Technologies

10 Horrible Tech Gadgets From the Last 25 Years That Just Suck

The annual CES show has given us thousands of gadgets this quarter-century. These are the worst.

Not every gadget is a winner. And as it turns out, quite a few are complete losers. The massive electronics bonanza known as CES 2023 is in the books and it featured plenty of weird gadgets of its own, from pee-reading toilets to a cutting board with a screen. But what if we turn back the clock to take in the CES shows of yore?

Over the past 20-plus years, I’ve seen gadgets so stupefying that sometimes they seem to exist purely because journalists like me will write about them. But it’s time to call out the really awful ones, the worst of the worst. Vacuum shoes, toilet paper robots, MP3 weapon holsters, it’s your time to shine!

The most interesting part about this rogues gallery is that some of these products — the Pepe pet dryer, the HapiFork and the Hushme, to name a few — are still being sold today. That’s right: You blew it up, you maniacs!

Dyson Zone Air-Purifying Headphones

Not technically a CES product, as this was announced during 2022, but Dyson was demonstrating the Zone headphones in Las Vegas during CES 2023. Though the Zone looks like it should be a COVID mask, that’s unfortunately not what it does. According to the Dyson site, development on the Zone began way back in 2016 as a personal air filter — for pollution, mainly — and as such, it was never designed to protect against COVID. Furthermore, one critic has claimed the gadget’s force-driven fans could even help maximize your chances of catching coronavirus. CNET’s Katie Collins, who tried it out at Dyson’s HQ in the UK, thought it was «too brilliant and bizarre to ignore.»

Charmin Rollbot

Computer peripherals manufacturer Razer is the king of creating «look at me» products specifically for CES, but toilet tissue brand Charmin became notorious for this 2020 entry. That’s right, in the year that saw the mass panic buying of toilet paper came a robot that could bring you even more! Coincidence? Yes… probably. The RollBot was never going to be a real product, but we loved/loathed it anyway.

Kolibree Smart Toothbrush

Remember when we had to wash our hands for 20 seconds by singing songs to ourselves? The same methodology also applies to brushing your teeth, but why should you use your own brain and lips like a sucker? There have been many smart toothbrushes over the years, but today I’m picking on the Kolibree. Everything was just fine until the arrival of «the world’s first connected electric toothbrush.» Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you…

Taser MP3 Holster

Back in the 2000s, the iPod became such a cultural phenomenon that every company rushed to create an MP3 player of its own. This culminated in what is one of the dumbest CES products in recent memory: the Tazer MP3 holster. Imagine trying to not only charge your holster but also connect it via USB to your computer to fill it up with 1GB of tunes.

Pepe Pet Dryer

Want to find a new way to make your small dog or cat hate you forever? Lock them in a cube prison for 25 minutes (!) and subject them to gusts of hot air. This combination torture device/dryer would have set you back $660, or you could just throw a towel over your wet dog like a normal human.

HapiFork

Throughout history, there have been so many gadgets designed to limit normal human behavior, but this one takes the (pan)cake. The HapiFork is yet another vibrating gadget that tells you to eat your meals slower (over 20 minutes), with the idea being that you are less likely to overeat. Personally, I wolf my own meals down like I’m in prison, so do your worst, HapiFork. I’ll eat with my hands if I have to! You’re not the boss of me!

Hushme

The Hushme is literally a «dumb» product — it’s designed to make its user mute to other people in the immediate vicinity. It was pitched as being useful in workplaces, but… if a co-worker gave me one of these, they’d better be wearing vacuum shoes, in order to clean up the gleefully stomped-on bits.

Belty

The original Belty was a prototype smart belt with a motor in it that adjusted itself to whether you just ate or were sitting down. Impractical as hell, but kind of cool? While there is a newer model, also called Belty, this one is even weirder — there’s no auto-sizing, but it does have a power bank charger in the buckle. OK, two things. Not only do I not want a potentially volatile compound near my nethers, I don’t want to connect a series of devices there either.

