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Miniature AM/FM Radios
In the 1980's miniature AM/FM Radios became popular. The size of these radios allowed people to carry them around with them and ran off of battery power, increasing their mobility with them. -
Microwave Ovens
In the 1980's microwave ovens were also available for purchase by the general public. This was a long time coming from the first patent being filed in the 1930's. In the 1980's the cost of the microwave had came down to the affordable range for most families. -
CDs
Phillips and Sony co-developed the compact disk (CD) in 1982 and by 1983 CDs were readily available on the shelves at music stores. At the time of CDs introduction, they could store more data than the hard drives of the computers of that era. CDs could typically hold up to 80 hours of audio or about 700 MiB. -
World Wide Web
In 1994, the World Wide Web rapidly took off after the World Wide Web Consortium was founded with support from the Defense Advanced Research Agency and the European Commission. The Web was made to be freely available with no patent or royalties due. -
Energy Efficient Refrigerators
A competition was held in the early 1990's among major manufactures to encourage the development of energy efficiency. Prior to this the refrigerator consumed more energy than any other home device in homes without AC. By 1995, energy efficient refrigerators were available in homes.
