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What can be funnier than seeing your friends panicked and on the verge of a heart attack? Nothing indeed… And technology makes it easier every day. You don’t need to hide behind the couch anymore, let the Halloween Howler Recorder do it for you.
This gadget is motion-activated, so you just need to place it out of sight, but close enough to be switched on when someone passes by or sits down. You get to record your own sounds… and enjoy the show.
(It can also be used for less fun things such as messages to the neighbour who drops by while you’re away, but that’s boring.)
I’ve seen so many otherwise perfectly good objects encrusted in Swarovski crystals that I have formed a reflex of rejection whenever I see that polished glass mentioned. And, more often than not, my rejection is later justified.
Take the 2 Carat Cup. Someone has taken a perfectly good cup, put the handle lower, painted it gold or silver and added a Swarovksi rhinestone on it. Wow, it looks like you have a ring on your hand if you pick it up. Am I supposed to be impressed by this brilliant idea? It’s ugly and probably difficult to hold, so it’s not even particularly useful as a cup.
The only redeeming thing is the presentation: it comes in an oversized jewelry box with only the “ring” showing, so it can be used as a prank gift (a not too funny one, though).
Is there anyone who hasn’t heard/read one of those sob stories about how our parents still communicated, how letters gave a personal touch to correspondence and how e-mail is going to turn us into unfeeling robots?
You can try that out for yourself, though you’ll probably be crying for your e-mail client after an hour. Paper E-mail is a great gift for nostalgics, or a funny office gag (until your co-workers strangle you, that is). Each sheet is printed with the required e-mail fields (including CC: and BCC:), though I wonder how you’re supposed to write the address. “TO: Jane, 3rd office down the hall”?
It will be funny for about 10 minutes, and it will probably show nostalgics that internet powered e-mail really is useful (write a long message down and then have them type it in; copy & paste is too modern!).
[April Fools]
Pregnancy tests are simple: you’re either pregnant or not. Apparently waiting to learn if you’re carrying a child is not exciting enough, so the PTeq - USB Pregnancy Test offers much more.
It connects to a computer via the USB port and comes with a helpful software for interpreting the results. Some of the delightful scientific mumbo-jumbo lets prospective users know that the test can detect “several sequenced hormones, including hCG (human Chorionic Gonadotropin), hCG-H (hyperglycosylated hCG - for detection before your first missed period), and LH (luteinizing hormone - for detection of your most fertile days).” Detection is 99% accurate… too bad these hormones don’t neccesarily indicate pregnancy (but hey, what’s 100% certified?)
Yeah, it’s fake… but a pregnancy test that does more than show a line is an interesting idea. Who knows, maybe next year we’ll actually see these manufactured.
[April Fools]
This is the one prank product I wish existed: Spazztroids - Caffeinated Breakfast Cereal. I don’t like the taste of coffee, but caffeine to keep me awake is good once in a while. And I love cereal for breakfast. It’s a match made in heaven! A healthy meal AND a way to function at 7 a.m.? Brilliant.
Someone needs to start making this for real. With a better name.
[April Fools]
It’s been fun tracking down April Fools’ products, but some of them are just too silly to even be believable for a second. Part of the appeal is realizing they are just a prank, but thinking ‘what if they’re not?’.
The Squirrel Underpants probably address people with a different type of humor from me. If you’ve ever been bothered by naked squirels or can imagine you’d want to protect your children from such a sight… Then maybe, just maybe, you could fall for this. For about 5 seconds.
These underpants “help the squirrels hide their nuts for the winter” and they’re tailored especially for our furry friends: with a hole for the tail. They come in packs of three, because you probably have more one than one offender in the neraby forest. Now start running and let us know when you catch at least one.
[April Fools]
Yes, you keep hearing about the battle of the formats and you wonder whether you should just stick to DVDs. Or CDs. Or maybe 5.25″ floppies.
But what about your beloved movies? They don’t make things like Dallas nowadays… The thing you were waiting for is here: a Betamax to HD-DVD Converter. Dig out all those old recordings and join the digital age!
You even get a nifty video with the converter in action.
