# 101 Gadgets That Changed The World **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 6, 2012, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075 "2012-05-06T16:46:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/1 "2012-05-06T16:46:30Z")
Popular Mechanics put out the list. > **[101 Gadgets That Changed The World](https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/reviews/g165/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/)** > > The alarm clock. The personal computer. The smartphone. The radio. You know the greatest gadgets of all time (and youve probably owned most of them), but which has changed the world more than any other? Any additions or subtractions? Changes in order? 101 Gadgets That Changed The World Full list: 1. Duct Tape 2. Fiberglass Fishing Rod 3. Stapler 4. Roomba 5. Aerosol Spray Can 6. Quick-Release Ski Binding 7. Super Soaker 8. Blender 9. Bra 10. Picnic Cooler 11. Digital Video Recorded 12. Zippo 13. Teflon Pan 14. Flash Drive 15. Ginsu Knife 16. Hearing Aid 17. Sunglasses 18. Drip Coffeemaker 19. Toaster 20. Flashlight 21. Leaf Blower 22. Spincast Fishing Reel 23. Swiss Army Knife 24. Can Opener 25. DVD Player 26. Chainsaw 27. Electric Blanket 28. Safety Razor 29. Printer 30. Stopwatch 31. Kodak Carousel 32. Boombox 33. Electric Toothbrush 34. Coleman Lantern 35. Binoculars 36. Tape Measure 37. Zipper 38. Derringer 39. Lunchbox 40. Charcoal Grill 41. Smoke Detector 42. Moog Synthesizer 43. CD-ROM 44. Outboard Motor 45. Hair Dryer 46. Tape Recorder 47. CB Radio 48. Ballpoint Pen 49. Car Jack 50. Kindle E-Reader 51. Push Lawnmower 52. Cassette Tape 53. Circular Saw 54. Game Boy 55. Leatherman 56. Fire Extinguisher 57. Sony Walkman 58. Floppy Disk 59. Polaroid Camera 60. MP3 Player 61. Pocket Calculator 62. Wi-Fi Router 63. Electric Drill 64. Digital HDTV 65. Wristwatch 66. 8mm Camera 67. Mircophone 68. Digital Camera 69. Microwave Oven 70. Computer Mouse 71. LED 72. CD Player 73. Camcorder 74. Electric Guitar 75. Blackberry 76. Crescent Wrench 77. Hi-Fi 78. Sewing Machine 79. Laptop 80. VCR 81. Answering Machine 82. Remote Control 83. Brownie Point and Shoot Camera 84. Vacuum Cleaner 85. Handheld GPS 86. Transistor Radio 87. Modem 88. Typewriter 89. Match 90. Bicycle 91. Dry Cell Battery 92. Light Bulb 93. Alarm Clock 94. Phonograph 95. Telephone 96. Portable Air Conditioner 97. Personal Computer 98. Hypodermic Syringe 99. Television 100. Radio 101. Mobile/Smartphone ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/2 "2012-05-06T16:59:08Z")
Roomba? Are they really ubiquitous enough to have made any significant impact? I’m a person in my 30s and I’m pretty sure my friends and I are the “target market” for such a tool and I only know one family/person out of all my friends who has one. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/3 "2012-05-06T17:08:44Z")
Yeah…the “boombox” changed the world-for the worse! Thank God we now have Ipods-instead of blasting noise with boomboxes, the Ipod zombies listen in private…and other people don’t have to suffer ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/4 "2012-05-06T18:02:38Z")
Ginsu Knife? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![nicole1912](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9de0a6/32.png) [@nicole1912](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nicole1912)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/5 "2012-05-06T18:29:43Z")
Digital HDTV has changed the world? I mean, it’s nice and all, but I’m not seeing it as in the same category as bras, or duct tape, or the hypodermic syringe. I might have added 3D printers to that list - though maybe that’s just a potential thing at the moment. The idea does have immense potential to change the world, though. ETA: I also have some grave doubts about calling a bra a gadget, unless I’ve misunderstood and it’s not referring to clothing - in which case, I doubt its world-changing impact, if I’ve never even heard of it… ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/6 "2012-05-06T18:45:04Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Roomba? Exactly what my first thought was. What’s portable air conditioner doing at #6? Some kind of sponsorship deal? I wouldn’t even have put it on the list. And what would we do without our electric toothbrushes? Our teeth would fall out, because it’s not like we have some manual method that works. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/7 "2012-05-06T19:45:58Z")
