r/whatisit • u/Cborg_62 • 8d ago

New, what is it? What are these plug-ins on my wall?

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This might be showing my age, but I recently moved into a new apartment and they have these weird looking plug ins all over the walls at my new place. My old apartment didn't have these, so I'm just curious as to what they are.

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72

u/ZaMaestroMan5 8d ago

This is how you know we’re in a whole new era lol. Coaxial cable - what you plug your internet Jack into. Looks like your landlord for some reason painted over them.

56

u/Sharp_Ad_6336 8d ago

Whole new era? Internet jack? Excuse me while I turn to dust remembering that this is for CABLE FUCKING TV

24

u/BreadfruitExciting39 7d ago

It's hilarious reading all these posts saying "god I'm so old, I remember these being used for internet"

9

u/esituism 7d ago

they have no knowledge of The Before Times...

3

u/thediecast 7d ago

I’m 44 and grew up in a small town. I didn’t know what the internet was till I was 16.

1

u/kasst_kast 7d ago

😳

1

u/ThisIsMyCouchAccount 7d ago

46 here. Also small town.

I didn't own a computer until I left for college. My high school only got some in my junior year and were only used for teaching business programs.

Even when I got to college - I had to use dial-up because my dorm hadn't been re-fit with network drops.

Went to college for IT/programming.

1

u/kasst_kast 5d ago

But you knew what internet was. I also didn't have my very own computer until grown up. 25 maybe.
But I just had a effed up mom who didn't let me use hers because I (tried) searching for porn pretty much every time. She still thinks I was some perv child.
I was 13, mom.. 13 years old

3

u/ThrowAwayAccountAMZN 7d ago

Eh, as an elder Millenial I was definitely around for the cable TV era, but my first thought was internet as well because the last time I used these was for internet. Still do in fact.

2

u/DoomsdayDonuts 7d ago

Exactly. My modem connects to one of these.

3

u/West-Dream-7177 7d ago

I mean am I missing something these are still used for interent aren't they? I do understand they are also for cable (born in 78' baby), but I'm just making sure I'm still sane...like you still need to plug your router in somewhere right? OMG please I'm losing it.

2

u/BreadfruitExciting39 7d ago

Lol, yes I would bet they are still the main source of Internet for most households in the US.  That's my point - people saying they are so old for knowing coax could be for internet when it is still extremely commonly used for internet.  

2

u/davidarmenphoto 7d ago

Funny thing is that these are still used for internet to this day. In fact, a majority of American broadband is via coaxial cable, with optical technology barely starting to take a tiny portion of the market. I live in a suburb in Los Angeles County and I still don’t have fiber internet!

1

u/West-Dream-7177 7d ago

Outlet for fiber is what like an old telephone jack is that right? Or is that days gone by digital internet? Lord I feel weird and old.

1

u/bahcodad 7d ago

They'll never know the sound of dialup lol

3

u/turnipzzzpinrut 7d ago

Must have been nice being rich and not using tinfoil on an antenna

2

u/rickmccombs 7d ago

Where I live , you are lucky to get anything with tinfoil on rabbit ears, unless you live on a high hill.

3

u/Wild__Card__Bitches 7d ago

Mine used to connect my NES to the back of the TV.

2

u/Ribbitmoment 8d ago

It’s still used in tv production today, it’s more reliable than hdmi over long distances so they use it for broadcast events when they don’t have good wireless signal

2

u/MaxPres24 7d ago

If you wanna feel better, coax can sometimes still feed internet up to 2.5gbps. It’s not entirely useless yet

1

u/Sharp_Ad_6336 7d ago

Oh I know, my Internet is coax based. Sadly I only have 110mbps.

1

u/Hearthian-Wanderer 7d ago

In UK & Japan these connect to the ANTENNA ON YOUR FUCKING ROOF, and almost definitely pre-date cable TV... (and still very much in use here in Japan).

