OK, not the worst ever, but the one which is currently annoying me: screw-top beer bottles. You know the ones, which look like traditional crown caps but actually screw off.
You can see why someone thought they were a good innovation; they look the same (which is important, because what kind of girlie-man drinks beer from bottles with the same type of closure as a bottle of coke?) while being more convenient: no need for a bottle-opener. But ‘looks like a crown cap’ translates as ‘authentic serrated metal edge’. They’re like little blunt circular saws. If a piece of packaging is painful to open, there’s something wrong with it. Come on people, this isn’t fucking rocket science. I’m looking at you, Fentiman’s Ginger Beer.
5 replies on “Worst product design EVER!”
Worse yet, homebrewers can’t re-use them. And you can’t impress chicks by opening them with your teeth.
Mm, homebrew. I did that for a bit at university. It was fun, though the result wouldn’t have won any prizes.
Having once split a door jamb while trying to use it to open a beer bottle, I’m not anxious to do the same to my teeth. But then I am pretty clearly a girlie-man.
I knew a guy once who could open a bottle of beer with his eye socket: He’d just stick the cap under his eyebrow, look fierce, turn, and off it would pop. I guess that probably secured his masculine identity in perpetuity.
I can open a bottle of beer with a lighter, but that’s the best I can do.
— shadygrove
girlie girls prefer girlie men anyway
“I knew a guy once who could open a bottle of beer with his eye socket”
eeeeeeww.
This discussion is a good reminder that poor usability can completely ruin even the most innovative ideas. When products become confusing or impractical, audiences quickly lose interest regardless of how visually appealing they appear. Strong product design is really about balancing creativity with functionality and user experience. I recently checked out https://jumpinggoose.com/ and appreciated their thoughtful approach to branding, packaging, and design systems. Their work reflects how modern design should not only look impressive but also feel intuitive, practical, and engaging for users.