20 Outdated Things Baby Boomers Still Love

As one generation gives way to the next, sometimes the older of the two holds on to certain things—and often ways of doing things—while the younger generation picks up more modern means and technologies. With multiple generations getting along together at once, however, that naturally leads to a situation where the oldest generations exist in a world that becomes increasingly outdated to the generations below them. And in the high-tech 21st century, that gap between Boomers and Millennials (and everyone after them) is more visible than ever…

1. Telephone Calls
2. Landlines
3. Cursive Writing
4. E-Readers
5. Last-Minute Vacations
6. Facebook
7. Ironing Clothes
8. Brand Loyalty
9. Home Shopping
10. Traditional Television
11. Cop Dramas
12. TV News
13. Newspapers
14. The "Thumbs-Up" Emoji
15. ​Best Restaurant Etiquette
16. Paper Maps
17. Checks
18. Old Email Addresses
19. All-Caps Messaging
20. Greeting Cards

Telephone Calls

​A recent survey found that a staggering 70% of 18- to 34-year-olds preferred texting to making or receiving telephone calls. Research has shown that half of all Boomers talk regularly over the phone, second only to the Silent Generation before them.

Landlines

On the subject of phone calls, half of Americans over the age of 65 still have a landline telephone in their home. A similar recent survey in the UK, meanwhile, shows that less than 30% of Gen Zers live in a house with a landline connection.

Cursive Writing

Cursive used to be a mainstay of the education system, but The Atlantic recently reported anecdotal evidence that two-thirds of Gen Z cannot read it.

E-Readers

​There was a time when the digitization of reading threatened to see off traditional books in the same way that streaming had done away with CDs and DVDs. Not so if current trends are anything to go by, with 1 in 8 Boomers owning an e-reader in one recent survey, compared to barely 1 in 12 among all other generations combined.

Last-Minute Vacations

2026 data has shown that while younger generations tend to save for vacations, retired Boomers are a staggering 200% more likely to book a trip on a whim.

Facebook

Maybe a little unfair to label Facebook as outdated, but the statistics are trending that way. In one recent survey, 88% of Boomers said that they had used Facebook in the past three months, 11% higher than Gen Z. Break that down into how they use Facebook, however, and the difference becomes even more stark: 73% of Boomers say they use the platform to regularly keep in touch with family, while the Gen Z figure here collapses to 44%, and whereas 62% of Boomers say they use Facebook every day (and 28% multiples times a day), only 38% of Gen Z reported daily use.

Ironing Clothes

​As odd as it might sound, thanks to a mixture of casual-dress offices, clothes steamers, and the advent of crease-resistant fabrics, there has been a clear generational decline in the use of household irons in recent years. While 90% of Boomers say they own an iron, 3 in 10 younger adults aged 18 to 34 do not own one and admit to never ironing their clothes.

Brand Loyalty

A quarter of Boomers say they rarely or never consider a brand other than one they already know, making them the most brand-loyal generation. Other generations are ultimately more likely to be swayed by new names, or new brands, or find a new home for their purchases if their usual brand is unavailable.

Home Shopping

While 90% of QVC shoppers are female, the home shopping network’s audience also skews heavily into the 50-and-older age bracket. That being said, the network has recently picked up a raft of new fans, with one report recently showing that 80% of first-time QVC buyers were aged 25 to 44.

Traditional Television

While younger generations have increasingly embraced streaming services and online entertainment platforms, traditional television remains squarely Boomer-centric. On average, Boomers watch five hours of regular television every day (compared to just 90 minutes among Millennials, and less than one hour among Gen Z).

Cop Dramas

Incredibly, police procedurals account for half of all scripted dramas broadcast on the four main U.S. TV networks. Despite taking up an overwhelming amount of schedule space, however, cop shows accounted for just two of the 10 most-watched shows among viewers aged 18 to 49, with their audience continuing to skew into older age brackets.

TV News

A whopping 95% of people aged 65 and over watch some form of cable news channel every week. Contrast that with Gen Z, only 15% of whom watch cable news on a weekly basis.

Newspapers

News might be moving increasingly online and onto social media, but 37% of Boomers still regularly buy a print newspaper (compared to just 11% of those aged 18 to 29).

The "Thumbs-Up" Emoji

This is the most-used emoji among Boomers, with 52% of respondents aged 60 to 78 in a recent survey using it. To Gen Z, however, the simple thumbs up is at best becoming increasingly cringe, and at worst will be interpreted as passive-aggressive or dismissive. (If you’re wondering, they prefer the "Call Me Hand" emoji, with an extended little finger, instead.)

​Best Restaurant Etiquette

A recent FODMAP article claimed Boomers are more likely to snap their fingers at servers and send food back to the kitchen, while a 2025 survey reported by Yahoo ranked Boomers as the worst tippers. (Millennials came out on top here, averaging a 19.4% tip compared to the Boomers' 16.4%.)

Paper Maps

A 2019 survey in the UK found that a majority of adults aged 24 to 38 would struggle to even read a paper map, and ultimately rely on their smartphones to navigate (while 15% of Millennials had never read a paper map at all).

Checks

​While half of all Americans haven't written a paper check in the past year, 22% of those ages 65 and up wrote one in the last month.

Old Email Addresses

Gmail is now the most popular email provider among all generations, but Boomers are the most likely generation to hang on to older legacy addresses. 20% of Boomers have a Yahoo email address, and 11% have an AOL address (compared to just 1% of Gen Z).

All-Caps Messaging

Ellipses, all-caps text messages, random capitalizations—it all goes into a form of communication identified as "boomerspeak," which is becoming increasingly abandoned among younger generations.

Greeting Cards

While Millennials are the generation that spends the most money per greeting card, Boomers are the generation that both buy and send the most individual greeting cards, according to Hallmark.

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