It is truly incredible to discover what people considered “brilliant ideas” back in the day. In 1869, someone had the genius idea of introducing a mono-wheel vehicle; meaning a motorized vehicle with only one wheel. And yes, that is exactly as safe as it sounds.
Four wheels is great, two wheels is a bit risky, but one wheel? That’s just madness. Logically, this fabulous idea died almost instantly after people realized it was totally unsafe, very loud, and extremely difficult to pilot. but hey, you can try a unicycle instead!
The Slendo Massager
Weight has been an obsession for people for a very long time, especially since society decided that a thin and slender body equals beauty. So, when the novel Slendo Massager appeared in 1940, people went crazy, especially women. The machine consisted of a series of metal rollers that massaged women's hips and thighs, which supposedly blasted their fat through electricity.
Basically a glorified massage chair, women used to stand or sit while "losing weight", and obviously, the Slendo Massager became wildly popular across the country. Similar to countless machines that have been produced since (the Ab Energizer, etc.), the idea was that the electrical currents helped melt away the excess weight by causing muscles to contract. However, by the end of a number of sessions, the only thing Slendo Massager users were left with, was marks from the metal.
The Flying Saucer Camera
The 1950s were an interesting decade for many different reasons, but one of the most fascinating is perhaps the extremely high amount of UFO sightings in the United States. The government was so fed up with people constantly reporting to have seen a UFO, that they decided to come up with a solution. They would introduce the Flying Saucer Camera.
The Air Force came up with this special camera that, apart from sounding like something from a sci-fi series from the 90s, had two special lenses designed to identify the source of a strange light. It worked trough a simple process: one lens took a regular photo while the other separated the light into colors, so that its origin would be clear. Needless to say, this X-files camera didn't last very long on the market.
The Phone-Answering Robot
Even more so than now, the 60s and 70s saw a huge fascination with robots and futuristic themes. In 1964, someone decided to build a phone-answering robot, and at first, it seemed like a great idea. The only problem was that, it was more like a phone-picking-up robot, since it couldn't talk back, play a greeting or message, or even record the caller's voice!
In theory, it was a good idea, but practically, it just didn't hold up. Sure, it looked incredibly cool and made you look like you had C-3PO from 'Star Wars' as your personal receptionist, but, sadly, it didn't simply didn't work.
The 20th Anniversary Mac
Companies often release new, trendy products to mark their anniversaries, and Apple is obviously one of them. Back in 1997, Apple launched the famous Twentieth Anniversary Mac. The computer was a cute machine that featured a very thin (remember it was 1997) screen and a detachable track-pad, as opposed to their regular mouse.
The problem was that only very rich Apple collectors could afford them, because at an initial price of $7,499, who would've dared?! The computer was a flop, and after a few short months, the price dropped to $1,995 below the cost of production. Obviously, the anniversary Macs weren't selling.