# Explain to me the allure of Fidget Spinners **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 4, 2017, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882 "2017-05-04T23:43:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/21 "2017-05-05T14:24:24Z")
Anybody who would pay between $300 and $500 for one of those things has mental problems no fidget devise could possibly alleviate. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/22 "2017-05-05T14:38:57Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > I’ve read pieces that claim that this is a case of people “stealing” something intended for autistic kids As the parent of a child on the spectrum, I’d rather have people see him with a fidget toy and think “Yeah, cool, I can relate to that” and normalize it than worry about other people using some Sacred Autism Coping Tool. I realize that it wasn’t made for that purpose anyway but my point is that the complainers are misguided in more ways than one. Anyway, the spinners are still in their fad stage and I assume that a year from now we’ll all be saying “Remember when everyone had those spinner things?” ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/23 "2017-05-05T14:48:54Z")
I find paperclips and rubber bands are cheaper. My son loves his fidget spinner we just got him though. Seems a lot like pogs or slap bracelets, or any other kind of weird collectible item of questionable utility that kids nevertheless love for a short period. We’ll be seeing these on VH1’s “I love the 2010s” before the decade is out, in my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/22080_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/24 "2017-05-05T15:11:47Z")
My office mate has one. He’s 22 and tells me he has ADHD. He seems to think it helps. At least it’s quiet. My daughter, on the other hand, teaches 7th grade and she hates them with a white-hot hate. ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/25 "2017-05-05T15:12:49Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > Anybody who would pay between $300 and $500 for one of those things has mental problems no fidget devise could possibly alleviate. If there’s anyone who should understand people with money burning holes in their pockets, I thought it would be you. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/26 "2017-05-05T15:16:01Z")
Pet Rocks for Millennials. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/27 "2017-05-05T15:27:42Z")
Just heard of these a couple of days ago. My wife ordered one for me and my fidgety older son. I’d love this. And teachers ought to be happy about them. Telling kids to learn to sit still isn’t helping, they end up focusing on sitting still or just zoning out instead of learning anything. Trust me, I’ve been there. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/28 "2017-05-05T15:42:06Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > If there’s anyone who should understand people with money burning holes in their pockets, I thought it would be you. Sadly, it’s Rich as in Richard, rather than rich as in affluent. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/29 "2017-05-05T16:55:54Z")
I’d have liked one of these when I was in school. I had a lot of trouble paying attention, and distracted myself by doodling and drawing. A spinner would have served the same purpose. ---
**Author:** ![P-man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/p-man/32/3606_2.png) [@P-man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/P-man)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/30 "2017-05-05T21:14:52Z")
My students were impressed that I could spin one on the top of my finger. ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/31 "2017-05-05T21:20:15Z")
Both of my children are mildly aspergers. Both of them find the spinners to be excellent, socially-acceptable, substitutes for alternate forms of fidgeting. I’m also a bit aspie, and I [spin pens](https://youtu.be/epiA5FZGzCk). Their escapes are substantially less likely to be noisily-dropped in the middle of a meeting. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Tapiotar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3be4f8/32.png) [@Tapiotar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapiotar)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/32 "2017-05-05T21:33:44Z")
Twiddling thumbs is even cheaper. I still doodle in lectures or in meetings of just when I’m thinking. Spinning gadgets must be better than jiggling foot and knee, which can rock a whole row of seats in an auditorium. ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/33 "2017-05-05T21:38:13Z")
> [@Tapiotar](#): > > Twiddling thumbs is even cheaper. > I still doodle in lectures or in meetings of just when I’m thinking. > Spinning gadgets must be better than jiggling foot and knee, which can rock a whole row of seats in an auditorium. I will doodle, too - If I drop my pen in a meeting, or catch a glare because I’m distracting others, I’ll shift to doodling. Thumb-twiddling isn’t absorbing, and foot jiggling was never enough. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/34 "2017-05-05T21:43:25Z")
> [@P-man](#): > > My students were impressed that I could spin one on the top of my finger. Impressive, but, which finger? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/35 "2017-05-05T22:00:48Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > Anybody who would pay between $300 and $500 for one of those things has mental problems no fidget devise could possibly alleviate. Indeed, I was just in Hong Kong, where the fad is in full swing, and you can find them in many stores for the equivalent of $2 US. ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/36 "2017-05-05T22:03:03Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > Indeed, I was just in Hong Kong, where the fad is in full swing, and you can find them in many stores for the equivalent of $2 US. My childrens’ cost less than shipping - I think $2 each, IIRC, and shipping was $4.99. Less than ten bucks, over all, anyway, and they use them a LOT. Money well-spent. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/37 "2017-05-05T22:11:38Z")
Now [these fidget spinners are interesting](https://www.google.com/search?q=fidget+spinner&client=safari&hl=en-us&prmd=svin&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjay_iR4tnTAhUIrFQKHRAYAI4Q_AUICygD&biw=768&bih=928#imgrc=rXN9R2JmOSyKfM:) – ninja stars and stealth tools… ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/38 "2017-05-05T23:02:06Z")
A number of students at the school where I work have them. They end up being a distraction for the students who have them. They’re too busy playing with the spinner to listen to the lesson, or instructions if they’re doing an in-class activity. Worse yet, they’ve invented a game where they try to make it rap against their desk or water bottle as long as possible, creating a noise distraction for everyone else. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/39 "2017-05-05T23:09:21Z")
The biggest fad at my daughter’s school. All the kids have them, having purchased them in the grotty corner store that also sells candy and loose cigarettes. The kids can play with them before and after school, but not during class. They come in different colors, and the latest ones to hit here light up as well. It cracks me up because my daughter is in kindergarten, so a small kid, and she can barely hold on in her pinch grip – she has to very carefully position it so her thumb and index finger are at the very edge, otherwise the spinner doesn’t have enough room to rotate. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2017, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882/40 "2017-05-05T23:42:46Z")
I think I want one! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/explain-to-me-the-allure-of-fidget-spinners/785882.md?page=3)