The world revolves around technology and there are hundreds of tech products that emerge on a regular basis. While some are extraordinary in their usefulness and prove to improve our lives tremendously, others are quite the opposite and users are left wondering why such products were created in the first place and what purpose they serve.
Let’s take a look at some of the tech products that consumers have not taken a fancy to; either due to their poor functionality, the high cost or because they are not easy to use.
Xybernaut Pomo
The creators of Xybernaut Pomo had great hopes that their “wearable” computer would be a big hit with the customers. Unfortunately, it did not go as planned. This computer had an 11-ounce CPU that can be attached to the belt, a tiny keyboard that can be strapped to the wrist and an 800 x 600 image display that is head-mounted.
Consumers did not fancy wearing a computer that made them look like a character out of a Star Trek movie, not to talk of the discomfort.
The Animated Singing Trophy Deer – Buck
This life-sized deer head sings all sorts of songs and also impersonated Elvis. The songs are always the same and the tune is way off, to provide any sort of real entertainment. The kit also comes with a microphone, allowing you to use Buck’s lips to deliver your own voice. Reading about it may sound like a lot of fun, but believe me, the novelty wears off soon enough. There is a reason this product hasn’t been popular.
Windows Me
Windows Millennium Edition could very well be the worst Windows version ever released. No wonder it also earned itself the not so complimentary name of the “Mistake Edition.” Users had numerous issues with this, such as installation problems, incompatibilities with software and hardware as well as frequent system crashes. There were problems even trying to shut it down. The product’s inability to hit it off with the users, sent a strong message to Microsoft that even home users deserve and look for stable operating systems.
Microsoft Mira
Mira wireless touchscreen display was a product that Microsoft pinned high hopes on. These LCD computers were meant to be hung on the walls and accessed remotely. At the product launch at the Consumer Electronics Show in 2002, Steve Ballmer said, “Mira does for monitors what the cordless handset did for telephones.” But then these monitors were very expensive at $999. There were very few takers for Mira and it was considered to be one of the not so good products from Microsoft. Perhaps, some more people would have at least tried this product if the price was lower.
Nintendo Virtual Boy
This is a 3D gaming system that is portable. It has the dubious distinction of being called one of the worst and ugliest products in tech history to be made in Japan.
Initially, there was anticipation by people who are fans of the virtual world. But once it was released to the world, users soon found that it was a pain operating the machine, as the 3D effect was only possible when the eyes were pressed into the goggles of the machine and while doing so, users also had to hold the unit steady and work the control pad buttons at the same time. There were other issues too, such as very poor battery life, displaying monochrome images only, having only 22 games (only 14 in the U.S.). As if this was not enough, it made people sick. In fact, even Nintendo advised users to take breaks every 15 minutes or so to avoid problems, such as headaches, eyestrain and nausea. All this contributed to this tech product being removed from the market within one year of its arrival.
There are many more products that entered the market with big hopes and did not take off as expected. Frankly, in spite of these products not doing as well, no tech product can be called bad. Every product is a stepping stone for something better. We must appreciate the talent and the process that goes into producing these technology products.
