We’ve heard it said that technology moves, and improves, at a blistering pace. We, of course, agree with this statement, being in the fast-paced technology world ourselves. But for many, it can be hard to gain a sense of how far we’ve come in such a short period of time. That’s where the Information Age comes in! Thanks to the advent of YouTube, classic commercials from the 1980′s are easily accessible online and display the astonishing advancements that a few short decades can produce. Below are 11 of our favorite retro commercials, specially selected for their impressive graphics, memorable messages, crazy characters, and painfully outdated products.
Most adults over the age of 18 can remember the thrill of playing the classic Nintendo system. It was Nintendo that gave birth to some of the biggest titles in video game history, including Mario, Yoshi, Kirby, and more. This commercial from the ’80s shows the original system complete with the legendary Rob the Robot and Zapper gun.
The massive Centel was one of the first consumer cell phones on the market. This particular commercial, looking something like a dream sequence from Saved By The Bell, shows the main character plowing through off-road territory while comfortably talking on his Centel, clearly showcasing its versatility. Call us cynical, but it’s doubtful that the phone received full service and held a call while dashing through rivers and woods. If it did, then perhaps today’s smartphones can learn a thing or two by going back 30 years.
The Commodore VIC-20 is considered by many to be the earliest affordable color computer. Complete with an 8-bit chip and gaming joystick, this machine was the first home computer to sell over 1 million units. Watch and rejoice as William Shatner, the classic TV spokesman, beams in to inform you of the great features available on the “wonder computer of the 1980′s.”
When watching this early Windows commercial, it can be hard to believe that the man throwing money and screaming at the camera about clocks and notepads would one day become the Chief Executive Officer of the entire company. Strange as it may seem, the unctuous salesman seen above is none other than Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft since 2000. Ballmer, who has a history of being extraordinarily energetic and unpredictable, has even been known to jump around howling and cheering at company conferences. We can probably all agree that his pride is best exhibited behind Microsoft’s closed doors.
This 1980s Macintosh commercial stands as a testament to how far Apple has come in just a few short decades. The company that once advertised the ability to align text and change fonts has advanced to give the world some of its top selling products, including the iPod, iPhone, MacBook, and iPad. Apple has always known that its strength lay in its graphical ability (which has traditionally surpassed Windows) and even this commercial, despite its hilarity, clearly reflects this selling point.
The Atari video game system was the first gaming system commercially available for home purchase. What the console’s traditionally simplistic games lacked in graphic quality, they made up for in addictive fun. The Atari was also the first system to bring the arcade into the living room with games such as Brick Breaker, Asteroids and Missile Command. These are all classics of gaming history that continue to be duplicated, collected and spun-off today.
The promise and ability to see a photograph instantly, with little to no development time and cost, was a huge selling point that made Polaroid an immensely popular camera and accessory. In fact, those who recall growing up during the Polaroid craze have referred to it as the iPod of their generation; it was a piece of technology that no one left home without, especially if they were on their way to a social gathering. But the innovation that Polaroid brought to the market would, in some ways, cause its very decline. Due in large part to the explosion and technological innovations in digital photography, Polaroid has since stopped selling the iconic instant film seen advertised in the above 1980′s commercial.
Perhaps the most memorable Nike commercial from the 1980′s was the popular Godzilla vs. Charles Barkley spot. Having defeated other formidable opponents including Mothra and Mechagodzilla, the monstrous fighting lizard must square off with yet another towering foe: Sir Charles Barkley. Dubbed “the battle of the century” by the voiceover, the takeaway from the spot is that Barkley has the upper hand in his fight against the monster, not necessarily because of skill, but because he is equipped with a pair of brand new Nike sneakers. Later commercials featured the actual battle as it happened, which resulted in Barkley quickly dunking on the big beast.
This ’80s edition Canon copier was the first of its kind to print two colors at the same time. This early key selling point helped Canon distinguish itself from competitors and catapult itself into the quality, cutting-edge brand they are today. This original TV spot features a geeky boss repeatedly requesting new color copies in order to give his secretary the chance to show off Canon’s brand new dual color capability.
Those who want to see truly retro technology need to look no further than 1980′s RadioShack commercials. Each one features a host of horribly outdated hand-held video games and long gone gadgets of yesteryear. This particular commercial shows a family at Christmas time opening a collection of the hottest electronics on the market, all of them purchased by the mother at the local RadioShack.
Before the lovable Energizer Bunny, Energizer commercials featured an obnoxious and overbearing spokesperson named Jacko Jackson. Jackson was an Australian pro football player who acted in several Energizer commercials, usually lifting enormous batteries over his head and bellowing about how long they last. This particular 1988 commercial features Jackson on a train reminding commuters of the importance of choosing Energizer when they need to make sure the battery lasts.
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i remember the nes one from my childhood… that is so weird seeing it now. remember the movie where mario bros 3 was shown for the first time. that was unbelievable at the time.
Why are the 80s the only decade that has never been out of style, other than the 80s?
It was the coke.
The Commodore Vic-20 still holds a special place in my heart, it was my first computer and I still have it. Hooked it up a few weeks ago to find it still works too!
http://www.privacy-tools.es.tc
I love that Shatner plugged a PC since most of the Trek Episodes were about the “Rise of the machine!”. Way to pick em commodor.
Article is fairly useless if the videos won’t play. I got the “an error has occurred” on over half of them.
