Over the years there have been some pretty catastrophic flops in the technology market, and 2014 has had its fair share. With so many companies desperate for that next runaway hit and willing to throw just about anything at the wall to see if it will stick we really shouldn’t be surprised when some fail. With that in mind, in many ways, it’s a miracle we don’t see more flops than we already do.
With 2014 drawing to a close we’re going to take a little look at three of the more notable flops of 2014. Not all flopped for the same reason and we expect some of you will argue that they didn’t flop at all, and that’s just fine. The following gadgets were selected based on the hype they created before announcement but sales figures told a complete opposite story
1. Amazon Fire Phone
Built to give Amazon a way of advertising to people rather than to provide those people with a compelling smartphone experience, it doesn’t take too much explaining to get across why the $650 Amazon Fire Phone was a rare misstep for Amazon. Full of software who’s sole purpose was to give people avenues into the Amazon store, critics and customers alike saw straight through the polished advertising campaign almost immediately. Almost instantly discounted, the Fire Phone may be one of the biggest flops in recent years.
You can check out our Amazon Fire Phone coverage right here.
2. Nokia X
With the Nokia X, we were treated to a sneak peak at what Android on Nokia hardware would look like. Unfortunately, it wasn’t great, mainly because Nokia went for emerging markets rather than established ones.
Android on Nokia hardware meant no Google Play Store and no bundled Google apps too, which immediately put the Nokia X at a disadvantage. Anything that would have been Google-based on most Android phones instead used Microsoft’s version. It made perfect sense to Nokia and Microsoft, but meant that when it was coupled with lackluster hardware and a market that wanted something high-end from the pairing of Nokia and Android, things didn’t go quite as well as they perhaps should have.
It took Nokia only 5 months to realize how much of a flop its Android smartphone lineup was, and hence was discontinued in July this year.
You can check out our Nokia X coverage right here.
3. Samsung Gear S
Samsung has released more smartwatches in the past year or so than any other company, and their latest addition to the lineup was the Gear S.
Marketed as a smartwatch but works more like a watch-phone, it has confusion written all over it. Built on top of Samsung’s own Tizen OS, it has almost no apps to begin with, making the whole smart/watchphone absolutely useless.
Combined with bad marketing and the fact that it needs a 3G SIM card in order to work, it’s another bill you have to pay if you want to keep it ticking on your wrist.
And did we mention that it’s bulky?
Samsung with Gear S missed the whole point of a smartwatch by strapping the whole phone on the wrist.
You can check out our Samsung Gear S coverage right here.
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