Are you one of the people who expressed your excessively strong opinions about the lack of a Start bar in Windows 8 at any website where you can unleash an angry rant? Are you one of those people who felt proper retribution when Microsoft backtracked and revived the Start Menu for the upcoming Windows 10? Celebrate the momentous occasion with this homage to the operating system that debuted the desktop navigation staple that can’t be killed: the Windows 95 Backpack.
Made by O-Mighty, it’s an erstwhile regular, colorful backpack that looks like it will be more suited to high school students than old curmudgeons who were on dial-ups back when Windows 95 was a thing. But, hey, why let that stop you from enjoying the nostalgia of old-school MS Paint, the King’s Quest franchise, and your favorite BBS? Old people are people, too.
The Windows 95 Backpack is printed with a large graphic, filled with various recognizable items from the ancient operating system used by the techies of years past. There’s an open MS Paint window, Solitaire, a visible desktop with a green background, Minesweeper, a color picker, various dialogs, and, of course, the Start Menu. Oddly enough, we can’t find any reference to the blue screen of death, but they probably decided to skip that one to keep the whole whimsical feel in place. Construction is lightweight canvas, with zipper closures and adjustable metal ring straps.
Available for preorder from Shop Jeen, the Windows 95 Backpack is priced at $52.