Top 10 Failed Technologies of the 2000s
#10: 3D Television
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There was a time when 3D entertainment was restricted to cheesy special effects augmented by red and blue paper glasses. As stereoscopic technology emerged, a far better 3D movie experience also arrived. With that came attempts to bring that experience into the home. Unfortunately, it was a perfect storm for a massive fail. It started with a lack of cohesion amongst TV manufacturers when it came to home-based technology. Glasses were not always compatible with every 3D TV, and when they did work, it was not at all the same as being in a theater. From there, the sheer cost of it all pushed 3D television off the proverbial cliff.
#9: Niche Social Networks
The whole point of today’s social networks is that they appeal to a broad audience. What a user consumes from a given platform varies, but social media networks thrive on catering to just about every interest. The 2000s gave birth to some unique social networks that tried to go niche instead, such as Ping, DailyBooth, FriendFeed, and many others. As unique as they may have been, the same ideals that birthed them were also their undoing. While already dealing with a smaller user base, they simply couldn’t compete with those who would become the big fish.
#8: Windows Me
Microsoft’s Windows 95 may have changed desktop computing forever. But it was Windows 98 that really impressed their user base. A massive upgrade for hardware compatibility, it was Microsoft’s real first OS to embrace the internet. So it’s no surprise they wanted its successor to be even more impressive. Unfortunately, Windows Me, or Millenium Edition was a colossal failure that was swiftly replaced by Windows XP a year later in 2001. XP lasted for many years as the real replacement for Windows 98, but it seemed the company hadn’t learned from its mistakes, because the entire cycle was repeated when the maligned Windows Vista was released.
#7: Rapid Blood Tests
Organ transplants, antibiotics, and even vaccinations have shown how much medical technology has evolved over the years. Each time a new breakthrough is made, it opens the door to countless new possibilities. With so many diagnoses dependent on accurate blood readings, there were attempts to try and hasten the testing process. Being able to get accurate results much faster would have pushed diagnostic technology into a new generation. Alas, it was not meant to be. The biggest player in this space, Theranos, went out of business when they couldn’t deliver on what they’d promised. This later resulted in a highly public trial and conviction of their CEO, Elizabeth Holmes.
#6: Various Optical Disc Formats
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In the 1990s, CDs replaced tape cassettes. But piracy concerns led to the development of a new kind of optical disc, called DataPlay, released to consumers in 2002. It featured a digital rights management system that won it support from the recorded music industry. However, they didn’t catch on and fizzled out. A similar story befell HD DVDs. In the late 90s, DVDs began replacing VHS for movies and television. HD DVDs were developed by Toshiba to be the next best thing. Instead, Blue-ray came out on top, and HD DVDs were soon forgotten. In more recent years, streaming services have largely replaced CDs anyway.
#5: Miniature Netbooks
Remember netbooks? They were essentially a scaled down, smaller version of a laptop. In the 2000s, several companies experimented with the idea of “ultra mobile PCs”. Remember, this was before smartphones, so many organizations were trying to find a way to make computing more mobile. Devices like the Palm Foleo, Sony Vaio’s UX, and even the Samsung Q1 tried to claim this space in the market. Their attempts were undermined the moment the iPad hit the world. Both Apple and Android’s devices would supersede the “mini-pc”, making it a doomed technology.
#4: Smart Glasses
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Even before Google Glass came and went, other attempts were made to give us high tech glasses. How about a wearable DVD player? Or maybe you’d like a pair of shades that help you resemble a Borg from “Star Trek”? Whether it was trying to put a computer on your face, or simply to provide a means to consume media, attempts at developing smart glasses have failed to catch on. Clunky designs, terrible interfaces, and the worst kind of fashion fails have doomed this trend … at least so far.
#3: Segways
When the Segway was introduced in 2001, some thought it would usher in a new era in “personal transportation” technology. We’d replaced the horse and buggy with cars a century ago, and now it was time for another revolution. Dean Kamen’s concept did get people interested in new ways of moving, but the technology of the time never took off. Instead, we found companies like Segway failing to appeal to the mass market, and barely surviving in niche corners. It however wasn’t a complete failure. The interest in personal transporters did eventually inspire the likes of e-scooters and Onewheels.
#2: The Original Social Media Networks
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Social media is now deeply intertwined with our lives. But it wasn’t always so. The 2000s saw the internet become more and more of a mainstay in people’s lives. Now able to connect across the globe easily, many attempts were made to engage users in online communities. This gave birth to the likes of MySpace, Friendster, and similar websites all trying to do the same thing. They did manage to achieve some success, but ultimately it was Facebook that took over, making its forerunners obsolete. Others have tried to compete, but few have stood the test of time.
#1: App Specific Hardware
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The iPhone didn’t come out until 2006, and “apps” weren’t really a thing until 2008. That meant applications like Twitter, or other online services were typically only available from a computer. That didn’t however stop some companies from trying to launch “app specific” hardware devices. Ever heard of “TwitterPeek”? Or how about “Microsoft Kin”? Both were attempts to make mobile devices for specific apps or certain types of apps only. This type of hardware was essentially dead on arrival as the birth of the smartphone supplanted everything that had come before it.
