![People point out eerie change to humanity in video of shopping centre from 1996](https://images.ladbible.com/resize?type=webp&quality=70&width=3840&fit=contain&gravity=auto&url=https://images.ladbiblegroup.com/v3/assets/bltcd74acc1d0a99f3a/blt420f37343b28aa94/6697c5c21c3bc73bdca4e646/shopping-centre.png)
Social media users are all saying the same thing after watching a video of humanity operating in the late ‘90s.
Many remember the 1990s for different reasons; Britpop was at its peak; Tamagotchi’s took over the globe and Friends debuted on NBC.
Others will remember it as the decade of the cellphone boom, with the first smartphone hitting the retail market in 1994.
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![A video of shopping centre from 1996 has sent social media into a stir. (Getty Stock Image)](https://images.ladbible.com/resize?type=webp&quality=70&width=3840&fit=contain&gravity=auto&url=https://images.ladbiblegroup.com/v3/assets/bltcd74acc1d0a99f3a/blt83665865cc2528a6/6697db5cd9917825b075bd42/GettyImages-1583073609.jpg)
At the time, lucky users were unable to do little other than text, fax and use apps like the calendar and calculator.
It would take almost a decade for owners to start accessing the internet via 3G and it would be 13 years until Apple would revolutionise the technology industry with the iPhone.
Due to social media not existing in 1996, it’s clear these vintage devices were not as advanced and therefore definitely not as addictive as the ones we use today.
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Despite being able to do just about anything on the modern-day smartphone, some people are nostalgic for a world where everyone isn’t glued to their devices.
Ironically, there’s a dedicated TikTok account called 'Nostalgia Goat' which has documented a moment where there are no phones in sight - and viewers are remarking how ‘magical’ it was.
The video, which has wracked up 1.6 million views, opens with a shot of three women travelling up a shopping mall escalator.
![One viewer called the people in the throwback 'legends' for navigating the world without mobiles. (Getty Stock Image)](https://images.ladbible.com/resize?type=webp&quality=70&width=3840&fit=contain&gravity=auto&url=https://images.ladbiblegroup.com/v3/assets/bltcd74acc1d0a99f3a/blt8d193532a7a08e41/6697dbb12d44f0ebcc24f78c/GettyImages-1444397251_(1).jpg)
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Upon reaching the next level of the mall, two of the women walk off to the right while the other turns left.
In the second clip, the unknown camera person films various groups of people alighting from the moving steps.
These include three groups of chatting women, two men both dressed in denim and a couple of single shoppers.
The camera then pans down on a myriad of shoppers travelling from the top floor of the mall to the bottom - revealing all are in the building enjoying a bit of festive shopping.
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Decorated Christmas trees with presents spilling out from under them can be seen in the 1996-shot video as well as a pop-up store clerk who is going about her duties.
Despite all of these people being strangers, they all have one thing in common; none of them are scrolling on smartphones.
After watching the now-viral clip, users have come out in their droves to reminisce over the less-technological advanced society.
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One TikTok viewer claimed: “People were nicer back then, social media ruined lots of things.”
Another typed: “Smart phones and technology ruined everything now everywhere you go you see almost everybody on their phones.”
“I was 36. These days including the 70’s and 80’s were the best times to experience. We have a world of downward looking zombies now,” commented someone else.
A fourth user penned: “I just remember the Mall being a magical place. Movies, arcades, food court, maybe ice skating or miniature golf indoors.”
Another nostalgic person wrote: “We were legends, roaming through city’s and towns with no communication, no GPS. We had to know the lay of the land.”
If you want to immerse yourself in more nostalgia, the TikTok account has clips taken from Blockbuster as well as videos taken in supermarkets such as Tesco.
Topics: History, Phones, Social Media, Technology, TikTok, Nostalgia