Most of us associate technologies we use today like the internet, fiber optics, and even cell phones with the 21st century, but they're all products of the '70s. And we have the receipts to prove it.
From home video game consoles to life-saving medical devices, here are 15 present-day technologies you didn't know started in the '70s.
1
C Programming Language
The programming language was developed in the early ‘70s at Bell Labs by computer scientist Dennis Ritchie
2
Magnavox Odyssey
The first at-home video game console was released in 1972.
3
Pocket Calculator
The first pocket calculator hit the commercial market in Japan in 1970.
4
The Microwave
The microwave oven was first invented in 1947, however the first commercially-available iterations weren’t created until the late 1970s.
5
Fiber Optics
Turin, Italy, was the first metropolitan area to have fiber optic cables in 1977.
6
The Walkman
The now-iconic gadget, the first commercially-available portable cassette player — was released in 1979.
7
Electronic paper
This ‘70s invention, devised at Xerox’s research center in Palo Alto, walked so Kindles could run.
8
VCR Tapes
The first VCR recordings of movies became available in the 1970s.
9
Cell Phones
The first cell phone call took place in 1973.
10
Apple
Long before releasing dumb items like the AppleVision Pro, Apple was founded in 1976.
11
LaserDisc
This rainbow-tinted optical disc first hit shelves in 1978.
12
The PET Scan
These now live-saving scans were invented in 1972.
13
Pong
The iconic video game was invented in 1972.
14
Email
While we may dread them today, the first email was sent in 1971.
15
The Digital Camera
The first digital camera was invented in 1975 by Kodak.
