retro things that aren't anachronisms

A lot of stuff being sold as "retro" ends up being a pile of suck because it's nothing more than an anachronism. An example of that is this thing, a CD player made to look like a record player with fake wood grain, fake tone arm and all. Yes, really. That audio player misses the mark so badly that it's living on a different planet.

Retro things that aren't anachronisms are the best kind. "True to original", if you will. And if it's cheap, that's even better.

I did find a few.

If you ever ate pizza at Pizza Hut in the '80s or '90s, you will instantly recognize these. It's the tall red plastic Coca-Cola tumbler you'd always get your fountain drink in, for whatever that might be.

And does it have the texture on the outside like it's supposed to? Yes. Yes, it does.

Funny enough is that I've never seen one of these in person, but have seen it a million times in television shows, movies, and even cartoons. It's that black cat wall clock with the swinging tail and the eyes that go back and forth.

This thing has been around since 1932! There is the classic black and white, but now there are also several other colors and color combinations. Still the same size as the original.

I did play with these as a kid. It's just a wheel that attaches by magnetism to a handheld rail that lights up when it spins, and it's pretty much exactly the same as it was from decades ago.

This is another wall clock I've seen a bunch in both television and movies, usually seen in an office or restaurant if memory serves correctly. I do appreciate how clean the clock face is on this one. Very easy to read, and runs on battery so there will be no ugly power cable hanging from it. I believe the battery is just one AA, so it's ridiculously easy to replace.

Couldn't end this without mentioning this digital watch. It's the same as the F-91W in a steel version, and is exactly how you remember it. The only thing that's changed is that it's made in Thailand instead of Japan now.

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Published 2026 Jan 8