As well as some fantastic innovations, 2007 saw some truly terrible product releases. Here are the biggest disappointments of the year:
AMD "Barcelona":
There's nothing inherently wrong with AMD's new quad-core Opteron processors - except for the fact they're rarer than punch lines on crime-watch TV show.
Although delays have also beset the desktop version of the chip, the Phenom, Barcelona (the server version) has been a particular problem - there are still none available to buy in most of the countries, despite the fact they were launched in September. Perhaps AMD uses the some special couriers.
Cre8txt keyboard:
This tiny keyboard lets you type on a PC as you would on a mobile phone. Yes! No longer do you have to reach for that convenient "e" button - you can press the 3 key twice instead. As if teachers didn't have it tough enough already, it's designed for use in schools.
Datawind PocketSurfer2:
Datawind promised mobile internet browsing with the PocketSurfer2, but made no mention in its promotional literature of the irritating delays and stress the frustrating interface and lack-luster screen would provide. Using it to send emails was more difficult than running all the way to the intended recipient and reciting the message in person.
Flash Solid State Disk:
Solid state drives are the future of mobile computing, and promise to be lighter, faster and more robust than traditional hard disks. Unfortunately, Samsung's offering was actually slower than a mechanical hard disk, and considerably more expensive - it's like buying a Ferrari, only to be overtaken by a Ford Fiesta.
Wrist Donut:
We've seen our fair share of idiotic solutions to RSI, but one look at the Wrist Donut left us wondering if the crippling pain was really that bad, after all?
The brightly coloured mouse mat that you wear like a bracelet would look ridiculous in a 1980s workout video, let alone an office. This is one donut that definitely deserves a dunking; in the bin.
Griffin iSqueez:
Awful stocking fillers like this are the bane of every gadget lover's festival. This pointless blob of foam rubber keeps your iPod snugly wrapped up in your car's cup-holder, instantly canceling out Apple's inspired design.
Myvu Universal Edition:
Boasting the kind of aesthetics Eddie Murphy left behind in 1985, the Myvu glasses theoretically allow you to enjoy movies while keeping an eye on the world around you. And while you stagger about, half blind, with a tiny video display partially obscuring your view, you can wonder to yourself if this was the worst you've ever spent.
Philips LX2000 + 26PF532:
The idea of buying an all-in-one media centre PC is that everything works together perfectly. This system promised so much, and the components looked great on paper, but it just didn't deliver the goods as a whole - just like the England football squad, really.
New Standards Keyboard:
Have you ever tried writing a letter whilst one over the eight? It's a bit like typing on this alphabetically ordered keyboard.
In our highly unscientific tests, it took our team of 10 testers an average of 8.6 seconds to type the sentence "the quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog" on the QWERTY keyboard, and a full 37.3 seconds to hunt down the letters and achieve a partial nervous breakdown on the NSK. Genius.
AMD "Barcelona":
There's nothing inherently wrong with AMD's new quad-core Opteron processors - except for the fact they're rarer than punch lines on crime-watch TV show.
Although delays have also beset the desktop version of the chip, the Phenom, Barcelona (the server version) has been a particular problem - there are still none available to buy in most of the countries, despite the fact they were launched in September. Perhaps AMD uses the some special couriers.
Cre8txt keyboard:
This tiny keyboard lets you type on a PC as you would on a mobile phone. Yes! No longer do you have to reach for that convenient "e" button - you can press the 3 key twice instead. As if teachers didn't have it tough enough already, it's designed for use in schools.
Datawind PocketSurfer2:
Datawind promised mobile internet browsing with the PocketSurfer2, but made no mention in its promotional literature of the irritating delays and stress the frustrating interface and lack-luster screen would provide. Using it to send emails was more difficult than running all the way to the intended recipient and reciting the message in person.
Flash Solid State Disk:
Solid state drives are the future of mobile computing, and promise to be lighter, faster and more robust than traditional hard disks. Unfortunately, Samsung's offering was actually slower than a mechanical hard disk, and considerably more expensive - it's like buying a Ferrari, only to be overtaken by a Ford Fiesta.
Wrist Donut:
We've seen our fair share of idiotic solutions to RSI, but one look at the Wrist Donut left us wondering if the crippling pain was really that bad, after all?
The brightly coloured mouse mat that you wear like a bracelet would look ridiculous in a 1980s workout video, let alone an office. This is one donut that definitely deserves a dunking; in the bin.
Griffin iSqueez:
Awful stocking fillers like this are the bane of every gadget lover's festival. This pointless blob of foam rubber keeps your iPod snugly wrapped up in your car's cup-holder, instantly canceling out Apple's inspired design.
Myvu Universal Edition:
Boasting the kind of aesthetics Eddie Murphy left behind in 1985, the Myvu glasses theoretically allow you to enjoy movies while keeping an eye on the world around you. And while you stagger about, half blind, with a tiny video display partially obscuring your view, you can wonder to yourself if this was the worst you've ever spent.
Philips LX2000 + 26PF532:
The idea of buying an all-in-one media centre PC is that everything works together perfectly. This system promised so much, and the components looked great on paper, but it just didn't deliver the goods as a whole - just like the England football squad, really.
New Standards Keyboard:
Have you ever tried writing a letter whilst one over the eight? It's a bit like typing on this alphabetically ordered keyboard.
In our highly unscientific tests, it took our team of 10 testers an average of 8.6 seconds to type the sentence "the quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog" on the QWERTY keyboard, and a full 37.3 seconds to hunt down the letters and achieve a partial nervous breakdown on the NSK. Genius.
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