Author Topic: Another Million Dollar Idea I Did'nt Come Up With (Read 306 times)

rpm · « **on:** October 21, 2004, 08:46:29 PM »

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Keychain remote control turns off most TVs
By May Wong, Associated Press
SAN JOSE, Calif. — A lot of people love television but apparently some people have had enough of it, too. A new keychain gadget that lets people turn off most TVs — anywhere from airports to restaurants — is selling at a faster clip than it would take most people to surf the channels on their boob tubes.

"I thought there would just be a trickle, but we are swamped," the inventor, Mitch Altman of San Francisco, said Monday in an interview. "I didn't know there were so many people who were into turning TV off."

Hundreds of orders for Altman's $14.99 TV-B-Gone gadget poured in Monday after the tiny remote control was announced in Wired magazine and other online media outlets. At times, the unexpected attention overloaded and crashed the Web site of his company, Cornfield Electronics.

The keychain fob works like a universal remote control but one that only turns TVs on or off. With a zap of a button, the gizmo goes through a string of about 200 infrared codes that controls the power of about 1,000 television models. Altman said the majority of TVs should react within 17 seconds, though it takes a little more than a minute for the gizmo to emit all the trigger codes.

Gunslinger · « **Reply #1 on:** October 21, 2004, 08:53:27 PM »

That would be worth Hours of fun at a bar or something.

can't wait for the keychain size portable EMP or a jammer of some kind for taking out cell phone users.

Creamo · « **Reply #2 on:** October 21, 2004, 08:55:42 PM »

Yeah! Wouldn't that be the greatest, sitting at a bar and turning the TV off like for hours!

Gunslinger · « **Reply #3 on:** October 21, 2004, 08:57:46 PM »

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Originally posted by Creamo
Yeah! Wouldn't that be the greatest, sitting at a bar and turning the TV off like for hours!

Especially if its a really bichy girl that you know. every 20 minutes or so.

Torque · « **Reply #4 on:** October 21, 2004, 08:59:38 PM »

When does the Spouseomatic come out?

Chairboy · « **Reply #5 on:** October 21, 2004, 09:05:04 PM »

Something that I would find much more useful is a button that cycles through all the 'Closed Captioning' activation codes.

So many TVs in public have the volume low (which is good) but have closed captioning turned off (which is bad). There's no way to actually get coherent information from most programming this way. If you're in a loud bar or restaurant, having the volume up would be intrusive for those who choose not to watch TV. But if you activate the closed captioning, then anyone who chooses to watch will at least be able to understand what they're seeing instead of just watching the 'pretty pictures'.

I'm reminded of the slashdot poster who, on the day the sample return capsule crashed without deploying a parachute, turned on the TV with the sound off and the saw what appeared to be a flying saucer half buried in the desert with the words 'BREAKING NEWS' flashing across the bottom.

rpm · « **Reply #6 on:** October 21, 2004, 09:05:49 PM »

Ultimate prank. Sneak one into any political candidates HQ and let one rip right when the predictions come in.

Lizking · « **Reply #7 on:** October 21, 2004, 09:15:35 PM »

Been around for at least 10 years, as a programable remote-watch. My Brother has one and we drove bartenders crazy with it over a better part of the SouthEastern United States.

Bluedog · « **Reply #8 on:** October 21, 2004, 10:38:07 PM »

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Originally posted by Torque
When does the Spouseomatic come out?

http://www.funnies.com/remote.htm
Try the Maxim 2000, might be just what you've been looking for

Gunslinger · « **Reply #9 on:** October 21, 2004, 10:59:24 PM »

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Originally posted by rpm
Ultimate prank. Sneak one into any political candidates HQ and let one rip right when the predictions come in.

wow that's a good one!

"ladies and gents Ohio has just announced that the winner their is......" instant pandamonium.

remember once we were at a friends house celebrating new years and we had the TV turned on to the Cable Info Channel so we could get the current time in seconds.

The countdown started....and we were at like 7 and this dumb woman accidently changed the channel and we scrambled to find it.

Nash · « **Reply #10 on:** October 21, 2004, 11:15:08 PM »

I can already hear the collective sighs of bartenders the world over, thinking "Great, now we gotta put a peice of masking tape over the IR thing and change channels manually."

And the gadget buyers thinking "Oh great, I just wasted my money. It could have been SO FUNNAY!"

Gunslinger · « **Reply #11 on:** October 21, 2004, 11:40:27 PM »

Seriously RPM we could make millions before the FCC shuts us down.

A key chain device that kills a cellphone call. No more annoying cell phone talkers standing in line pretending like no one is hearing them. No more conversations at the theaters. Whatcha think?

Dinger · « **Reply #12 on:** October 21, 2004, 11:44:19 PM »

Already being done gunslinger. Illegal in the US, used all over the place, cellphone jammers are the way to go. An Israeli company even makes one that looks like a cellphone.

rpm · « **Reply #13 on:** October 21, 2004, 11:56:08 PM »

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Originally posted by Gunslinger
Seriously RPM we could make millions before the FCC shuts us down.

A key chain device that kills a cellphone call. No more annoying cell phone talkers standing in line pretending like no one is hearing them. No more conversations at the theaters. Whatcha think?

I'm in Guns! In the olden days of ye old analog, you could knock a cell phone off (at least bleed over) with a strong CB. About 500 watts got the job done.

My secret invention (I can trust you guys, right?) is the remote control handsomehunkador. One handsomehunkador will be installed in each vehicle directly above the drivers seat. It consists of a ball peen hammer, electro magnet and a remote control. The problem is the remote does not control YOUR handsomehunkador, it only controls the car in front of yours.