None! I feel like they all have their purposes, and they are all-in-all an improvement. People can choose not to use them if they wish.

The Prius. Or at least mandate that they stay out of the fast lane!

I would say my fleshlight, but it's been surprisingly handy.

None.
Even those gadgets I don't personally care for are useful for others and/or have encouraged innovations I do love.
Case in point, iPhones are not my cup of tea, but thanks to their popularity Samsung has developed competing hardware, including my beloved Galaxy Note. ;-)
Rosie

I would just want it to not be possible for a cell phone to work if the driver of a moving car tries to use it.

Hang up and drive, the life you save could be mine.

I'd say Twitter. I don't need to know that my friend is "eating a sandwich RIGHT NOW" or be notified of the exact moment that a website releases a new privacy policy.

However, poster above makes good point, it has been useful to others. I'm thinking of Arab Spring and some disaster response communications in Haiti (http://www.ipedr.com/vol39/009-ICITE2012-B00019.pdf)

GetOffMyLawn wrote:The Prius. Or at least mandate that they stay out of the fast lane!

Please do not confuse the Prius with the Prius driver, they are two different things, one is fully capable of cursing at over 80 MPH, the later is not. If Prius drivers want to watch the monitor and get the best mileage they should do it in the slow lane.

I want fax machines to die off SOOOOOO BAD!

Laptops.

I just sold my Laptop and desktop once I graduated. Since getting the iphone 3 way back when, I noticed they started collecting dust. Now with the 5, I never need use a computer. I even filed my taxes from my phone this year.

Cable can go too. I go out almost every night but when I'm home, all that seems to be on is competition reality shows. Netflix is the way to go.

Text messaging.

iPxx. Fill in the blank.

Sheena3745 wrote:None.
Even those gadgets I don't personally care for are useful for others and/or have encouraged innovations I do love.

I don't think that is true about the security scanners at the airports. They serve no real purpose. They irritate. The now removed x-ray ones caused more deaths by cancer than 911 caused by direct trauma. It is unlikely that they can be refined to anything interesting (radial tomography was far down the pike long before they came around.) They are nothing but a boondongle to make ex-TSA senior management money.

None of the above, they all have a use for me (although when I read the lat comment I have to say I wasn't think airport security, I was thinking the ID reader that lets me into work)

curtisuxor wrote:I would say my fleshlight, but it's been surprisingly handy.

Gross. Just, gross.

Sheena3745 wrote:None.
Even those gadgets I don't personally care for are useful for others and/or have encouraged innovations I do love.
Case in point, iPhones are not my cup of tea, but thanks to their popularity Samsung has developed competing hardware, including my beloved Galaxy Note. ;-)
Rosie

Good point. I'm anti-AAPL, but they are responsible for the innovation that other companies have deemed necessary to compete. Love my Windows Phone!

bblhed wrote:Please do not confuse the Prius with the Prius driver, they are two different things, one is fully capable of cursing at over 80 MPH, the later is not. If Prius drivers want to watch the monitor and get the best mileage they should do it in the slow lane.

When I'm doing 80 MPH in the fast lane and encounter a Prius ahead of me, I'm the one doing the "cursing".

I am assuming that by "security scanner" y'all are referring to the privacy invading, 4th Amendment violating, National Socialist Party Checkpoint equipment (used at all airports these days and more and more at buildings where we are supposed to have the right to congregate to petition for redress of grievances) providing near-zero security, and infinite harm to our liberty and security as individuals and society. Yeah, those woot!censored things should all be sold back to the grafting companies that foisted them on the taxpayers, and the proceeds used to pay off half of the national debt.

I'm sure someone will balk, and claim that the skies are all much safer now. He hasn't done his homework.

ckeilah wrote:I am assuming that by "security scanner" y'all are referring to the privacy invading, 4th Amendment violating, National Socialist Party Checkpoint equipment (used at all airports these days and more and more at buildings where we are supposed to have the right to congregate to petition for redress of grievances) providing near-zero security, and infinite harm to our liberty and security as individuals and society. Yeah, those woot!censored things should all be sold back to the grafting companies that foisted them on the taxpayers, and the proceeds used to pay off half of the national debt.

