This 1982 computer is still being used in a donut shop in Indiana

We know that technology invented a practice called planned obsolescence, which is a technique where products have a pre-programmed lifespan so that customers have to replace their devices every few years, thus generating more profits for manufacturing companies. We call this the evil side of capitalism.

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Luckily, we have examples that this was not always the case. In the early days of the technological era, companies created equipment and products that were meant to last forever. And an example of this is the Commodore 64 that we bring here today.

After having turned 42 years old, a pair of Commodore 64 computers are still being used in a fully operational bakery located in Indiana, United States.

Cash registers over 40 years old and still working

As reported by Techspot, a person named Tony Lyon has posted on Twitter evidence that the Commodore 64 is still being used in 2024, albeit in a more rudimentary way.

The photos posted on Elon Musk’s social network show that a Hilligross bakery located in Brownsburg, Indiana, is using two of these units as cash registers.

It may seem strange that machines over four decades old are still in use, but we doubt that processing a few donut orders requires many processing resources.

Readers should note that the images were taken in 2010, but the Commodore 64 units were visible in another photo taken in 2021. The use of older generation equipment has not had a negative effect on customer service or bakery operations, as the establishment has garnered a solid rating of 4.7 stars on Google Maps and 4.4 stars on Yelp.

If someone wants to buy a Commodore 64 in 2024, for whatever reason, they can be purchased on eBay for between 100 and 1,250 dollars.

When it was first launched, the Commodore 64 cost $595, and it remains the best-selling individual computer of all time, with estimated sales between 10 and 17 million units.

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For the computer scientists in the room: the hardware specifications are a 1 MHz CPU and 64 KB of RAM, with the memory count likely inspiring its official name.