We've come a long way with technology, and looking back at the kind of devices we had before, we realize just how inconvenient they would be now. Luckily for us, innovation doesn't stop, and it will keep on going as the years go by. Here are a couple of techs we're happy to be rid of.

1. Trackball Mouse to Optical Mouse

If you look under your computer mouse right now, you'll see an LED light and lens that can detect movement and transmit it to your computer. Mice before used a trackball to detect movements from the user.

There are still people who use them right now, and there are actually new devices that utilize them for different purposes. But back then, people did not have a choice. It was particularly inconvenient when you lost the ball since the mouse will no longer work.

2. Dial-Up Internet Access to Wi-Fi

In order to connect to the internet back in the day, people had to set up a telephone line. Now, we have access to fast internet connections that can reach more than 100Mbps. There was a time when the connection was incredibly slow.

Most connections won't even get past 1Mbps, which means that downloading a 3MB song could take hours. Plus, that could be interrupted when someone uses the phone since it cannot be used at the same time as the home computer.

3. Floppy Disks to Flash Drives

Younger generations like Gen Z would probably still recognize floppy disks, but only as save file icons on documents or games. Before flash drives were created, people had to settle for floppy disks, which could only hold about 2MB of data, sometimes even less. Now, there are removable storage devices that can hold terabytes of data.

4. DVD Player to Streaming Services

We're lucky that we now have streaming services because it was much more difficult to watch movies and shows back then in your own time. Aside from a DVD player, you'll also have to go to physical stores to buy DVD copies of what you want to watch.

Gone are the days of Blockbuster, which already filed for bankruptcy after the lack of business. Even Netflix has retired its DVD rental service, recognizing that people were no longer using them and prefer streaming services instead.

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5. Portable CD Player to Streaming Services

Portable CD players, along with other MP3 players have been obsolete for years, which is yet another thing that streaming services beat. Back then, people who wanted to listen to music privately on the go would need a tape player, CD player, or something like a Walkman or Zune.

Now, our smartphones can provide us with everything. It could already replace clocks, flashlights, calendars, and more, so why not the music players too? A CD can hold over a hundred songs, but nothing beats a music streaming service where you can access almost all songs.  

6. Fax Machine to Emails

In order to send documents to a distant recipient, people used to use fax machines to send them. The devices would scan the printed material and send it to another telephone number that is connected to a printer, which prints out the scanned material. Thanks to bright minds, we could now do that through emails.

7. Pager to Online Messaging/SMS

Before SMS and messaging apps became widely used, people had to communicate with each other remotely through pagers or beepers. There are models that can only receive messages while others are capable of sending a response.  

If you're annoyed with Twitter's (now X) character limit, imagine how little you can say through a pager. With the help of cell phones and smartphones, people can messages without a character limit, also allowing them to respond.

Related: 5 Outdated Technologies Still in Use Today