I'm sure someone will balk, and claim that the skies are all much safer now. He hasn't done his homework.

AMEN! Those who give up liberty for security, deserve neither. We are giving up so much of our freedoms for the guise of security. Fear is the greatest weapon our politicians use to pass legislation. The cost of the systems are no better than a $100 metal wand and good ole fashion common sense. Next time you look at your paycheck, buy an airline ticket, hell, pay your insurance. Remember, someone is making money, a lot of money and by nickel and dime citizens of hard earned money. Oh what is 1% for the kids, for your life. It all adds up. State taxes, local taxes, income tax, personal property tax, sales tax, property taxes, I could go on. It all adds up. We are slowly becoming a socialist nation and will one day be given fat cat politicians 60% of our income. Rich get rich and middle class is disappering.

Drones.

Twitter

get rid of cell phones. think about it. what interrupts you more than your phone?

I chose "cell phones" but not because I really want to do with them entirely, just that they are the one piece of technology that people (mis)use to the point that it inconveniences me personally.

As Mike Birbiglia has observed, if someone answers his cell phone in the movie theater with "Who dis?" it means that not only is he willing to talk to someone during the movie, but he his willing to talk to *anyone*.

mrsly69 wrote:AMEN! Those who give up liberty for security, deserve neither. We are giving up so much of our freedoms for the guise of security. Fear is the greatest weapon our politicians use to pass legislation. The cost of the systems are no better than a $100 metal wand and good ole fashion common sense. Next time you look at your paycheck, buy an airline ticket, hell, pay your insurance. Remember, someone is making money, a lot of money and by nickel and dime citizens of hard earned money. Oh what is 1% for the kids, for your life. It all adds up. State taxes, local taxes, income tax, personal property tax, sales tax, property taxes, I could go on. It all adds up. We are slowly becoming a socialist nation and will one day be given fat cat politicians 60% of our income. Rich get rich and middle class is disappering.

You appear to be an anarchist. The first part of your rant is liberal, anti-security over liberty, a typical right-wing solution to crime, and then you finish with a rant against taxation and socialism.
(Although I agree with the first part, not caring to remove my shoes in airports because ONE Milton carried a "shoe bomb" that didn't work.)

DRONES! UAVs! UNNAMED VEHICLES.

I want a comms chip implanted into my brain!

iPods and all things iPodish

Woot writers that ask stupid questions

bblhed wrote:Please do not confuse the Prius with the Prius driver, they are two different things, one is fully capable of cursing at over 80 MPH, the later is not. If Prius drivers want to watch the monitor and get the best mileage they should do it in the slow lane.

Man, I wish I could curse at 80 MPH. I can only get to 60 on my best day, and even then I get the speed wobbles real bad!

Facepoop

I would do away with tablets. These are hands down the dumbest piece of tech to sweep the public.

-A tablet is a smart phone that is too big to fit into your pocket.
-It's laptop without a keyboard.
-It's an under powered laptop without a full OS.
-It's large and unwieldly to handle, which is necessary because the screen doesn't prop up.
-I cant see what I'm trying to do because my damn hands are always in the way of the screen.

I paid $199 for my netbook 3 years ago, and its still more powerful and capable than even cutting edge tablets today (besides the screen... 1024x600 blows.)

IMHO a tablet is just another useless toy that you need to remember to keep charged. Come talk to me when solid state memory reaches more reasonable capacities and we can run a full blown OS with multi touch support on these things.

Phablets. I can't wait till them giant smartphones die

Oaney wrote:I would do away with tablets. These are hands down the dumbest piece of tech to sweep the public.

-A tablet is a smart phone that is too big to fit into your pocket.
-It's laptop without a keyboard.
-It's an under powered laptop without a full OS.
-It's large and unwieldly to handle, which is necessary because the screen doesn't prop up.
-I cant see what I'm trying to do because my damn hands are always in the way of the screen.

I paid $199 for my netbook 3 years ago, and its still more powerful and capable than even cutting edge tablets today (besides the screen... 1024x600 blows.)

