CD returns

Not wanting to be dependent on smartphones, many young people are returning to using CDs, flip phones and digital cameras.

Digital cameras are becoming an exciting item for young people. Photo: Thecobrasnake.com .

In 2025, using a phone that can only make calls and send texts makes the life of Lucy Jackson, a freshman, more complicated.

Despite the hardships, Jackson is willing to make sacrifices to have a decent life. She even uses a paper map and calls a taxi company when she needs to catch a ride.

“Things that are hard to reach with my fingertips make me appreciate them more… Making friends and keeping in touch with people is a little harder now,” Jackson shared.

Classic hobbies

According to the WSJ , teens and 20-somethings have grown up consuming content on their phones, ordering food through apps, and using ride-hailing services. But some seem to be bored with these practices.

To escape from the phone screen and find balance in life, many young people are reviving digital cameras, flip phones and CDs. They go to CD stores, take pictures of everyday life with cameras like in the early 2000s.

Jackson is a board member of Luddite, a nonprofit group that advocates for smartphone hiatus. Members of the group are mostly college or high school students.

Many artists with large young fan bases, such as Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter, and Chappell Roan, distribute their music physically, such as CDs, vinyl, and cassettes. Some even release “single” CDs, a format that has all but disappeared.

Even TikTok is filled with content about Bluetooth CD players, flip phones, and digital cameras.

Hunter White's CD shelf. Photo: WSJ .

“People, especially Gen Z, are just bored with not owning anything,” said Hunter White, a 25-year-old data engineer.

White developed a love for CDs as an escape from streaming services, which he said paid artists too little and were unreliable. He bought CDs from thrift stores, record stores, and events, listening to them on a Sony player that was released in 2002.

To share his love of CDs, White created the Dissonant smartphone app, which has attracted about 350 members, mostly his age. They pay to receive CDs in the mail based on their musical tastes, along with handwritten notes related to the album. Users can keep the CD or exchange it for another one for free when they’re done listening.

Don't want to be controlled by smartphone

According to a 2023 Harris Poll survey, 80% of Gen Z respondents admitted that young people are too dependent on technology. Of these, 60% want to “go back to a time before people connected to technology.”

“They’re part of an interesting trend. They like technology, but they feel like something is missing and they want to have more control over how they use it,” said Clay Routledge, a member of the Human Flourishing Lab, which collaborated on the survey with Harris Poll .

Jackson remembers using an iPhone for the first time in middle school. Social media made her feel like she was “living a double life.”

A TikTok channel shares about the hobby of taking photos with a digital camera. Photo: @backnbodyhurtz/TikTok .

“A real-life 3D version makes me happy, whereas a 2D world makes me draw an image of myself. It feels fake,” Jackson emphasized.

When she was in high school, Jackson met people who wanted to give up their smartphones. That inspired her to buy her first flip phone.

“The way I listen to music has changed dramatically. Looking at a map is quite a chore, and you have to really focus on studying,” Jackson shared.

Digital cameras (point-and-shoot) are also a popular product among young people. Stories on TikTok joke that in a group of friends, there is always one person holding a camera, calling everyone to pose and copying photos from the SD card.

Kendall Jenner told WSJ that she recently bought a Canon PowerShot camera. Similar cameras cost between $15 and $300 .

Tumasi Agyapong, 26, who lives in Chicago, started using digital cameras two years ago for the nostalgia and quality of the photos. She likes them because they serve a single purpose and aren’t as distracting as smartphones. Agyapong now owns about 15 cameras.

“I really want to get away from being completely dependent on my phone,” Agyapong stressed.

Source: https://znews.vn/nhung-gen-z-thich-dia-cd-may-chup-anh-post1591523.html