There is a myth/story about NASA spending a fortune to develop  a pen that could be used in space i.e. the ink would still flow freely in zero gravity. (It features in an episode of Seinfeld.) The myth claims the Russians just used a pencil!

Now that mobile phones are a fully fledged fashion item requiring replacement before they are redundant (A certain ad featuring the line “Get that new phone feeling!” comes to mind!), I have been mentally compiling a list of shiny new phone technologies that can prove less useful than the old ones:

• Mobile phone screens – hard to see in bright light. Old ones were not.
• Mobile phone screens II – break when you drop them. Old Nokia ones were nearly indestructible!
• Mobile phone screen III – smudges remain on screen. Can often see what the ‘password’ pattern is from the smudges!
• Mobile phone screen IV – old style buttons could be pressed when wearing gloves, screen requires grip gloves or skin.
• Mobile phone screen V – the larger screen phones are great, but don’t fit in a pocket!

I thought of a few others:

• Keyless entry for cars – this might just be for me but it’s not as easy to fit the remote in a pocket in running shorts or a wetsuit (and not waterproof!)
• VHS videos – stopped at the exact point you were watching. Some DVD players can now remember where you were but otherwise the menu screens and animation intros seem to take longer…
• VHS videos – could tape off the television and transport easily. Set top boxes with hard drives arguably less able to do this.
• E-tickets – can’t be displayed if your phone/device runs out of battery.
• Automatic transmission cars: easier to drive but can’t be roll-started.
• Myki – removes need for cash. Also removes convenience of cash. 😛

I’m no technophobe – but design and technological advancement should consider the indirect uses of products and services and whether the new technology will remove any capabilities of the old technology.

For the record, NASA defended its creation by saying they thought the extreme temperatures of space could shatter the lead of pencils.