IMHO a tablet is just another useless toy that you need to remember to keep charged. Come talk to me when solid state memory reaches more reasonable capacities and we can run a full blown OS with multi touch support on these things.

Sorry, have to disagree. I do freelance writing to supplement our income, and my MS Surface is my favorite (lately only) way to do it. I have the RT version that came with the full office suite. Did I mention it has a nearly full size keyboard that attaches without Bluetooth or extra clunky case?

If you're looking for a full OS version, the Surface Pro has "Intel Inside" and runs full Windows 8. It sounds cliché but tablets are future of computing, and they aren't going away. The tablet market is definitely in expansion while traditional PCs and laptops are experiencing contraction (read "product lifecycle").

I think we're on the same page with regard to "consumption" tablets that have no productivity value, though.

That's just nasty.

Those driverless and flying cars. Far too dangerous for the average luddite.

Oaney wrote:I would do away with tablets. These are hands down the dumbest piece of tech to sweep the public.

-A tablet is a smart phone that is too big to fit into your pocket.
-It's laptop without a keyboard.
-It's an under powered laptop without a full OS.
-It's large and unwieldly to handle, which is necessary because the screen doesn't prop up.
-I cant see what I'm trying to do because my damn hands are always in the way of the screen.

I paid $199 for my netbook 3 years ago, and its still more powerful and capable than even cutting edge tablets today (besides the screen... 1024x600 blows.)

IMHO a tablet is just another useless toy that you need to remember to keep charged. Come talk to me when solid state memory reaches more reasonable capacities and we can run a full blown OS with multi touch support on these things.

Toys are important to many sentient beings.

robertwooddellweaver wrote:I don't think that is true about the security scanners at the airports. They serve no real purpose. They irritate. The now removed x-ray ones caused more deaths by cancer than 911 caused by direct trauma. It is unlikely that they can be refined to anything interesting (radial tomography was far down the pike long before they came around.) They are nothing but a boondongle to make ex-TSA senior management money.

Actually, they only removed the ones from one company and signed a much more expensive contract with a new company to buy new ones.

PhilCarr wrote:Good point. I'm anti-AAPL, but they are responsible for the innovation that other companies have deemed necessary to compete. Love my Windows Phone!

Yea! Love my Lumia 920!

olperfesser wrote:You appear to be an anarchist. The first part of your rant is liberal, anti-security over liberty, a typical right-wing solution to crime, and then you finish with a rant against taxation and socialism.
(Although I agree with the first part, not caring to remove my shoes in airports because ONE Milton carried a "shoe bomb" that didn't work.)

So many people think that "Right" and "Left" or "Liberal" and "Conservative" are the only viewpoints that people can have. This is not so.

His/her argument is along the lines of Libertarianism.

In the United States, where the meaning of liberalism has parted significantly from classical liberalism, classical liberalism has largely been renamed to libertarianism and is associated with "economically conservative" and "socially liberal" political views (going by the common meanings of "conservative" and "liberal" in the United States).[10]

Oaney wrote:I would do away with tablets. These are hands down the dumbest piece of tech to sweep the public.

-A tablet is a smart phone that is too big to fit into your pocket.
-It's laptop without a keyboard.
-It's an under powered laptop without a full OS.
-It's large and unwieldly to handle, which is necessary because the screen doesn't prop up.
-I cant see what I'm trying to do because my damn hands are always in the way of the screen.

I paid $199 for my netbook 3 years ago, and its still more powerful and capable than even cutting edge tablets today (besides the screen... 1024x600 blows.)

IMHO a tablet is just another useless toy that you need to remember to keep charged. Come talk to me when solid state memory reaches more reasonable capacities and we can run a full blown OS with multi touch support on these things.

That time is NOW, check out the Surface Pro!

http://www.microsoft.com/Surface/en-US/surface-with-windows-8-pro/specifications

It is NOT a Phone
It has a physical keyboard
It has an intel core i5 processor and 4GB of RAM
It is running a FULL Version of Windows 8 Pro
The built-in kickstand allows the screen to stand up
Has a 10 point mutlti touch screen

This thing will BLOW YOUR NETBOOK Away.