1980s

Retro 1980s case turns iPhone into 'brick' handset

Once upon a time, only the coolest (and wealthiest) people had mobile phones, and those phones were the size of a large guinea pig. This magical time was known as the 1980s.

If you pine for the days when acid wash jeans and Phil Collins ruled America, then ThinkGeek's Retro iPhone Case is for you.

Slip your iPhone into this case and lose all pretense to having a sleek, modern telecommunications device. All of a sudden, you have a brick-sized 1980s phone to go with your "Miami Vice" pop-collar jacket and gelled hair.

This honkin' huge case … Read more

MTV and the 'day' the music died

Launched on August 1, 1981, with the Buggles' "Video Killed the Radio Star," MTV had a huge impact on 1980s pop culture.

Before MTV arrived, music programming was mostly limited to bands playing a song or two on the late-night talk shows or "Saturday Night Live." Amazingly enough, most big cities' cable providers weren't on board for the MTV launch; NYC and LA didn't offer the network until 1982. MTV's "I want my MTV!" ad campaigns helped rectify the situation, but MTV's initial rise was painfully slow. The network went … Read more

1986 Apple fan fashion flashback

There was once a decade when it was cool to have popped collars, leg warmers, and zippers on the ankles of your acid wash jeans. It was called the 1980s.

Even design-obsessed Apple wasn't immune from the decade's fashion fallacies. Fashion blog The Trad unearthed a 1986 Apple clothing catalog that looks like a collision between "The Breakfast Club" and an Apple II.

The catalog really sells the Apple computing lifestyle. "After a rough day windsurfing, the Apple sweatshirt is just the thing," it reads. Or you could buy a complete Apple-branded F2 America 360 Sailboard for just $1,100.… Read more

Great stop-motion vid of favorite '80s toys

From Hot Wheels to Legos, this stop-motion video by French Web designer and animator Micael Reynaud provides a wonderful trip down memory lane.

The two-minute clip, titled "The King of Lego Land," is simply brilliant. And I'm ecstatic that Magic 8 Ball made it into the roundup, along with Nintendo games, Transformers, and of course, Legos.

How many of these toys did you play with as a kid? … Read more

Top 5 1980s computers

I just got back from CES 2010, which always has me longing for simpler times. So this week, I thought I'd do a little nostalgia Top 5, presenting the top 5 computers of the 1980s. Put on your leg warmers, don that Members Only jacket, and pop some Wham! in your cassette player. We're about to go Reagan era on you.

And after you watch the show, don't forget to come back here to answer the trivia questions for a chance to win. Be one of the first 10 people to answer the questions correctly and you'… Read more

Portable arcade tabletops of the '80s

The year was 1983--the last De Loreans were produced, the final episode of M.A.S.H. aired with more than 125 million viewers tuning in to watch, the "Just Say No" anti-drug campaign debuted, Jaws went 3D (don't know why), and the A-Team released so much ammunition without ever hitting anyone--Oh, What a Feeling!

This time portal has been initiated because I've dug something up from my closet. Not a skeleton, but a working 1983 original Game & Watch Nintendo Popeye tabletop system. For those who don't know how the Nintendo tabletop models worked, … Read more

Twenty new DeLoreans a year? Maybe soon

According to this story in the Los Angeles Times, the semi-classic car featured in Back to the Future may be primed for a limited-run comeback.

DeLorean Motor Co. Vice President James Espey has 200 of the original V-6 engines in stock. While DeLorean Motor Co. still stays in business refurbishing and servicing early-1980s DeLoreans, Espey says they may start building new ones from the stock parts in the next few years.

Don't expect to see new DeLoreans all over the place. If it happens, Espey is quoted as saying new car production will be limited to about 20 per … Read more