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TIME magazine recently published their list of The 10 Biggest Tech Failures of the Last Decade. After reading through the list, I
was left feeling abashed and confused at some of the choices. Here are my reactions
to TIME's picks of the biggest technology failures:
10. Windows Vista
Vista, Vista - where do I begin? I'm not the hugest fan of
the operating system, but Vista got a bad rap
from the start. The file system and location of options takes time to get used
to, but the OS has its merits as well. Either way, the public's opinion is set
in stone and Microsoft is rushing Windows 7 to market in 2009 to sweep the
failure of Vista under the rug.
9. Gateway
I will always have a soft spot in my heart for this computer
manufacturer as my first two PCs were both Gateways. Tinkering around on them (software
and hardware-wise) during high school was what sparked my obsession with
computers and electronics.
A string of bad decisions drove the value of the company down
until they were eventually bought by Acer in 2007.
8. HD DVD
Not much to say here that hasn't already been said in my
post on Why HD DVD Should Have Won The Format War. Anyone want to buy a
few discs? I still have a stack. Excuse me while I go cry.
7. Vonage
TIME might have labeled Vonage as a failure because the
company is losing money, but from a technology standpoint they were pioneers in
helping free the consumers from the grip of the telecom giants and forced them
into offering unlimited long distance calling plans. Sure, other companies such
as Skype and Magic Jack now offer similar or even better services, but Vonage
paved the way for the rest of them and I still have it at my house.
6. YouTube
How they consider YouTube a failure, I don't know. Again,
here it looks like they are viewing this only as it relates to profit because
YouTube is still far and away the most popular site for sharing and watching
video with over 100 million registered users and 5.5 billion videos served in
April 2009.
There was also a recent report that after a few years of
patience, record labels who have deals with YouTube to have music videos up on
their site are finally starting to see some monetary return on their agreement.
5. Sirius XM
I never bought into the satellite radio phenomenon. My wife
loves it and I like to listen when I'm in her car, but personally I couldn't
see the point of paying for radio. Content via radio, internet radio, and
downloadable podcasts are widely available without a monthly fee; plus the fact that an iPod can now carry an
entire music collection with over 30,000 songs. One of the biggest draws of
satellite radio was 'no commercials', but that is no longer true with many of
the stations.
4. Microsoft Zune
Microsoft's problem with the Zune was it was released "too
little, too late." Apple already had a stranglehold on the market and had
convinced the public to buy their DRM-d music from iTunes.
The new Zune HD is coming out shortly, which will work in
conjunction with your Xbox 360. There are also strong rumors of a Microsoft
Zune Phone, but it doesn't seem like they'll be able to put a dent in Apple's market
share.
3. Palm
Palm is another pioneer in their industry who has been
outdone by competitors who came to market later, but with better product
offerings.
Much hype has been made about the upcoming Palm Pre and it
looks like an awesome device, but with one major shortcoming - they chose
Sprint for their exclusive network. Meanwhile, Sprint has been hemorrhaging
customers to AT&T and Verizon. Even T-Mobile customers have been on the
rise due to their Android phones, but Sprint is in a bad way right now. Sprint
and Palm are hoping that they can save each other, but in the end it seems like
they will be driving the nail in each other's coffin.
2. Iridium
Iridium was such a failure that I hadn't even heard of them.
The satellite phone company created by Motorola launched 66 satellites into
space to setup their network, but landed only 10,000 subscribers. The
ridiculously high prices of handsets ($3,000) and high usage fees ($5 per
minute) caused their $1.5 billion in debt to catch up with them very quickly.
One of the Iridium satellites still floating in orbit, collided with a Russian satellite only a few months ago.
1. Segway
South
Park pretty much covered
everything there is to say about the Segway in their spoof of it in the episode
"The Entity".
If anyone else remembers the weeks before the Segway launch,
hype surrounding this "revolutionary personal transportation device" was
astounding considering the public had barely any details of what the device
actually was.
In the end, people in rural areas still needed a car while
urban consumers couldn't really drive a Segway down the sidewalk without
running people over. The high price tag made it more of a novelty device for
those with money to burn.
What did you think about TIME's picks? Post your reactions
to the list and your biggest electronic letdowns below.
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