7 Biggest Tech Fails that will last Forever

The world has changed a lot since the days of CueCat and Squid Coin. Many of these failed technologies are still around. It’s easy to say “Don’t do anything stupid like this!” But how do you know what not to do if there is no clear path forward? Here is my list of 7 biggest tech fails that will last forever:

7, CueCat

An early 90s device that attached to keyboards and scanned barcodes, Cuecat was one of the first major examples of the Internet of Things. It’s just a cat-shaped barcode scanner.

It was a device, attached to a computer to scan barcodes, allowing users to access information about products they were interested in buying in a newspaper, Who is going to sit next to a computer with a barcode scanner to read a newspaper? The product failed miserably because of the poor real-life user experience.

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6, ZTE Hawkeye

The ZTE Hawkeye was a phone with eye-tracking technology, The company marketed, that they will incorporate all the most requested features to their upcoming phone and conducted a poll. 

Also, they promised to have an eye tracking facility where users don’t have to swap pages or screens by hand but with the movement of eyes. it came with a rubberized back case where you can stick your phone to any surface and with horrible specs. The phone miserably failed.

Also Read: The History of HP Computers

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5, AYDS Candy

In the mid-1980s, when the awareness of the disease AIDS became popular, it brought down the popularity of AYDS candy because of the phonetic similarity of names.

In the mid-1980s, when the awareness of the disease AIDS became popular, it brought down the popularity of AYDS candy because of the phonetic similarity of names.

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4, ESPN Phone

The ESPN Phone was a handheld device that, in addition to being a phone, ran games and streamed audio. ESPN president George Bodenheimer announced the device on April 3rd, 1999 during his keynote address at the 1999 Spring Mobile Commerce Conference in New York City.

According to him: “We’ve got great technology here.” It was priced 300$ then they charge 200$ as a monthly subscription fee to get all the features. Hands down went on to be one of the biggest tech fails that will last forever. it’s number 3 out of 7 biggest tech fails that will last forever.

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3, Yik Yak

One of several apps that allowed users to create anonymous posts visible to those within a 10-mile radius, known as “yaks.” After peaking at 20 million monthly active users. Yik Yak was a messaging app that allowed users to create anonymous posts visible to those within a 10-mile radius, known as “yaks.” 

The app had a cult following among college students who liked it because of the safety it provided them when posting sensitive information online. You shall post anything without revealing your identity. The app started as a platform for lite-hearted humor and jokes and later turned into hate speech, bullying, and more. A lot of colleges and universities banned the app on campus. 

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2, HQ Trivia

 One of several apps that broadcast live trivia games for cash prizes. Players compete against other players from around the world in these games and earn money if they answer all 12 questions correctly. it will split the money among all the winners who answered correctly. HQ Trivia peaked at 2 million daily users before it failed.

The app was founded by Rus Yusupov and Colin Kroll in late 2017 as a spinoff from their YouTube channel, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (now known as The Nightly Show). Because of the increase in users and lack of funding to give away price money, the app failed miserably. 

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1, Squid Coin

Just another cryptocurrency, that gained popularity because of the Netflix squid game series. The developer of this cryptocurrency used the popularity of this series and created another cryptocurrency called squid coin. They just robbed the investors of 3.38 Million.

The coin value reached from 0.01$ per coin to 30$ per coin within 3 days of its launch, Within a week the coin got 2800$ per coin.

Unlike most cryptos, where you can buy and sell your coins anytime, you couldn’t do that in squid coins, You need to play a game to convert the coin to real money which never existed.  When people realized the scam, the coin value fell to 0.00079$.

Because of the anonymity of the cryptocurrency still, now no one knows the owner of squid coins. It’s indeed number 1 out of the 7 biggest tech fails that will last forever.

Also Read: This Wallpaper Can Kill Your Phone!

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Conclusion

These stories are just a sampling of the many products and services launched as part of the Internet of Things. It’s clear that some attempts have been successful, but others have fallen by the wayside because they weren’t developed with enough care or resources. It’s easy to say “Don’t do anything stupid like this!” But how do you know what not to do if there is no clear path forward? What if your idea is so good that there are no other options? One thing is sure: Not all tech fails will last forever—but some will continue on through our lives long after their creators have gone silent.

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