Equestria's tech level

[Plonkett 345]

The thing I like about the technology of Equestria is how it ranges from medieval to modern, from castles and spears to skyscrapers and x-rays. It's because of that why the show and fandom have been able to make all kinds of stories that feel as if they take place in the real world. What do you all think of how varied Equestria technology is? Do you think it's over the top or is it just fine?

[CypherHoof 26,483]

I think it is deliberate - they have just the technology (or in some cases, magic) they need to live a comfortable lifestyle, but only just enough - so that everypony has to use their special talents and work hard in order for this to be true.

[Brony Number 42 10,072]

Ponyville chooses to eschew advanced technology. I imagine that other parts of Equestria use it more.

[CypherHoof 26,483]

2 minutes ago, Totally Spicy BronyNumber 2A said:

Ponyville chooses to eschew advanced technology. I imagine that other parts of Equestria use it more.

I think that varies. Ponyville still does a bunch of stuff "the earth pony way" while other cities rely more on magic. On the other hand, most train lines though ponyville actually use the locomotive, rather than have stallions pull the train (locomotive and all)....

[Misty Shadow 7,943]

I think it's a combination of them living in a world that has no set period in time, or is at least a world self-aware of its anachronisms, and them living in a world that attempts to combine a medieval setting with a modern-day world setting. So essentially, it's like the world of One Piece and Final Fantasy in one. More simplistically, their world is meant to resemble the times of the past but their tech level is up to speed with the contemporary world.

[SharpWit 2,705]

Something like this always occurs in worlds that have magic and it's because there's little need for innovation. If you have a problem it's easier to have a unicorn cast a spell rather than invent something. That's why something like Flim and Flam's Super Cider Squeezy 6000 is potentially revolutionary but they're a little short sighted and for the most part magic is able to keep up. We can even see things like this in real life. Electric cars have been proven to be as good as conventional combustion driven ones but they haven't dominated the market because they're not currently remarkably better and the few exceptions are too costly for the average consumer.

I am also of the belief that some technology has been purposefully held back or banned in order to maintain a peacefully static way of life.

[Goat-kun 2,528]

Developed enough for recoil-operated machine guns to be a thing. I'll be in the corner, arming my griffin luftgrenadiers

[RDDash 19,197]

I guess I stopped noticing how wierd their technology is. It used to bother me how their army is still using what looks like a bronze armor, and the gold armor in the worst case scenario. Remember the spears? It wasn't that the weapon is a bit outdated, I guess I think it's only useful to unicorns because they can grab it.