# Stupidest product design you’ve experienced **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 25, 2023, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621 "2023-03-25T02:57:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 107
**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 27, 2026, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2121 "2026-05-27T04:19:10Z")
As I remember, Consumer Reports advised against refrigerators with built-in ice makers and water dispensers, because of the room they take up. Also, I think the supply water line can cause leaks when they fail. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2122 "2026-05-27T07:05:09Z")
I’ve had two major flooding incidents caused by icemaker failures. I never connect the water line to my refrigerators any more. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2123 "2026-05-27T10:01:36Z")
That’s too bad. We had an ice maker for about 15 years in a previous 'fridge. Never had any problems with it. It wasn’t the stupid dispense out of the door type thuough. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2124 "2026-05-27T10:05:53Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > But I don’t think that has anything to do with not being able to fix it, rather than getting tired of customers getting mad at them when they explain that, on top of the $180 (which you still have to pay, even if you don’t do the repair) to come out there, it’s another $800-$1000 to fix. At that point they aren’t likely to get the job since most people would rather just pony up a few extra dollars and replace the entire fridge at that point. I don’t know why anyone would get mad at the repair guy. That was the cost of the Samsung parts to fix it. Not his fault. And hey, he looked at it, and made $180. I think though he would prefer not to fix it because they would have to warrantee the fix to a degree I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2125 "2026-05-27T12:54:49Z")
> [@dougrb](#): > > > [@LSLGuy](#): > > > > But if you bought all the parts to assemble one > > You could just work there and sneak out the pieces in your lunch box for FREE. There was an old MASH episode where Radar was mailing a Jeep home one piece at a time. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2126 "2026-05-27T13:32:16Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > I don’t know why anyone would get mad at the repair guy. That was the cost of the Samsung parts to fix it. Not his fault. And hey, he looked at it, and made $180. You are an uncommonly sensible person. “Don’t shoot the messenger” has been a saying since the Ancients for a reason: it’s everyone’s default behavior. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2127 "2026-05-27T13:37:28Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > There was an old MASH episode where Radar was mailing a Jeep home one piece at a time. Lotta variations on that one. I recall a Soviet-era Russian joke about a guy who worked at a car factory. The waiting lists being forever, he decided to steal his car one part at a time. And was surprised when he finally put it together and it turned out to be a howitzer, not a Lada. No way to know now if this was a real Russian joke, or one invented by Westerners to poke fun at Soviet Russia. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2128 "2026-05-27T14:27:34Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > You are an uncommonly sensible person. > > “Don’t shoot the messenger” has been a saying since the Ancients for a reason: it’s everyone’s default behavior. Well thanks. Had a 65" TV hung on the wall. They brought the wrong mount and it was a mess. I asked them to fix it. they said they couldn’t and what do I want them to do. Well, In that case, I want you to leave. I went to Best Buy the next day and got it straighted out. I doubt he will be getting much work from Best Buy. ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2026, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2129 "2026-05-27T18:17:46Z")
Similar here with us needing to fix an outside water faucet at our house, no plumber will touch it or quote it because it is too small for their time. Since it needs to pull off a piece of siding to get to the joint, our handyman and general contractor people can’t touch it (we could roll it into other work we’re having done) because it requires a license and permit. I’m thinking (semi-jokingly) that I’ll order a full kitchen/bath/sprinkler system renovation, then cancel everything except fixing the one garden tap when they show up. ---
**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 27, 2026, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2130 "2026-05-27T18:21:11Z")
Does the plumber have something like a two-hour minimum charge, so that no matter how trivial the issue, they’re going to charge you for two hours of their time (perhaps adding a charge for travel time)? I think what my brother did in this case was to have some other minor issues in mind for the plumber to address during their visit, just to keep him busy for the whole time. ---
**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 28, 2026, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2131 "2026-05-28T22:32:20Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > There was an old MASH episode where Radar was mailing a Jeep home one piece at a time. And another episode where Klinger was eating one. ---
**Author:** ![dougrb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/76d3ee/32.png) [@dougrb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougrb)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2026, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2132 "2026-05-28T23:02:40Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > I had never heard of this song. So fun. Yaay! I’ve been listening to it once a day just to cheer me up. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2026, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2133 "2026-05-29T01:01:05Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > There was an old MASH episode where Radar was mailing a Jeep home one piece at a time. Since Jeeps didn’t really change a whole lot between model years (especially back when MASH was set), the parts might actually all fit together when they try to assemble them, unlike Johnny’s Cadillac. ---
**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 29, 2026, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2134 "2026-05-29T01:05:14Z")
Did Army Jeeps even have “model years?” ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2026, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2135 "2026-05-29T02:22:00Z")
Probably not, now that you mention it. Especially since I’m sure the Army cared mostly about maintainability and would only want to have to stock spare parts for one model. ---
**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 30, 2026, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2136 "2026-05-30T14:01:15Z")
Yeah, the way that military procurement usually works is that they have a very long and precise list of requirements, and don’t care who makes it as long as they meet all of those requirements. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2026, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2137 "2026-06-06T02:25:15Z")
They’re fermions. I can’t explain why, but maybe Chronos can. ---
**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:** [June 6, 2026, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2138 "2026-06-06T13:56:32Z")
That would probably have implications for cable entanglement… ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2026, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2139 "2026-06-06T23:41:17Z")
That’s the stupidest thing I’ve heard in ages. There’s _no way_ we would ever buy a refrigerator without an ice maker and door dispenser. We use vast amounts of ice every day. ---
**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:** [June 6, 2026, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621/2140 "2026-06-06T23:45:28Z")
I found a webpage from Consumer Reports on choosing refrigerators and it says, regarding through-the-door ice and water dispensers, “This is one of the features most requested by buyers. But we’ve found that fridges with through-the-door water and ice dispensers require the most repairs. Energy costs are higher, too, and you sacrifice storage space.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621.md?page=106) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupidest-product-design-you-ve-experienced/981621.md?page=108)