How did we know when Sudoku had officially arrived? Not when they started printing the number-puzzle game in the newspaper. Not when Brangelina named their latest imported orphan “Sudoku”. No, not even when the New York Yankees announced that their new stadium would be called Sudoku Coliseum. We knew Sudoku was now an indelible part of our culture when we found this piece of cheapo cash-in crap way down at the bottom of the barrel.

See, this iGadget Electronic Pocket Sudoku Game represents the kind of quick-buck grab that’s only profitable when millions upon millions of people are caught up in the craze. If this were 1978, it would be a pocket horoscope generator; in 1988, a handheld trivia game. Only when a pastime reaches a critical mass of enthusiasts are there enough rubes among them to buy absolute crud like this.

From a Chinese sweatshop to a dollar store to your hot little hands, it brings three levels of Sudoku “action” along with helpful instructions like “Do not expose machine to the sunshine, even can’t shock or break forcibly.” But don’t take our word for it – let’s see what actual reviewers have to say:

• “A complete waste of $. Sticky cheap keys, instructions incomplete and unclear, arrived with dead batteries. Stay away!”
• “Some of the keys don’t work and makes changing the levels impossible.”
• “Worst Gadget Ever”
• “Obviously, whoever designed this have NEVER played Sudoku.”
• “A rip-off at any price!”
• ”...without a doubt the worst purchase that I have ever made (even though it was at such a low cost).”
• “Useless piece of junk! Do not spend your money on this – not even worth $1.”

The reviews collectively spin a sordid tale of dead batteries, unresponsive controls, and the same puzzles over and over again. Got your credit card out yet? Maybe you’ll get lucky and get one with corroded batteries!

Contrary to those reviews, though, we can confidently state that it contains more than one different puzzle per level – perhaps even as many as three. So it’s perfect for passing the time on your next plane trip, assuming your flight lasts half an hour or less.

No, you won’t get anywhere near your money’s worth out of this iGadget Electronic Pocket Sudoku Game…at first. But someday, if you’re patient, it’ll be a valuable piece of cultural history. Wow, the museum-goers of tomorrow will marvel, once upon a time, people were so into Sudoku that somebody was able to make money off of this piece of garbage.

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