In this blog we take a look at some bits of tech that have stood the test of time and crucially are still held in high regard today – Not often in the IT world is old stuff still worth keeping so these few gems from days gone by are some absolute gems.
IBM Model M – Keyboard
A timeless classic. The Model M was (and still is) used by millions around the world. Anyone who needed to do some serious typing would probably be using (or at least know of) the Model M.
What made it so great?
Well it used a buckling spring mechanism unlike the more popular dome switch we use commonly today. What this means is that the model M keyboard has a really nice ‘click’ and they just feel ‘right’. Granted they are not the keyboard to use if you consider silence a virtue (they are LOUD) but for typing nothing comes close.
In addition they were legendarily reliable, no surprise then that several 30+ year examples are in wide use today. Lots of pro developers, IT geeks or novelists still use Model M’s today.
If you fancy one then your best bet is eBay but be warned they come in at a premium – Expect to pay anything from £100 – £400 for one in good shape, you will also need a PS/2 or DIN converter.
Harmon Kardon SoundSticks
Ok so PC speakers are still in use but these were so futuristic looking and such amazing sound quality that they don’t look out of place in a swanky office today. Lovely rich tones ideal for your Teams meetings.
The good news is you can get these 2nd hand for under £100 on auction sites.
Portable Hard Drives
With so many options now for cloud storage be it Google Drive , One Drive , Drop Box, SugarSync and a whole host of others its been a long time since I used a portable Hard Drive for storage. Most Microsoft 365 accounts come with 1TB of free One Drive storage and Google Drive gives you 15GB free too but for quick transfer of large files from one computer to another then these still have their place.
We don’t advise anyone uses a portable hard drive for key backups or sensitive data but for storing your music collection or transferring your pics from one computer to another they still come up trumps.
Sticky notes (the real ones)
So not really ‘tech’ but these little pads of sticky paper (we all know the brand name) are just invaluable. No matter how good the lastest iPencil is or the latest voice to text software is you can’t be a pen and a sticky note for getting information down quickly.
I always have them on my desk.
Interesting Fact – The original stick note was actually a failed attempt at making a new type of adhesive, the inventor realised it could be re-stuck and so the sticky note pad was born!
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