Perfectly Bad Gadgets

We’ve invested eight million dollars developing this electronic device. Now for the finishing touches — the model number and serial number. Every user will need these at some point, so let’s be sure we get this part of the design right.

What? Stamp them in a nearly microscopic font size? Sounds absolutely correct. Let’s do it!

Make them black-on-black so they can only be read under a carefully angled light? Perfect!

Use a font where the number one looks exactly like the letter “i” and the number zero looks exactly like the letter “O”? Brilliant! Make it so!

Place these crucial identifiers underneath the device so the user has to disconnect everything and turn it upside down? Love, love, love!

Don’t identify which number is the serial number and which is the model number? Pure genius!

Add a lot of other numbers and text no one will ever read, just to make this part of the device look very important and official? By God, a raise for this man!

Anything else? Package the device in such a way that no normal human could ever get it back into one box again, in case they wish to return it, which they almost certainly will? Super suggestion! Thanks, everybody. This is why people call our products number one.