Shame they don’t make stuff like this anymore, the video games they make now suck, damn i wish i could find my Atari 2600.
come to think of it… there was ALWAYS a thunderstorm whenever i brought out that POS robot.
creepy
How can Steve Ballmer live with himself?
Oh, my dad says the 80′s was when they changed coke. They came out with a new coke that was bad and people weren’t buying it, so they said they went back to the old way of doing it, but it still wasn’t the exact way they made it before the big change. He said it was a play to use cheaper ingredients without people knowing.
When I was a kid, I had a friend whose mother wouldn’t let him have NES’s Rob the Robot because she thought the devil would possess it in the middle of the night and murder everyone in the house.
I wish Ballmer still did commercials.
…except in Nebraska
I must admit, the graphics for the spinning logo’s in the Atari ad are WAY ahead of what they should be in 1984. To go from that to the graphics going on in Warlords immediately after is almost absurd.
The kids, they listen to the rap music. That gives them the brain damage. With the hippin and the hoppin and the bippin and the boppin, so they don’t know what the jazz is all about! You see, jazz is like jello pudding. No, actually its more like Kodak film. No, actually jazz is like the New Coke. It’ll be around forever.
"Mirroring Status: Blocked by Site Owner" – Dugg down cause I’m at work.
"I love the Powerglove. It’s so bad."
Godzilla vs. Barkley commercials were from 1992.
Last time I checked 1992 was not during the ’80s.
Fuck Nebraska?
Turns out the mother ended up slaughtering the whole family, amirite?!?
She’s probably right.
Duracell Bunny Commercials from the ’80s are greater than all commercials in this article
Bert, yup. Bill Cosby assured us that we were "gonna love" New Coke. It was supposed to taste more like Pepsi, and even had a splash of blue on the can (red, white and blue, like Pepsi). Then they started selling Coke Classic alongside New Coke, and eventually New Coke was gone. But your dad is right, Coke Classic didn’t taste quite the same. I wonder if that’s when they changed from sugar to high fructose corn syrup.
Was this her?
http://www.morethings.com/fan/carrie-sissy_spacek/ …
Ooh I remember the NES one with R.O.B. It was a remarkably good commercial given that it made a geeky kid like me REALLY want one, even though R.O.B. has got to be one of the absolute WORST console-peripherals ever. (And by the time I did get a NES, in 1989, he was already all but forgotten)
I don’t think the Microsoft one ever aired. IIRC it was just an in-house joke of theirs.
I worked at "The Shack" about 10 years ago. I hated Christmas time b/c I knew that some poor, innocent child was going to get shit on because their parents thought the shit sold there was actually good. I mean who buys a miniature pinball machine that doesn’t do anything? It’s a piss poor electronics store, what makes anyone think that it’s an any better toy store? Seriously!
Zip Zaps were pretty cool though.
I had the NES Deluxe Set… although I never understood R.O.B. the Robot.
I tried to figure out Gyromite… no clue as to what it was supposed to do…
I worked there a few years ago. A guy came in and summed it up pretty well. He said, "Radio Shack is like the 7-11 of electronic stores. They sell the same parts and connectors you can buy online, but for 3 times the price." Its just the convenience of not having to wait for shipping I guess. But you’re right about the other stuff being crap.
Nothing sells batteries like a coked up Aussie screaming at you and punching the air.
Were there more commercials of this? Or was it a commercial for a special half-time or something?
There was at least 2 that I can think of
“Call us cynical, but it’s doubtful that the phone received full service and held a call while dashing through rivers and woods.”
I have no clue what was the Centel network, but in the ancient age of European telecom there was this system called NMT 450. Their radio towers had ridiculously big coverage of THOUSANDS of sq kilometers (like 7-8000!). So it was really possible to go in the woods and call from there. That’s how the Scandinavian countries started it all…
Classics. I was 23 in 1980, so I remember these very well, indeed, with the greatest of warmth for the simpler, gentler times they represented. I remember walking into a Radio Shack, in those days, and feeling like Alice in Wonder Land!
‘Alien Chase’ in the Radio Shack commercial- I have that thing, and it’s STILL addictive as hell. Good game. 2 player head-to-head action.
My uncle was a forest ranger in upstate NY and had one of the first cellphones to come out. The older cellphones used ANALOG signals which were able to be broadcast over much larger areas that digital signals. With that first cellular phone he was even able to use the phone at his camp in the middle of the adirondacks, ironcially with the advent of the digital signal, one can no longer get any cell signal at said camp.
I remember the polaroid commercials. I had one of the cameras. i moved to the uk in 81. these other commercials mean nothing to me.
@Duncan – we’re sorry you can’t watch some of the videos. Are you still having trouble? Can anyone else not view them?
I love/hate commercials so much that I made two of my own commercial parodies:
http://www.youtube.com/user/Glaserbeam1#p/u/4/ufRDHjKQy2I
http://www.youtube.com/user/Glaserbeam1#p/u/1/t9MvUBqlHGg
Thanks for sharing! Had no problem viewing all of them…
No Legend of Zelda rap?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69_l1oZ2b2M
Regarding the Polaroid ad…It featured one the most beautiful women to ever grace the small screen, Mariette Hartley!
Not the soda pop, kids.
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@Monika – thanks for the support! We do our best and hope you continue coming back and reading all of our entries.
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