# What would you buy if only someone made them. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 18, 2007, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672 "2007-04-18T19:42:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ticker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@ticker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ticker)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/1 "2007-04-18T19:42:58Z")
What products do you wish would come to market? There are many quite feasible ideas which I would almost certainly buy if only… For example: I want a TV which always records the last 20+ mins of whatever I have been watching so I can rewind if I get disturbed, or just replay something good. I have a DVD/HD recorder which can more or less do this, but it means I must have the foresight to be watching through it rather than the in-built tuner. With flash memory prices dropping all the time I am sure it need not be too expensive, particularly as I always watch digital broadcasts. Any other suggestions? Any ideas how to pitch these ideas to those who could develop them? ---
**Author:** ![Autumn\_Almanac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d26b3c/32.png) [@Autumn\_Almanac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autumn_Almanac)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/2 "2007-04-18T19:51:40Z")
See if your cable company provides a combo cable box/DVR. My parents have one of these, and it does exactly what you described. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/3 "2007-04-18T19:54:09Z")
[QUOTE=ticker] Any ideas how to pitch these ideas to those who could develop them? [/QUOTE] Sure. A wish-list type website, open to the public, where companies and inventors could gauge the relative demand for, say, a seedless apple or a hairbrush that applies pomade when you squeeze the handle. All the website or its maintainers would need to do is roughly categorize the wishes. Something like: Personal Products \>\> Consumer Electronics \>\> Television \>\> Recordings \>\> “I want a TV which always records the last 20+ mins of whatever I have been watching.” And maybe a (318) after it, for however many people read your entry and pressed the “me too!” button. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/4 "2007-04-18T20:06:39Z")
I like your idea, **ticker**. You could probably market that to people who always fall asleep while watching tv, too. The one that I would buy is a periscope for my car so I can see what is happening on the road up ahead of me when my view is blocked by large vehicles (i.e. about 75% of the time). Maybe a tiny camera on a really tall antenna, with a feed to a screen in my car. Oh, that’s why this lane is moving slowly - there’s a breakdown dead ahead. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/5 "2007-04-18T20:08:46Z")
[Halfbakery](http://www.halfbakery.com/) ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/6 "2007-04-18T20:11:07Z")
An AC adapter for my cordless drill. I can’t believe these don’t exist. ---
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/7 "2007-04-18T20:20:32Z")
[QUOTE=kelly5078] An AC adapter for my cordless drill. I can’t believe these don’t exist. [/QUOTE] Oh God! What a good idea. They’ve got to have those somewhere, no? ---
**Author:** ![ticker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@ticker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ticker)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/8 "2007-04-18T20:22:15Z")
[QUOTE=Autumn Almanac] See if your cable company provides a combo cable box/DVR. My parents have one of these, and it does exactly what you described. [/QUOTE] I don’t have cable. In the UK we get digital broadcasts over the airwaves for free (not HiDef though ☹ ) ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/9 "2007-04-18T20:22:57Z")
A cellphone/blackberry charger that stops charging when the battery is full! ---
**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:** [April 18, 2007, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/10 "2007-04-18T20:29:00Z")
[QUOTE=Philster] A cellphone/blackberry charger that stops charging when the battery is full! [/QUOTE] Amen to that, dude. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/11 "2007-04-18T20:29:01Z")
[QUOTE=ticker] What products do you wish would come to market? There are many quite feasible ideas which I would almost certainly buy if only… For example: I want a TV which always records the last 20+ mins of whatever I have been watching so I can rewind if I get disturbed, or just replay something good. I have a DVD/HD recorder which can more or less do this, but it means I must have the foresight to be watching through it rather than the in-built tuner. With flash memory prices dropping all the time I am sure it need not be too expensive, particularly as I always watch digital broadcasts. [QUOTE] What you described is exactly what cable and satellite companies DVR tuner boxes do as well as TIVO units. It’s one of the reasons they’re so damn popular in the States. ---