Xybernaut Poma

First shown off at CES 1998, the Hitachi Xybernaut wearable computer was a terrible idea long before Google Glass was even a gleam in Babak Parviz’s eye. The Windows CE-based Xybernaut Poma offered a 128MHz RISC processor and 32MB of RAM for the low price of $1,499, plus it strapped to your arm and your face and your belt!

Read more: Hitachi Fashioning Wearable PCs

Denso Vacuum Shoes

Shoes. You wear ’em. They wear out, you buy more. But that’s not exciting now, is it? They need things in them — phones, rockets, rollers and… vacuums? There are so many puns I could make about even just the name of the Denso Vacuum Shoes, but the fact that they existed at all was the biggest joke of all.

Technologies

You Probably Have a Better Password Than The Louvre Did: Learn From Its Mistake

Following the infamous jewel heist, reports show the museum’s security and password habits were atrocious.

Is your password easily guessable? Is it, oh, I don’t know, maybe the name of the world-famous Paris museum you’re trying to protect?

The brazen theft of more than $100 million in jewels from the world-famous Louvre on Oct. 19 captured the world’s attention, for obvious reasons. As of Wednesday, French police have arrested seven suspects, but the jewels have not yet been recovered. Now reports show the Louvre has had security issues in the past, including one that wouldn’t pass the most basic cybersecurity test: The museum’s name itself, Louvre, may have been one of its passwords.

The French newspaper Libération reports that the French cybersecurity agency ANSSI audited the Louvre’s security in 2014 and 2015. The museum failed badly.

One part of the audit described unguarded rooftop access. That’s somewhat relevant today, since thieves reportedly used a truck-mounted electric ladder to reach a balcony and cut through window glass. Not quite the roof, but apparently equally unguarded.

The audit also said the museum’s security software at the time was running on Windows Server 2003, which was set to lose support from Microsoft at that time, more than a decade ago.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

The Louvre’s password was once ‘Louvre’

One of the most significant flaws in the Louvre’s cybersecurity was lazy password use. «Louvre» appeared to be the password to access the museum’s video surveillance. One computer login password was «Thales,» the name of the software developer, which we’re guessing was visible on the login screen.

A representative for the Louvre didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

While Libération’s investigation indicated that many of the same problems remain, we don’t know which issues the Louvre staff corrected in the decade since the audit. Perhaps the Louvre’s current password is L0uvr31500$$ now or something even tougher to guess. M0n@ L1$@, maybe?

Now is an excellent time to update your own passwords

If the Louvre report wasn’t enough incentive, it’s essential to give your own passwords a check ahead of the holidays, when many people increase their online shopping time.

CNET’s latest survey shows that nearly half of Americans engage in risky password habits. US adults don’t shy away from using personal information as a part of their passwords. Fifteen percent include birthdays or anniversaries, 14% include a pet’s name and 11% use part of the user’s own name or a family member’s name.

You can improve passwords with a few simple steps, or use a password manager that can generate strong passwords and keep them organized. When creating passwords, keep a few essential points in mind.

Don’t use your name or any identifying information as part of your password.
Use passwords that include upper and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols.
Update your passwords if you become aware of a data breach affecting services you use.
Don’t leave any unencrypted notes revealing your password lying around.

Remember, today’s passwords aren’t just on your phone and computer, but also on potentially vulnerable devices like Wi-Fi routers, security systems and more.

Technologies

Got Poor Internet Access? Verizon’s New $25 Per Month Internet Plan May Help

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Nov. 6, #409

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Nov. 6, No. 409.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a bit tricky. If you went to the University of Kentucky, you can celebrate the purple group, but it was a stumper for me. If you’re struggling but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Toss it!

Green group hint: Take off with the pigskin.

Blue group hint: Are you in a league?

Purple group hint: Pro Wildcats.