Technology has undoubtedly evolved at a rapid rate, yet many of us have huge admiration and nostalgia for retro gadgets.
In a study shared with Finbold, eCommerce company OnBuy utilised the online analytics tool Ahrefs to establish which retro-tech products people worldwide are most interested in.
The findings show, that the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is the retro technology product that people are most fascinated by, with an average of 317,300 global monthly online searches for the home video gaming console – the equivalent of 10,235 online searches a day.
In the second position is the Sony PlayStation 2, which receives an average of 254,300 worldwide online searches each month from gaming fanatics.
The Nintendo 64 is in third place with an average of 237,000 global online searches a month for the 1996 manufactured console.
| Retro Tech/Gadget | Year Released | Average Global Monthly Online Searches |
| Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) | 1985 | 317,300 |
| Sony PlayStation 2 (PS2) | 2000 | 254,300 |
| Nintendo 64 | 1996 | 237,000 |
| Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) | 1990 | 157,500 |
| Nintendo Game Boy | 1989 | 149,000 |
| Videocassette Recorder (VCR) | 1977 | 147,000 |
| Sony PlayStation 1 (PS1) | 1994 | 144,800 |
| Sega Genesis | 1988 | 113,000 |
| Atari 2600 | 1977 | 93,000 |
| Sega Saturn | 1994 | 87,000 |
| Pager | 1949 | 77,900 |
| Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) | 2004 | 50,700 |
| Sony Discman | 1997 | 46,120 |
| Nintendo Power Glove | 1989 | 27,350 |
| Apple Macintosh | 1984 | 27,150 |
| ColecoVision | 1982 | 27,000 |
| Victrola Record Player | 25,000 | |
| Apple 1 Computer | 1976 | 22,200 |
| Palm Pilot | 1997 | 17,000 |
| Apple Newton | 1992 | 13,700 |
Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES – 157,500), Nintendo Game Boy (149,000), videocassette recorder (147,000), and Sony PlayStation 1 (144,800) are among the other retro technology products which receive more than an average of 140,000 global online searches every month, respectively ranking fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh.
Interestingly, more than half (11) of the retro-tech/gadgets in the top 20 are gaming-centric products from the likes of Sony and Nintendo.
At the other end in 20th spot is 1993 released Apple Newton, with the personal digital assistant receiving an average of 13,700 worldwide online searches a month.
Demand for PlayStation 5 is booming
Moreover, our previous research revealed that Sony Playstation 5 is also gaining momentum, with console sales hitting $3.8 billion since its launch back in November 2020, selling over eight million units. Its competitor’s Microsoft Xbox X/S revenue stands at an estimated $2.04 billion globally, selling 5.12 million units during a similar period.
Cumulatively, both consoles generated revenue of about $5.92 billion since November 2020, hinting at the continuous demand for gaming consoles globally.