I’d add the washing machine. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/8 "2012-05-06T20:02:23Z")
Super soaker? 😕 I don’t see the automobile listed. Maybe they don’t consider that a gadget. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/9 "2012-05-06T20:05:50Z")
The problem with the list is that some of them aren’t gadgets. They are just regular inventions or specialized products. I don’t think of duct tack as gadget for example and neither are DVD players, CD’s, or matches. A list that includes all technology would be much different. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/10 "2012-05-06T20:08:42Z")
A lot of room to debate what’s a “gadget”- I presume they mean something personally usable on a small scale. And some of the listings seem like near-duplicates: cameras, electronics, digital media, etc. Derringer? :dubious: I’d have said “revolver” or “handgun”. How about the Thermos? Probably “vibrator” should be on the list. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/11 "2012-05-06T20:18:46Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > Probably “vibrator” should be on the list. 😃 Oh, you’re right. “Electric toothbrush” must be a euphemism. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/12 "2012-05-06T20:21:57Z")
> [@ZenBeam](#): > > Oh, you’re right. “Electric toothbrush” must be a euphemism. If so, then what does it mean when my dentist reminds me to **floss**? ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/13 "2012-05-06T20:28:01Z")
1. The wheel. 2. Fire. 3. Shallow lists by an increasingly irrelevant dead-tree publishing house. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/14 "2012-05-06T20:39:09Z")
Of course those all changed the world. _Every_ invention changed the world. Some of them just didn’t change the world nearly as much as others. Given what they claimed, the list is fine. If they’re trying to claim the 101 _biggest_ changes to the world, though, they’re crazy. Where’s fire, or the wheel, or the spear, bow, or club? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/15 "2012-05-06T21:38:06Z")
The list should include the telegraph. It’s been superseded now by other technology but it’s impact at the time was bigger than the telephone or the radio or the internet. Those inventions were just improvements of existing communications. The telegraph was the system that first made it possible to have instantaneous communication over long distances. ---
**Author:** ![sitchensis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sitchensis/32/4892_2.png) [@sitchensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sitchensis)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/16 "2012-05-06T21:50:17Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Roomba? Are they really ubiquitous enough to have made any significant impact? > > I’m a person in my 30s and I’m pretty sure my friends and I are the “target market” for such a tool and I only know one family/person out of all my friends who has one. > [@chacoguy](#): > > Ginsu Knife? :dubious: I think you have to read the article to really understand their reasoning. The Roomba is important as the first mainstream personal robot. The Ginsu Knife for its infomercial marketing style. Not saying I agree, but it makes a little more sense. ---
**Author:** ![Arrendajo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arrendajo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrendajo)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2012, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/17 "2012-05-06T21:52:04Z")
> [@Gagundathar](#): > > If so, then what does it mean when my dentist reminds me to **floss**? It means he wants you to wear a thong. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2012, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/18 "2012-05-07T04:17:36Z")