**Author:** ![tashabot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tashabot/32/6250_2.png) [@tashabot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tashabot)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/12 "2007-04-18T20:35:34Z")
Something that is a PDA, a portable storage device, an MP3 player, a camera, etc…but is NOT a phone. I basically want the iPhone, minus the phone part. ~Tasha ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/13 "2007-04-18T21:01:46Z")
A sewing machine with a lights on **both** sides of the presser foot, not just the inside. I’d also like one with a laser light that marks a 1/4 inch seam line. And fabric with measurements already marked, like Hallmark has done with its gift wrap. And pre-cut squares with diagonal lines marked from corner to corner. I hate marking fabric. It wastes sewing time. And a paper shredder with a vacuum that sucks the air out of the bin as you shred, so you get get more paper in the bin before you have to empty it. And a vacuum cleaner that works. ---
**Author:** ![Gaudere](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e495f1/32.png) [@Gaudere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gaudere)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/14 "2007-04-18T21:13:07Z")
> [@](#): > > Sure. A wish-list type website, open to the public, where companies and inventors could gauge the relative demand for, say, a seedless apple or a hairbrush that applies pomade when you squeeze the handle. All the website or its maintainers would need to do is roughly categorize the wishes. The company I just started working for is doing this. You’ll get to post ideas, people can vote or post reviews, talk about the idea blog-style, and we’ll have developers and VCs who could actually make the thing happen. It’s more for entrepreneurs who actually intend to make the thing they want to have exist, but it doesn’t have to be. We’re even planning to have a little game where you can sort of buy shares in the best idea and you get points for joining good ideas (as rated by the people on the site) and you’ll get prizes for the top idea and top points. In a month or so we’ll have the beta signup at [ipswap.com](http://ipswap.com), and hopefully up and running June/July. ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/15 "2007-04-18T21:41:54Z")
> [@Phlosphr](#): > > Oh God! What a good idea. They’ve got to have those somewhere, no? There are a few drills you can get adapters for, but not mine. Rockwell makes one, I know, and so does Coleman. ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/16 "2007-04-18T21:49:09Z")
> [@me](#): > > There are a few drills you can get adapters for, but not mine. Rockwell makes one, I know, and so does Coleman Oh, and the ones I found are light duty drills with integrated batteries, so one is even more screwed than before. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/17 "2007-04-18T22:46:59Z")
[QUOTE=Philster] A cellphone/blackberry charger that stops charging when the battery is full! [/QUOTE] Wait…I’m new to cell phones. Does my Motorola NOT stop charging each night when I plug it in? Am I screwing up the battery? :smack: If the answer is yes, some will pay for this. I await a response so I can spin the wheel o’ vengeance. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/18 "2007-04-18T22:57:23Z")
[QUOTE=AuntiePam] A sewing machine with a lights on **both** sides of the presser foot, not just the inside. I’d also like one with a laser light that marks a 1/4 inch seam line. And fabric with measurements already marked, like Hallmark has done with its gift wrap. And pre-cut squares with diagonal lines marked from corner to corner. I hate marking fabric. It wastes sewing time. And a paper shredder with a vacuum that sucks the air out of the bin as you shred, so you get get more paper in the bin before you have to empty it. And a vacuum cleaner that works. [/QUOTE] Yes to all of the above, except maybe the shredder. I hand all my shreddables to my husband, who loves to shred, so I am not familiar with shredder drawbacks. Unless the shredder in question is a cat, in which case I get her claws clipped. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/19 "2007-04-18T23:04:19Z")
Speaking of clipping claws, how about a cat-holding device that allows you to pull out one paw at a time, and all other paws and mouth can’t get at you? Maybe even with some built-in tranquilizer so kitty quits freaking out. ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2007, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672/20 "2007-04-18T23:08:09Z")
> [@featherlou](#): > > how about a cat holding device that allows you to pull out one paw at a time They’re making cats with removable paws now? Cool! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-buy-if-only-someone-made-them/400672.md?page=2)