30 products that haven't been around for as long as you'd think

Zoë EttingerMay 29, 2024, 23:31 IST

An iPhone in 2007.Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Some products feel like they've been around forever, but they're actually fairly recent inventions.
Sliced bread, a kitchen staple, has been around for fewer than 100 years.

Certain products have become integral to our daily lives — it seems like there was never a time that we lived without them.

However, even some that seem as old as time have been created fairly recently. Sliced bread was put on the market for the first time in 1928, after a Missouri-based jeweler, Otto Rohwedder, invented the bread slicer.

More than a third of the US population, 136 million people, were iPhone users in 2023, and the company has a particularly strong hold on Gen Z: Research released by Piper Sandler in October found 87% of teenagers surveyed said they had an iPhone, and 88% of them anticipated getting an iPhone as their next phone, too.

However, the product was brought on the market just 17 years ago.

Take a look at all the products that haven't been around for as long as you would think.

A pantry staple today, sliced bread was first sold in 1928.

Sliced bread.Gamzova Olga/Shutterstock

Cans with pull-tab tops became popular after being patented by Ermal Fraze in 1977. He had designed the mechanism about a decade earlier.

Soda can tops.Shutterstock

Post-it Notes were introduced around the world in 1980.

Post-it Notes.Shutterstock

Sriracha hot sauce is also a relatively new product. It was first put on the market in 1980.

Sriracha.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

Battery-operated car keys have only been around since the 1980s. Before, each car door had to be locked and unlocked with a traditional key.

Battery-operated car key.Shutterstock

Though inline skates have been around since the 19th century, rollerblades were first sold by their teenage inventor, Scott Olson, in 1981.

People wearing rollerblades.Shutterstock

The Coca-Cola company was founded in 1892, but Diet Coke wasn't for sale until 1982.

Diet Coke.Erin McDowell/Business Insider

Built-in GPS for cars was first unveiled in 1990 by Mazda in Japan, but it took a decade before it was widely available in American cars.

GPS in a car.Shutterstock

Though many households have them now, Sony PlayStations have only been around since 1994.

A Sony PlayStation.Shutterstock

Starbucks' famous Frappuccinos have only been available since 1995. Vanilla Bean and Strawberry Creme flavors were introduced in 2002.

Frappuccino.Shutterstock

Though it's now become a household staple, Febreze was first introduced in 1996.

Febreze.Shutterstock

A popular item on the McDonald's menu now, the McFlurry was only introduced in 1997, two years after it was invented by a franchisee.

A McFlurry.Shutterstock

You might see them in almost every house now, but plasma flat-screen TVs were first sold by Panasonic in the 1990s.

A Panasonic TV.Shutterstock

Though they may seem like old technology now, DVDs were created in Japan in 1996 and first sold in the United States in 1997.

A DVD player.Brian Senic/Shutterstock

The popular soft drink Sierra Mist has only been available since 1999, when it was launched by Pepsi.

Sierra Mist.Shutterstock

The Universal Serial Bus (USB), also known as a flash drive, was first sold by IBM in 2000.

USBs.Shutterstock

Popular with both kids and adults, Razor scooters went on the market in 2000.

A boy riding a Razor scooter.Lewis Geyer/Digital First Media/Boulder Daily Camera/Getty Images

The Toyota Prius, the first mass-produced hybrid car, was released internationally in 2000.

A Toyota Prius.Toyota

Though you may see them in many public bathrooms today, Xlerator hand dryers have only been around since 2002.

Xlerator dryer.Shutterstock

The first camera phone was released in 2000.

An early camera phone.Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP via Getty Images

McGriddles are another relatively recent item on the McDonald's menu. They became available in 2003.

A McGriddle.Andrew LaSane/Business Insider

Android phones were only introduced in 2003.

Android phones.Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images

Take 5 candy bars were first introduced by Hershey in 2004. Their popularity helped boost the company's profits 8% that year.

A Take 5 bar.Take 5 Hershey

Though energy drinks are ubiquitous today, the popular 5-hour Energy only went on the market in 2004.

5-hour Energy.Shutterstock

Taco Bell's CrunchWrap Supreme is also relatively new. It was introduced in 2005.

Crunchwrap Supreme.Taco Bell/Facebook

Stride gum has only been around since 2007.

A line for free samples of Stride gum.Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group/Getty Images

Though Apple is now one of the world's top laptop retailers, MacBooks were released relatively recently, in 2006.

A MacBook.Hollis Johnson/Business Insider

Similarly, more than a third of Americans own an iPhone, but the devices have only been around since 2007.

An iPhone.Crystal Cox/Business Insider

Krave cereal was released in the United States by Kellogg's just 12 years ago, in 2012.

Krave cereal.Rebecca Harrington/Tech Insider

Amazon Alexa was first released in 2014, but only for Prime members. It became available for general users in 2015.

Amazon Alexa.AP/Elaine Thompson

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