We all know what April 1st means - we’ve been planning the pranks for months in advance, or fear being the victim, or are waiting eagerly to see what our co-workers come up with. This Top 5 April Fools’ Pranks under $30 is for everyone. Yes, even the victims. If you’re forewarned you won’t fall for it if the mouse starts moving (aparently) on its own.
5. If you’re not feeling particularly evil, you can just give someone a little scare. They’ll realize soon enough that the Fake Parking Tickets won’t get them a fine (but they’ll probably be pissed off if they read the whole insulting message…)
4. If you’re into childish pranks, the Revenge Toilet Paper is for you. Just replace the existing roll with this and snicker away when the poor victim strolls out of the bathroom and tells the tale of the mysterious paper which doesn’t tear. One of these in every company toilet stall would wreak a nice amount of havoc - at least until enough people realize there’s something wrong.
3. But my favorite type of prank involves more technology than these first two. For example, the Mouse Jiggler. You only have to plug it into an USB port and it will start to randomly move the mouse pointer. Since most of us are so dependant on our computers, seeing them apparently go crazy can be a very distressing experience. It’s up to the prankster to decide when to end the torture and reveal the trickery involved… (Of course, s/he can also become an office hero by “fixing” the “malfunctioning” computer with his/her 1337 skills.)
2. If the designated victim is a couch potato with an unhealthy interest in soap operas, Jerry Springer or football… well, they deserve it, right? The Micro Spy Remote makes it easy to play with their nerves a little, because it allows you to control the TV. Turn it off, change the channel, mute it… The sky’s the limit. Or the patience of the victim. If you’re seen barely controlling your laughter, they will know something’s wrong.
(Alternately, do this in a bar. When a game’s on. You’ll be more difficult to spot and you’ll annoy more people.)
1. Since the office is where we spend most of our time, number 1 is another gadget for computer-related madness. The Phantom Keystroker uses an USB port and makes the user’s mouse and/or keyboard go insane. Random cursor moves and gibberish text will have the poor victim feel like s/he’s the victim of a virus or an electronic ghost.
Although this is supposedly sold as a device to prevent your computer from going to sleep and is aimed at computer forensics investigators and IT professionals, I think its best (and most entertaining) use is co-worker torture.
The name makes it obvious: the Mouse Jiggler jiggles your mouse. Well, not physically, but it makes the cursor move across the screen with no input. It comes in two versions: slow and fast. I suppose you can imagine what happens when Bill from Accounting finds his cursor keeps jumping from one place to another, although he’s not touching the mouse. The slow Jiggler is not impressive prank-wise, but on fast… he’ll be screaming in frustration in minutes. You just have to plug this baby in an USB port and watch.
(Or you can use it to prevent your screensaver from starting and forcing you to relogin. But that’s not as much fun.)
Some people really shouldn’t be allowed to have cars. Just because you passed your exam doesn’t mean you can forget anything you learnt and drive like a madman. Just because you can doesn’t mean you should park on 2 spaces and block the whole street.
Before you use more drastic measures (keys, hammer and the like) on the offender’s car, maybe a more suble approach can work. For example, fake parking tickets. They look like a real one… until the victim reads the text. The offense list includes: Mentally Handicapped Driver, Parking Like a Jack-Ass, Driving a Hunk of Crap, Inventing a Parking Space, Taking Up 2 Spaces (Jerk!), Too Stupid to Drive a Car, Ugly Driver Violation, Parking While Under The Influence of Rap Music and Parking While Being a Real Bitch. You’ll probably find one for every annoying driver you meet…
What can be funnier than seeing your friends panicked and on the verge of a heart attack? Nothing indeed… And technology makes it easier every day. You don’t need to hide behind the couch anymore, let the Halloween Howler Recorder
[April Fools]
5. If you’re not feeling particularly evil, you can just give someone a little scare. They’ll realize soon enough that the 
4. If you’re into childish pranks, the 
3. But my favorite type of prank involves more technology than these first two. For example, the 
2. If the designated victim is a couch potato with an unhealthy interest in soap operas, Jerry Springer or football… well, they deserve it, right? The 
1. Since the office is where we spend most of our time, number 1 is another gadget for computer-related madness. The 
