Sony's 10 greatest tech flops

Sony has had many successes, but not everything hits it big. Here are some products that didn't quite make it.

Since its founding in 1946, Sony has produced some of the biggest hits in consumer electronics. Brand names like Walkman, Handycam and Trinitron helped define the company as a giant in the industry and more recent hits like Cybershot, Vaio, Bravia and PlayStation have helped keep it there.

But no success story is failure-free. Let's take a look back at some Sony products that didn't win consumers' hearts and minds.


Sony Aibo

Sony's cute Aibo robot dogs, created by its Digital Creatures Laboratory and introduced in 1999, could move in a somewhat stilted fashion as far as their batteries would allow. They could express happiness, sadness, anger, surprise, fear, and dislike -- and deep-pocketed consumers snapped them up despite a sadness-, anger-, surprise-, fear-, and dislike-inducing US$2500 price tag. Aibo pooches continue to be loved by their owners today, but the price barrier prevented these robopets from going mainstream and conquering the world. Sony ended the project following a recent corporate restructuring.

Original story: Sony Shows Pet Robot, May 11, 1999.

1 of 10
VIEW ALL THUMBNAILS

Most Popular

Tethering tutorial: How to use your iPhone as a modem
Capacitive vs resistive touchscreens
How to pick the right size TV for your living room
LCD vs plasma vs LED TVs buying guide
The most disturbing YouTube videos of all time

Best Deals on PCWorld

NotebooksView all »
TabletsView all »
Mobile PhonesView all »
Printers & ScannersView all »
Networking, Wireless & VoIPView all »

rhs_login_lockSign up to PC World Today for the latest news, reviews and galleries from PC World Australia.

Resources

TVs Product Finder
Find the product you're looking for with our TVs search tool.