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.)
mainstream since at least the 1950s
> dishwashers
1970s
> microwave ovens
available but fairly expensive in the 80s, ubiquitous in the 90s