We’ve all been there: you’re in your car, driving along, when you’re suddenly struck with an idea for an insanely awesome invention that could totally change the way you and the rest of the world drive. That’s great, and Ford wants you to send it some of those ideas, but others, well, it’s heard’em before. [More]
inventions
Cheese Grater+Bar Soap+Rubber Band = DIY Soap Dispenser
April 5, 2013
A Houston restaurant asked engineering students at Rice University to come up with a soap dispenser for its bathrooms that incorporate some sort of kitchen utensil. This is the result, and we kinda want one for Consumerist HQ. [Via Chron.com] [More]
Spray Your Food Gold
By 10.26.11
What, chicken for dinner? Again? Turn those blahs! into yays with Food Finish, an edible colorizer that you spray on your food to make it look like it’s covered in gold. [More]
Magic Metal Beans Keep Your Coffee Hot For Hours
By 4.28.11
I would trade a cow for these magic beans. Seriously. “Coffee Joulies” are a new invention that are stainless steel “beans” that keep your coffee at the perfect temperature for several hours. Hours. [More]
The JakPak Is A Jacket With Built-In Sleeping Bag And Tent
By 2.17.11
Finally, you can have a jacket with a built-in sleeping bag and built-in tent. It’s the JakPak! [More]
Bank Of America Patents Method For Denying Refunds
By 9.21.10
Ah, innovation! Bank of America was just awarded a patent for a process that lets it make sure any teller at any branch will know not to give you a refund on a disputed overdraft fee. According to Techdirt, the idea is to prevent “refund shopping,” where a customer might visit multiple branches hoping to find a sympathetic ear. [More]
Someday Your Shirt Will Come In A Can
By 9.17.10
Mankind is undaunted in its efforts to process as many products as possible into canned form, and when possible, to give those cans spray-on ability. Finally science has achieved the touchstone of sprayable clothing that surpasses the novelty of body paint. [More]
Someday You Will Buy, Cower In Fear Of The Snakebot
By 9.6.10
Everyone knows robots with laser blasters will someday destroy and enslave humanity, but until now few realized they would take the form of slithery mechanical reptiles. [More]
Stashitware Turns Your Underwear Into A Man Purse
By 8.25.10
Hey guys, do you know what will really sex up a special occasion? First, take off your pants to reveal your enormous crotch bulge. Then reach into your underwear and pull out a 2 liter bottle of Coke. [More]
Great Moments In Stupid Inventions
By 5.16.10
Somewhere out there, at this very minute, someone, maybe even you, is inventing something totally ridiculous with plans of making it the next big thing that consumers can’t live without. Instead of just wondering about what stupid inventions are out there, why not check out a round-up of 37 of them? [More]
Bloom Box Can Supposedly Power A Small Home, But You Can't Afford It
By 2.22.10
60 Minutes has reported on a new fuel cell product called a Bloom Box, a big metal box containing a small stack of ceramic disks and “ink” that can supposedly provide enough power to run a Starbucks. The big questions are: Does it work? And will it ever help the average homeowner save on energy costs? Google has supposedly been using four of them to power one of its data centers for the past 18 months, so yes to the first question. As for home use, a Bloom Box currently costs over $700,000, so no. Inventor K.R. Sridhar optimistically says he wants to get the price to under $3,000 in the next 5 to 10 years, though. Watch the 60 Minute segment below. [More]
PajamaJeans Help You Pretend You're Wearing Jeans
By 2.18.10
Sometimes you need to leave the house, for instance to go to the supermarket or to attend a job interview, and let’s face it: that’s when the Snuggie fails you. Until they make the formal Snuggie, there’s at least PajamaJeans. They’re like sweatpants, but disguised as jeans. Sadly they’re only for the ladies right now, so guys will have to stick to sweatpants when they give up on life. [More]
Preserve Your Modesty With The Pee Without Noise Stool
By 1.12.10
Guys, as you probably already know, your bathroom is currently a horrible megaphone of urination when you’re in there. Everyone can hear you! Gah! Luckily the Pee Without Noise stool will fix that right away. If you’re still skeptical, check out this copy from the product page: [More]
Pitch Your Ideas To Procter & Gamble (But They Don't Want Kitty Swiffers)
By 1.7.10
If you’ve been sitting on some great idea that will make life easier for the average consumer, you can try pitching it to Procter & Gamble, writes the New York Times. Swiffer, Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, and Glad ForceFlex trash bags all originated outside of P&G, although in most cases these outside ideas come from other companies. Still, you can go to their Connect + Develop website to pitch your own products if you like–just don’t try putting swiffer booties on cats, because they’ve already rejected that idea. [More]
The Necky: A Smaller, Stupider Snuggie For Your Neck
By 12.22.09
The Necky is apparently for the person who keeps strangling himself when he tries to tie his scarf. There’s nothing I can write about this that would make it more absurd than it is in real life, so just go watch the video if you haven’t already. [More]
Time Names 50 Best Inventions Of '09
By 11.13.09
Time Magazine selected the 50 best inventions of 2009. Topping the list are NASA’s Ares rockets, which take us one step closer to a Jetsons-like world of planet-hopping joy:
Update: Tire Lights Actually Still Exist, Are Completely Absurd
By 9.29.09
After reading our post on dumb inventions from the last century, many commenters declared that lighted tires were actually a great idea and wondered why they haven’t caught on (especially among rappers). So we did some more research.
Honegar And 29 Other Dumb Inventions From The Mid-1900s
By 9.28.09
LIFE magazine has published a list of 30 dumb inventions from the middle of the 20th century. There are some profoundly stupid ideas on display here (baby cage, anyone?).
