When Tech Nostalgia Takes Us Back To The Future

Muchaneta Kapfunde | @FashNerdEditor

Great Scott, today is 21 October 2015. I have waited for this day since 1990. I was 11 years old and still on the Back to The Future high following its release back in 1989. I could not wait for 2015. Now I am 30 something and today is the day that Marty McFly arrived into ‘the future’.

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With a buzz of excitement, we wondered how truly prophetic the technology in the 80’s movie was, especially when it came to predicting what future technology we will be using in 2015. So it was on this note that we popped in a DVD,(how reto right?), grabbed some popcorn and watched Back to The Future 2 for the 100th time. At the end of the movie we realised two things, (1) the technology used to make movies realistic has come a long way, hallelujah and, (2) scarily the movie was not so far off when it came to their predictions and here is why.

image5 (2) The famous Nike sneakers with the power laces. For those who still want, you will be happy to know that  Nike has filed a patent for self-lacing shoes similar to those featured in the film.image2 (7)How can one forget the film’s iconic hoverboard. Well word on the tech is that Lexus, who unveiled a working hoverboard of its own in August, could just be making what seemed impossible, possible very soon.

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Ahhhhh the jacket that not only speaks to you, but will blow dry you when wet was the epitome of showing that the marrying of Fashion and Technology was possible. Although our clothes do not have the blow-dry option yet, fashion pioneers are experimenting with weaving electronics into  fabrics, pioneers such as Jacket Antics (Velvet Highway) which brags linen yarns, conductive silver threads and electronic components, hand woven using modified twill structure.

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We love the message-flashing police hats. This is an area that has been cornered by Fashion Tech label  CuteCircuit, whose tweet-displaying dress and flashing clutches have been grabbing the headlines since their launch.

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When Marty Jr adorns his via his hi-tech specs in the film, he seemed so futuristic, so cool. Today, the JVC specs seem a bit dated especially with bigger names such as Microsoft’s Hololens, Facebook’s Oculus Rift virtual reality headset and version two of Google Glass promising us more.

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IoT before we knew it was IoT came in the shape of computer-controlled door locks. Yale have released a similar product,  so it wont be long before LifestyleTech becomes the norm.

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No one probably never noticed when they first watched the film back in 1989, but if you take a closer look at the campaigner trying to restore Hill Valley’s clock tower, he seems to be using a tablet!

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The end of the movie is all feel good memories and a great soundtrack, but if take note of the final scenes you will notice the drones. Although they make a fleeting appearance, nowadays media organisations, such as the BBC, have started deploying camera-enabled aircraft to get new perspectives on the news.

That all being said, lets not forget fashion’s take on the iconic movie’s fashion statement.

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Photograph: Tullio M Puglia/Getty Images

Calvin Klein’s bomber jacket-centric autumn/winter 2015 collection.

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Adidas Originals Yeezy Boost. Photograph: Adidas

The above Adidas Yeezy boost, are the brainchild of rapper Kanye West and Adidas collaboration.

As we take a break from our nostalgia, we wonder, is there another movie, like Back to the Future that explores technology and fashion in such as way that after 26 years we are still finding it relevant? Well I guess it depends on who you are asking.

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