In Memoriam: technologies that died in 2024

Celebrating the New Year usually brings about thoughts about what we will see in the near future, and technology is no exception. We’ve already told you about the major trends we’ll see in 2025, and now it’s time to talk about the technologies that died in 2024. We will talk about some legendary devices that, although they are saying goodbye, are reincarnated in new forms, and others that, although they are not completely gone, have already said goodbye in some segments.

3.5 mm jack on mobile phones

Yes, it’s true that removing the 3.5mm jack used for connecting headphones has been a thing of the past for many years in smartphones (it all started with the iPhone 7 in 2016), but it seems obvious to us to say that in 2024 there will be some very specific With exceptions, we will practically stop seeing this connector on all mid- and high-end smartphones.

And what are these specific exceptions? Well, we recently met Red Magic 10 Proone of the few, if not the only, high-end 2024 cell phone that still has a headphone jack.

And why is he doing this? So that your target audience gamersthey can connect their headphones to the microphone. Because the rest of the market, whether they like it or not, must adapt to the wireless future.

Chromecast

This really hurts us, perhaps because some of us were users of even its first generation, the one that looked like a color disc and worked its magic to turn any TV into a Smart TV. Well, 2024 was the year Google said goodbye to Chromecast, the accessory that started the Smart TV revolution and which gradually became Android TV and what Google calls Google TV today.

The disappearance of Chromecast doesn’t mean users will have to opt for an Android TV to enjoy Google TV. Since September 2024, Google has been selling the Google TV Stramer, essentially a top-spec Chromecast that competes directly with the Apple TV 4K. Problem? Well, if there is one, it’s the price: $99 versus the modest $29.99 that the Chromecast costs.

Microsoft HoloLens 2

Microsoft’s mixed reality glasses made a splash when they were introduced in 2016, showing a promising future in which holograms and the real world merge with each other, creating futuristic scenes like those shown in Minority Reportand which, according to Microsoft, will usher in a new era of productivity.

That promise may have caught on in sectors such as the US Department of Defense, which signed a deal with Microsoft to use HoloLens.

Although Microsoft has discontinued HoloLens 2, the company says it will continue to invest in augmented and mixed reality, just not through devices.

You already know, Apple, when you see your neighbor trim his beard…

Google VPN

It seems like Google should always be the hero, even when it comes to “horror” topics. Well, Google One VPN is another Google product that disappeared in 2024.

Have you used it? No one has done this here either, and that’s exactly the reason why Google decided to end it.

By the way, if you’re looking for a VPN, here are the best options.

Celebrity Avatars Meta AI

Remember Meta’s AI avatars? Well, we do this because we dedicate ourselves to it, and this is the reason why, a year after the presentation, Meta decided to close the project.

To put it bluntly, Meta AI’s avatars were chatbots of celebrities like Kendall Jenner, Tom Brady, Paris Hilton and even Snoop Dogg that took on a personality. Tom Brady, for example, was an exercise expert who encouraged you to keep working out, and Snoop Dogg was a “dungeon expert,” which is exactly the kind of activity you associate Doggy with.

Crowd Tangle

CrowdTangle may not tell you much, but for many newsrooms it was a critical tool that focused on what topics or discussions were making waves on social media.

So, CrowdTangle became part of Facebook in 2016, but after several years of prosperity, it decided to close it in 2024.