Ugly (but very bright and power efficient, and cooler) LED lighting. Bright blue power LEDs on everything. Less fluorescent, minimal incandescent lighting.
Everyone is working at home.
Few books, no newspapers or print magazines, no typewriters, maybe even no wired telephone.
The post office only delivers packages and "junk mail."
No "long distance" phone charges.
No ash trays.
New/improved appliances: air fryers, instant pot/automated pressure/multifunction cookers, high-efficiency washing machines, etc.. Fewer toaster ovens and gas ranges or ovens.
Mandatory smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms.
Lower power usage for most appliances.
No bottle returns. Much more "recycling" and industrial compost.
No large stereo systems, AM/FM radio, cassette players, or boom boxes. Fewer (and poorer quality) record players.
Home delivery of everything via amazon, grocery delivery, restaurant food delivery, etc.. UPS, FedEx and Amazon deliver many more packages than the USPS.
Fewer people actually own their houses.
Student loan debt. More monthly bills in general.
mainstream since at least the 1950s
> dishwashers
1970s
> microwave ovens
available but fairly expensive in the 80s, ubiquitous in the 90s
Electric motors are noticeably lighter, more powerful, and more energy efficient today. Yes vacuums in the 1980’s worked but they where significantly heavier, louder, and far more power hungry not to mention more expensive. It might not seem like much but I remember the exhaust from the family vacuum being noticeably warm. It’s even more noticeable with cordless vacuums which got not just better motors but vastly better batteries as well.
Often it’s the parts you don’t notice that make a world of difference. The finger saver shutoff on a modern saw might not seem like much, but those things really make a difference in peoples lives.
"Hoovering" really became dysoning.
I agree, Dyson is quite a bit better than the vacuum my parents had (though central vac was pretty damn good).
Dishwashers are quieter, though not that different. Microwaves seem about the same.
In all these responses what I'm noticing is people missing the vast gains in efficiency from our appliances over the last few decades: everything we have gives more, and uses less.
[1] https://www.aceee.org/files/proceedings/2008/data/papers/1_1...
Probably a feature I wouldn't want to give up.
Canister vacuums date to the 1910s and were probably mainstream by the 1930s (wasn't Herbert Hoover mocked by connecting him to Hoover Vacuums?)
Battery powered vacuums are ubiquitous now and were not in the 1980s (for example the first Dirt Devil model was corded.)
Of course. What about battery powered vacuum cleaners?
Yes, but even there we're not using flammable polystyrene ceiling tiles, nor asbestos floor tiles and asbestos glue any more.
Also air conditioning is ubiquitous.
Well yes, because we have solar panels and heat pumps and battery powered power tools and vacuum cleaners and dishwashers and microwave ovens and smart lights and ...
You wouldn't expect walls and carpets to change.