--- title: First #ThrowbackThursday Photo Ever on Instagram description: It's the four-year anniversary of the hashtag canonical: https://time.com/3707773/instagram-throwbackthursday/ author: Laura Stampler article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-02-12T21:06:18.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T17:30:10.000Z og:title: This Is the First-Ever #ThrowbackThursday Posted on Instagram og:description: It's the four-year anniversary og:url: https://time.com/3707773/instagram-throwbackthursday/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: This Is the First-Ever #ThrowbackThursday Posted on Instagram twitter:description: It's the four-year anniversary twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # This Is the First-Ever #ThrowbackThursday Posted on Instagram > Sponsored content. 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Brief (Washington politics, twice weekly), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. 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There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=ea34ff2e-94d3-4c0f-99ef-eaeab698b452&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Updated: Dec 13, 2023 5:30 PM UTCPublished: Feb 12, 2015 9:06 PM UTC by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Updated: Dec 13, 2023 5:30 PM UTCPublished: Feb 12, 2015 9:06 PM UTC Since Instagram’s launch in October 2010, users have posted a combined 357,442,820 #tbt and #ThrowbackThursday hashtags. And while the popular hashtag is a staple in the Kardashian family’s social media diet, the trend has humble beginnings. Almost exactly four years ago, on the second Thursday in February 2011, a then 21-year-old Bobby Sanders posted the very first #ThrowbackThursday on Instagram, according to the company. And it looked like this: “I honestly don’t recall even taking it or it being a good photo,” Sanders, now 25, said to TIME. “There was no real inspiration.” Although viral encyclopedia [Know Your Meme](http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/throwback-thursday) traces the first “Throwback Thursday,” often now shortened to tbt, sighting to 2003, the site says that the phrase didn’t gain popularity in the blogosphere until 2011. Sanders, who currently works as a sales representative in Georgia, says he hadn’t seen the phrase prior to using it on his Instagram. “I had never seen it done or said prior to that, but I didn’t think anything of it, or that it was that original honestly,” he says. “My favorite sunglasses company (Knockaround) had a sunglasses line called Throwbacks, so I had that name in my head… I guess with the filter, older cars as the subject, and it being Thursday it was just something I thought would be a funny hashtag, not something that would eventually catch on to the phenomenon it’s become.” Sanders didn’t gain Internet fame and rarely Instagrams throwback posts. “But if I do, I’m that snob who will post #ThrowbackThursday and not #tbt,” he says. You’ve got to love consistency. _Read Next:_ [_This Was Instagram’s Most Liked #tbt of 2014_](http://time.com/3628804/instagram-most-liked-tbt-2014/) ### Top 10 Tech Product Designs of 2014  Nest Acquired by Google in Jan. 2014, Nest Labs wants to turn your home into a smart device. The home automation system includes Internet-connected smoke detectors and thermostats, which have screens and chic, round designs — a huge design boost for devices that haven't really changed in recent decades. Aya Brackett—Nest  DJI Inspire 1 The latest DJI quadcopter retains the simple style that's made their drones so popular, but adds 4K video capability — and the ability to transmit the HD video wirelessly to an on-the-ground devices. A new ground-facing camera also allows Inspire 1 to fly steadily to keep the video footage clean. DJI  iPhone 6 and 6 Plus Bigger is better, or so the critics cried, calling for Apple to make a supersized phone. That was before Apple quieted them with the release of the iPhone 6 Plus in September, the company’s largest iPhone ever. With an alluring 5.5-inch display that makes it feel something like a portable iPad, the phone is is a challenge to Samsung’s larger models. Along with a powerful 8-megapixel camera and longer battery life, the phone is more a statement than an answer. Apple  Osmo Tangram Tired of seeing your kids staring at screens like zombies? This iPad game brings virtual play to life. A reflector equipped with artificial intelligence snaps over your iPad's camera and can sense when objects are moving (or being drawn) on a pad in front of it. Osmo comes with three games, all of which promote creativity and—because it’s best played in groups—social intelligence. The best way to understand how Osmo works is by watching the video of kids who have never played with the device before testing it out for the first time. Osmo  Tesla 2014 Model S Tesla 2014 Model S has been praised both for its luxury feel and high-tech interior. The electric car offers instantaneous acceleration from a stop, a function very few other cars on the market provide. Tesla  Jawbone's UP3 Wristband Depending on your view, Jawbone is on the road to making us all super fit athletes or brutally efficient cyborgs who operate by data alone. How many minutes of REM sleep did I get last night? What’s the difference between my heart rate while resting and during a workout? How hydrated am I? How many calories did I burn on my last run? Jawbone UP3 answers all those questions better than any other Jawbone did before. The $179 wearable fits on your wrist and comes in black and silver. Jawbone  Square Stand The iPad holder and credit card reader launched last year with the goal of transforming an iPad into a point-of-sale. The sleek, white stand also offers an enhanced credit card reader, and can be adapted to include a cash register. Square  Nerf Rebelle Rapid Red Blaster Last year, Nerf decided to even the battlefield and create a new line of guns, arrows and crossbows specifically for girls. The resulting Nerf Rebelle line takes a cue from the success of The Hunger Games: The box is covered with tweens styled like that series' hero, Katniss Everdeen. Hasbro  Oculus Rift Crescent Bay The latest Oculus Rift prototype, Crescent Bay, marks one step further before the commercial release of the virtual reality handset. Crescent Bay features upgrades like 360-degree head tracking, a lighter weight, and high-quality audio. Lucky participants in the demos recalled the mind-boggling immersion in the scenes they were watching. The consumer version, Oculus Rift, is expected to launch as early as April 2015. Oculus VR  Qualcomm WiPower Sick of tangled phone charging cables? Qualcomm WiPower allows you to power up your phone without plugging it in — a function that, to most people, is basically magic. The wireless charging pad eliminates the fuss of power chords, while also allowing you to turn everyday furniture like tables and chairs into charging surfaces. 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