The Worst Gadgets of All Time

by Evan Shamoon — Aug 13th 2008 at 1:23PM

Worst. Tech. Products. Ever.

People are always creating lists -- best restaurants in town, most scenic drives, scariest films of the year. Open a magazine or go to a Web site and you'll be berated with Top Ten Lists; but what about all the failures, mishaps, disastrous and worthless creations along the way? We've decided to balance things out a bit and give you a rundown of the worst gadgets ever created. Trust us: You will be disappointed. Very disappointed.

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Will H. said 2:38AM on 8-13-2008

Windows ME is most certainly the worst invention ever, if you can even call it that.

On the other hand, suicide doors are awesome.

DarkLight said 4:10AM on 8-13-2008

Yeah, I love suicide doors. Nothing wrong with them.. (If you activate the child-proof lock, or however it's called in english)

And I never used ME, went straight from 98 to XP... Lucky me

hungry foe said 1:21PM on 8-13-2008

man talk about uncompatibility, windows vista home and home premium should have been considered for this list. talk about bloatware, it may not be as bad as ME but its still horible for gamers or anyone who likes tweaking their computers, totaly un userfreidly if there ever was a user freildly OS. ill just stick to my windows XP pro until heir gates decides to give us a decent OS for people who can actualy use a computer.

heil microsoft.

lol

Jon said 7:30AM on 8-13-2008

Lincoln Continentals with suicide doors are awesome, I don't know what this guy is talking about.

Jon said 7:31AM on 8-13-2008

Lincoln Continentals with suicide doors are awesome, I don't know
what this guy is talking about.

Charles said 9:04AM on 8-13-2008

I would have to say that the worst gadget ever made was the guy that made this list. Suicide doors were just about the coolest thing ever seen on a car.

Michael said 9:48AM on 8-13-2008

Nope....gull wing doors were about the coolest thing ever seen on a car. Although suicide doors not only WERE cool, they still ARE cool on extended cab chevy pickup trucks. Which essentially are the old suicide doors with an overlap so you can't open them until the front door is opened first.

Jeannie Walter said 10:06AM on 8-13-2008

The worst gadget ever? WINDOWS VISTA!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What a worthless example of that thief Bill Gate's pathetic ego. And the idiots at computer companies like Dell (who REFUSE to let Americans talk to understandable English speaking phone techs on the subject) tout this garbage program as something special--are they trying to blow smoke up Billy boy's butt to make his ego even bigger? Windows Vista sucks, people--if you haven't already been screwed by it, BEWARE! Computer companies are ripping buyers off by putting Vista in all new computers, thus destroying your chance of having a computer that actually works.

Crissy said 2:24PM on 8-13-2008

Just so you know....for an additional $40.00 you can pay for an upgraded service plan with dell....all this means is you get to talk to someone based in the US when you call.....So like Sally Struthers and her pennies a day to feed an African rice....for only $40 a computer you can keep jobs in the US.... What is this country coming to!!!!

dplcurve said 2:49PM on 8-13-2008

haha
whatever.
windows vista works great for me,
and i play WoW.

Amy said 10:49AM on 8-13-2008

Hey I remember MS Bob! We had this when I was a teenager. You had to actually open this program manually, so it wasn’t like an operating system. It didn’t do anything that you couldn’t already do, except it may have had some games like chess or something…I can’t remember. Anyway, I mainly used it to pass the time when I was bored. You could add and “decorate” your rooms like a primitive version of “The Sims” without any people in it. I was probably supposed to be doing homework or something. Oh well!

jphwki82 said 1:31PM on 8-13-2008

what about MiniDisc players that came out right before the first gen. Ipod. Those were worthless, I thought those would have made the list for sure.

stephen said 8:13PM on 9-02-2008

Those minidisc players are huge over in japan though. Everyone has them and the steroes that play them go for hundreds. they even have the players in their cars. mp3 isnt as big as it is here.

Dustin said 11:35AM on 8-13-2008

Windows ME also know as........My ENEMY! Yah i'd say overly ridiculous and worst gadget.

Genesta Keys said 12:22PM on 8-13-2008

Has anyone heard of Spyware 2009 by windows. If not some one is trying to get into your computer. So don't down load this product.

John G said 1:05PM on 8-13-2008

What about the Coleco Adam computer? The Tomy Tuter computer?

jules parker said 1:12PM on 8-13-2008

you know. there had to be something we needed to improve upon. i think back on something i developed and thought later, how dumb was that. but at least i didn't try to sell something not quite thought out. let the inventors continue and in ten years, re-evaluate.

Di said 1:09PM on 8-13-2008

Genesta...what? I'm sorry can you say that again?

Oh, and Brad...Paris Hilton scandal? Really???? Gee, and I thought she was such a nice girl....GIVE IT UP!!!

The worst gadget is obviously the internet judging by some (okay, mostly ALL) of the comments made on message boards.

retro77 said 1:30PM on 8-13-2008

Why do you keep on including software as gadgets? gay

boardincali82 said 3:00PM on 8-13-2008

I remember the Mini Disc players way back, they were expensive too! and they looked all bulky and primitive, even then! Well one of the newer products that came out that's blown me away is the Motorokr it has a lot of features like Crystal Talk, built in FM radio, full HTML browser, and an airplane mode. What i like most about it is that you can switch between the cell phone and MP3 modes with the touch of a button. Mobile technology is booming!

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'Black Friday' Deals to Watch For

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Black Friday' Deals to Watch For

Traditionalists might balk, but the holiday shopping season is already underway. Skeptical? Head to your local department store and you'll be inundated by Christmas trees and ornaments. Bargain hunters, though, know that the real deals are more than a month away.

Black Friday, traditionally, is when retailers truly slash prices. Early birds can save hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars off of their holiday bills. Switched.com checked with a few elves, who gave a sneak peek at what you can expect deal-wise this year.

Blu-ray Players and Movies: Blu-ray is shaping up to be the biggest door buster of this year's Black Friday. de Grandpre expects at least one retailer will offer a Blu-ray player for just $49. Look for bargains on Blu-ray films as well, with last year's hit titles (such as "Iron Man") to fall as low as $5.

Laptops: With the proliferation of Netbooks this year, it's never been easier to find affordable portable computing, but Dan de Grandpre, CEO of DealNews.com says it will get even cheaper on Black Friday. Look for well-equipped Netbooks to sell for $199 – and basic 15" laptops to go for as little as $249.

HDTVs (Pretty big): The holidays are typically the best time to buy a new TV – and Black Friday is the time to do it. If you're looking for a normal sized set, you're in luck. Piper Jaffrey analyst Mitch Kaiser says he expects to see 32-inch LCD sets for as low as $299. GottaDeal.com is estimating 37-inch plasma and LCD sets will fall to $399 or less.

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GPS: While navigation systems have dramatically expanded their reach this year – even making it onto the iPhone – there's still a market for car-based systems. Dealnews predicts you'll be able to find a no-name entry-level system for $49, while a Garmin or Tom-Tom brand will be as low as $69.

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Monitors: Computer monitors might not be the sexiest of gifts, but they're usually welcomed with open arms – and they'll be cheap this year. Name brand 22-inch LCD models may go for as low as $99, while 24-inch models will drop below $150.

Memory: Don't know anyone who needs a monitor? External hard drives are always popular, since they're an easy way to back-up data. Dealnews expects a 1TB drive to fall as low as $49 this year. Gottadeal is looking for 8GB flash drives to hit $15.

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