Annoying Gadgets

We all love gadgets. Except for the truly useless and frustrating devices. Those we hate and ridicule. The Japanese actually have a term and category for such items: Chindōgu.

Recently, while browsing through the catalog for WHATEVER WORKS, I found two examples of Chindōgu.

This anti-cootie sack for the paranoid traveler seems utterly useless. Wouldn't the bedbugs crawl inside within seconds of contact?'

This spinning fork is guaranteed to suck all the pleasure out of an eternal childhood pastime: making S'mores. When the batteries die and the plastic handle melts, all the fun comes to a tearful end.

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Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over forty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. Contact Us

Comments

The inventor of the fork has a weird kink.
I vote it the freaky tool of the month

Posted by mumbley on 07/30/08 at 04:54 PM

Mumbley--it does look like some sort of torture or S&M;gadget....

Posted by Paul on 07/30/08 at 05:18 PM

Kevin, spending more $$ on a better room doesn't guarantee an absence of bugs just a higher cost of sleep. Bugs have been found in the best hotels. It only takes one person to infest the whole place.

Posted by Expat47 in Athens, Greece on 07/30/08 at 11:59 PM

Kevin--the sleeping bag could indeed "protect" against dirty sheets. But the pitch is specifically toward bug protection.

Posted by Paul on 07/31/08 at 10:00 AM

Expat47--quite right! NYC has been having problems with bedbugs in quality hotels lately.

Posted by Paul on 07/31/08 at 10:00 AM

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