Back in the day, Blackberries were more than just a phone or a PDA (personal digital assistant), they were a status symbol. They let the world know that you were taking care of business. Whoever was checking their Blackberry while they were out and about was both busy and important and they wanted you to know it. The devices, however, were not just about making a statement, they were also convenient and easy to use. The company should have kept those things in mind when designing the Blackberry PlayBook which came out in 2011.
This tablet-style device was great if you wanted to watch videos or browse the web, but it had one major design flaw, you couldn’t check your email on it. The only way to do so was to use the PlayBook together with your regular Blackberry, which made using it more complicated for people who owned a Blackberry and impossible for those who didn’t. Users found this unacceptable and the PlayBook quickly fell out of favor. This streaming giant decided to make things more complicated for their users in this almost unwatchable fail.
Google Lively
Avatar games like Second Life and The Sims were extremely popular in the 2000s because they gave players the chance to be a completely different person than they were in reality. Your avatar, which you designed, could meet people, talk to them, buy things and experience a new life. These games were a hit, which prompted Google to come out with its own version called Lively. Their game, which was launched in July 2008, was only online for four and a half months.
When the economy went bust in 2008, Google decided to focus on more important things and dropped Lively like a hot potato. Apparently, if you have never gotten over the loss, some version of the game is still out there, maintained by extremely dedicated users. This next gadget predated the iPad, but in the end, it just couldn’t compete.
JooJoo
In 2010, slightly before the iPad became the tablet which ruled all tablets (for a while at least), the JooJoo was released. If the strange name doesn’t sound familiar it is because the product never really took off. Its release was plagued with naming drama and for some reason, even though it started out as the CrunchPad, the name JooJoo ultimately prevailed.
When the iPad launched, it became infinitely clear that the JooJoo was simply inferior. It was too heavy, hard to operate and bad at playing videos. The final nail in its coffin was that It didn’t have any apps while the iPad debuted with many. When you take into account that both tablets cost the same, it’s not surprising that the JooJoo was discontinued only a year after its release. The company famous for its PDA could not make the transition into tablets.
Qwikster
Netflix made a name for itself by making things easier for its users by letting them skip the drive to the video store. Over time though, streaming became an ever-expanding part of their business. In 2011, the company decided that it would be a good idea to create a new service called Qwikster to handle the mail DVD rentals, while Netflix would continue to focus on streaming television and movies.
Company execs may have thought this was a great idea, but the consumers did not. They already had one account which was for everything and had no desire to complicate things. The move caused Netflix stocks to plummet and CEO Reed Hastings announced that the plan was canceled only 23 days after it was announced. This competitor wanted to compete with Apple so bad it hurt and failed.
HP Touchpad
Another competitor who was trying to get a foothold in the tablet market was HP. They released the HP Touchpad in 2011 and put a lot of money and effort into promoting it. Before the product was even available, the company held a special event to announce it, but the time between the announcement and its release was too long and consumer interest waned, with no one exactly sure when they would arrive in stores.
Although the tablet wasn’t bad, due to low sales HP must have felt that it couldn’t compete with Apple. They announced that the Touchpad was going to be discontinued after only a month and a half on the market. The prices immediately went way down, and you could purchase one for only 99$. Ironically, in the end, the demand was extremely high for these discounted tablets. The outlook for this expensive gadget looked bright, but then the clouds rolled in.