating these charges, allowing you to use your phone for the same price wherever you are.
Gas Stations
While it’s taking a little more time than anticipated to get Americans driving electric cars, the number of people doing so has risen dramatically in the last five years, according to the BBC. Eventually, gas stations will be transformed into charging stations, making the USA a greener place. We’re all for it!
Dictionaries
The humble dictionary has served many of us well over the years, being the first port of call when you need to know the definition of a word. However, these once-essential books are now being discarded in favor of a quick internet search; there’s something kind of sad about that!
Alarm Clocks
Last on our list, gone are the days of relentlessly pressing the snooze button on your alarm clock until you had five minutes to leave the house. This bad habit still exists, but now, it’s on your smartphone. Alarm clocks, especially digital ones, have always lacked the aesthetic charm needed to survive the smartphone revolution, but we miss them.