The flash of a digital camera can brighten a room and lift the spirits of the Generation Z user behind the lens.
Currently, Gen Z is surfing through a wave of popularity for different types of old technologies. Many of us in this generation, which ranges from people 12 to 27 years old this year, grew up in a day and age where “analog” technology was still the norm.
Now, using record players, digital hand-held cameras and Game Boy lookalikes reminds us of a time when people had more of a tangible and individual connection to technology.
Being able to go out to a record shop offered people a chance to experience something more personal and immersive than just opening Spotify to stream music. It was a ritual of flipping through records, seeing new albums, feeling the weight of a vinyl in your bag. It wasn’t just about the music but the excitement of going to the store then coming back home and finally, after a whole day of seeking an album, it was yours to listen to.
Vinyl records offered people a chance to go to a record shop where other individuals who like music were. It offered a third space where a connection based on loving music could be made.
Records also allow someone to fully own music and curate a collection, something that streaming platforms don’t really replicate.
Laura Vazquez, a professor and the undergraduate program director of media studies at NIU, believes ownership of analog technology is a thing of the past but something Gen Z craves.
“I think there is something that is very comforting about that CD,” Vazquez said. “That record, that is tangible that they can feel, that they can hold and own and do. Yes, it’s nostalgia, but it’s more than that. I think it’s the need to have ownership over the things they find entertaining.”
Turning on a digicam, a camera that captures pictures and stores them in digital memory cards, to capture a shot can take more time than quickly snapping a photo with a cellphone. But there’s something unique about not being able to quickly take 50 shots and choose the best one.
Instead, analog cameras like film cameras require thoughtful consideration of each frame, true appreciation of the moment being captured and savoring the process: a personalized experience that phones don’t demand.
Handheld digital cameras, which have become especially popular within the last year, give users a hands-on experience which can make them more connected to the pictures that were taken.
The Japanese trade body Camera and Imaging Products Association (CIPA) has released statistics that show shipments of digital cameras of major Japanese brands like Olympus, Casio, Canon, Kodak, Sony, Fujifilm and more to have generally increased from January to October of 2022 through 2024. Sales increased monumentally by 134.6% from January 2023 to January 2024, which marked the highest growth among the last two years and fired up what would be a strong year ahead for 2024.
“It (picture) comes to me a day later, and then I look, and me and my friend and I go: ‘Oh, that was hysterical. We had such a good time,’” Vazquez said.
Another example of analog technologies making a comeback is the return of retro gaming, which has been a widespread multi-generational interest. This can be seen in devices designed to look like the Game Boy, a handheld console designed by Nintendo in 1989.
It’s also seen through gaming centers advertising retro gaming such as Wreckroom DeKalb, which offers retro video games and arcade games.
For many Gen Zers, these devices aren’t just about style: they are symbols of a time when technology was more straightforward, less cluttered with features and more about enjoying the single-purposed nature of just playing the game.
Modern technologies offer efficiency, but this rise of interest in the past proves that efficiency can get in the way of the purpose of leisurely technology: simplicity, craftsmanship, community and authenticity.
In a digital age where everything seems to be moving and changing at a million hours per second, we appreciate old forms of technology. The special kind of socializing that comes with them is a reminder that we as humans like to slow down and take in what’s in front of us.