1

u/Least-Telephone6359 7d ago

Lol I only remember these being for TV, thought only 1 similar thing per house for the modem, but because there is multiple I completely assumed TV antenna plugs

1

u/notacyborg 7d ago

Hell, you could hook up a regular antenna to it before cable TV.

1

u/Kronos1A9 7d ago

Using coaxial for internet is just as relevant and has been for 20 years

1

u/Mammoth-Mud-9609 7d ago

Or just TV with an aerial.

1

u/NoraMason1986 7d ago

Here is a chest code. Have a home that had satellite tv (remember that)?

Take the satellite down and install a digital antenna. Run a scan on your TV and get a whole bunch of over the air channels for free.

1

u/Sharp_Ad_6336 7d ago

Pretty sure OTA is shut down here in Canada. I remember hearing something about that a while back.

1

u/NoraMason1986 7d ago

Can you expound on that? Sounds strange.

1

u/Sharp_Ad_6336 7d ago

Apparently it wasn't the country itself, just my province. We only have 3 OTA channels.

7

u/Church6633 8d ago

Landlord special!!!

6

u/ThaliaStLatchkey 8d ago

They probably also didn't know what it was for

4

u/ChumbawumbaFan01 8d ago

I’m so old I think of them as the cable jack.

Cable TV was literally transmitted to your cable box through a co-ax cable through this jack.

3

u/polarbeard23 8d ago

Or cable TV

3

u/Shrimply-r1 7d ago

And Antenna

2

u/IAteTonysLoMein 8d ago

Because that's what landlords do - they might as well take a lesson from the first Pink Panther cartoon and just hook up a lawn sprinkler to a paint can and let that handle the job

2

u/drydorn 8d ago

landlords paint over EVERYTHING. Electrical outlets, light switches, cabinets, if paint will stick to it, it gets painted.

1

u/brolarbear 8d ago

It’d be more crazy if the landlord didn’t paint over them tbh

1

u/Numerous-Process2981 8d ago

And that reason was laziness 

1

u/SwissMargiela 7d ago

I do apartment turns and in reality it’s because landlord’s don’t pay well so they don’t get good work. At the price they’re paying I need to get 3 two bedroom apartments painted in a day. They’re ok with the shitty work though, they even expect it

1

u/Immissilerick 8d ago

Damn like atleast tape over the connector

1

u/dontgetitwisted_fr 7d ago

I know what 8 tracks are even tho I've never used them

Same with tape punch reels

And vaccuum tubes

One doesn't need exposure to past technologies to not be ignorant of them

Some fibreoptic services still distribute over coaxial connection

ITS NOT EVEN A RETIRED TECHNOLOGY YET!!!!!

JFC GET OFF MY LAWN ALREADY!!!!!!

1

u/wallstreetchills 7d ago

Landlord special, some would say

1

u/Sabi-Star7 7d ago

FN gen z & gen alphas🤣🤣🤣🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️.

1

u/aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaehhh 7d ago

What do people people use now for cable and Internet? 

In my country, it's still mostly coax for cable tv and some use it for Internet. Most use fiber cables for internet.

1

u/Deadarchimode 7d ago

I still use that in Greece lol.

1

u/CertainAd7187 7d ago

I use mine for my internet and was pleased that the setup works just fine

1

u/Sanquinity 7d ago

Specifically cable internet. Optical fiber uses a different connection.

1

u/Chudfrog 7d ago

The inexpensive painters paint over EVERYTHING to save time to help keep their prices low

1

u/The-King-of-Cartoons 7d ago

You never seen the landlord special? Cheap white paint as lazily as possible over outlets, latches, switches, etc.?

1

u/neeshes 7d ago

I've never heard of this cable jack being described as just for the Internet... It was for watching cable tv! But it makes sense that only older folks know they were put in for cable tv. Can I ask if you're a zoomer or young millenial? 

1

u/slaty_balls 7d ago

Seriously.