Alarm clock but not the clock itself, especially the chronometer that made longitudinal navigation possible? Handheld GPS but not the compass? The Super Soaker? The _Leatherman?_ This looks like a list compiled by bunch of stoners during after-school detention. ---
**Author:** ![trev0006](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ea5d25/32.png) [@trev0006](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trev0006)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2012, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/19 "2012-05-09T18:15:50Z")
Awesome list but not in that order, and a few of the things on the list are just silly. Roomba??? seriously!!! > [@Mangosteen](#): > > Popular Mechanics put out the list. > > [101 Gadgets That Changed The World - Top 101 Gadgets of All Time](http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/gadgets/reviews/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world#slide-1) > > Any additions or subtractions? Changes in order? > > 101 Gadgets That Changed The World > Full list: > > 1. Duct Tape > 2. Fiberglass Fishing Rod > 3. Stapler > 4. Roomba > 5. Aerosol Spray Can > 6. Quick-Release Ski Binding > 7. Super Soaker > 8. Blender > 9. Bra > 10. Picnic Cooler > 11. Digital Video Recorded > 12. Zippo > 13. Teflon Pan > 14. Flash Drive > 15. Ginsu Knife > 16. Hearing Aid > 17. Sunglasses > 18. Drip Coffeemaker > 19. Toaster > 20. Flashlight > 21. Leaf Blower > 22. Spincast Fishing Reel > 23. Swiss Army Knife > 24. Can Opener > 25. DVD Player > 26. Chainsaw > 27. Electric Blanket > 28. Safety Razor > 29. Printer > 30. Stopwatch > 31. Kodak Carousel > 32. Boombox > 33. Electric Toothbrush > 34. Coleman Lantern > 35. Binoculars > 36. Tape Measure > 37. Zipper > 38. Derringer > 39. Lunchbox > 40. Charcoal Grill > 41. Smoke Detector > 42. Moog Synthesizer > 43. CD-ROM > 44. Outboard Motor > 45. Hair Dryer > 46. Tape Recorder > 47. CB Radio > 48. Ballpoint Pen > 49. Car Jack > 50. Kindle E-Reader > 51. Push Lawnmower > 52. Cassette Tape > 53. Circular Saw > 54. Game Boy > 55. Leatherman > 56. Fire Extinguisher > 57. Sony Walkman > 58. Floppy Disk > 59. Polaroid Camera > 60. MP3 Player > 61. Pocket Calculator > 62. Wi-Fi Router > 63. Electric Drill > 64. Digital HDTV > 65. Wristwatch > 66. 8mm Camera > 67. Mircophone > 68. Digital Camera > 69. Microwave Oven > 70. Computer Mouse > 71. LED > 72. CD Player > 73. Camcorder > 74. Electric Guitar > 75. Blackberry > 76. Crescent Wrench > 77. Hi-Fi > 78. Sewing Machine > 79. Laptop > 80. VCR > 81. Answering Machine > 82. Remote Control > 83. Brownie Point and Shoot Camera > 84. Vacuum Cleaner > 85. Handheld GPS > 86. Transistor Radio > 87. Modem > 88. Typewriter > 89. Match > 90. Bicycle > 91. Dry Cell Battery > 92. Light Bulb > 93. Alarm Clock > 94. Phonograph > 95. Telephone > 96. Portable Air Conditioner > 97. Personal Computer > 98. Hypodermic Syringe > 99. Television > 100. Radio > 101. Mobile/Smartphone ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2012, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075/20 "2012-05-09T18:57:11Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > The list should include the telegraph. It’s been superseded now by other technology but it’s impact at the time was bigger than the telephone or the radio or the internet. Those inventions were just improvements of existing communications. The telegraph was the system that first made it possible to have instantaneous communication over long distances. I agree that its impact was at least as great if not greater than the above, but the reason has at least as much to do with cost as it with speed. Optical telegraphs could get a message across all of Europe in less than a day, but required manned outposts every 2 miles or so. Resultingly they were so expensive that after the Napoleonic Wars they were _almost_ (but not quite) completely abandoned. For many pieces of information it doesn’t matter if you receive it some time in the day or within a few minutes (allowing for waiting for the telegrapher and transcription times) but both are huge improvements over around a week. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/101-gadgets-that-changed-the-world/621075.md?page=2)