On the other side of earbuds

The other night I was walking down the Molos promenade, listening to The Raven ‘n’ the Blues podcast. The show mp3 played on my mobile, which was hidden deep down in the pocket, and I was getting the sound via a pair of earbuds.

I was walking, minding my own business, when someone came up to me and asked what was the time. I had to “unplug” myself first, to hear the question again.

Later, when I continued my way, I started thinking about the evolution of the earbuds…

These days, if you see someone with earbuds, you can be almost sure that there is some mp3-enabled device on the other side. It might be a mobile phone, a standalone mp3 player, or some such.

About five-six-seven years ago, mp3 players weren’t as popular as they are now. And CD players were in wider user than they are now (I don’t know this for sure though, I’m just assuming). So, if back then you saw someone with earbuds, you won’t be able to tell if there is an mp3 player in the pocket, or a CD player.

Go further back in time, and there is a cassette player now. Also with earbuds. Is it a cassette player or a CD player? You don’t know.

If you reverse few years more, you won’t have any mobile device with earbuds (or am I too young to remember?). So, if you walke down the street with earbuds plugged in, say, 30 years ago – nobody would know, what’s that hanging out of your ears.

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