MAKE INCONVENIENCE WORK FOR YOU

In the stampede to nd shortcuts, convenience and lifehacks, entrepreneurs have given us some seriously silly inventions. Is the quest for convenience really all it’s made out to be? We get it: Time is precious, and despite the glut of new technology, products and services, we still don’t seem to have enough time for ourselves. So what do we do? Silicon Valley bigwigs try to invent things to save us time and energy, but end up giving us a lot of laughs instead.

Case in point: Juicero, aimed at those of us who live for cold-pressed juices and clean eating. In 2017, the tech bros of the $552 juicer raised more than $116 million in funding and promised coldpressed juice in the comfort of your Alexaabled, Siri-sorted abode… But really, all it did was squeeze a packet of juice, which we could have done with our hands (Bloomberg’s video review of Juicero will never not be funny).

It also forced you to subscribe to a minimum of five juice packs a week, priced between $9 and $14. Fresh fruit juice from the hawker stall is $3, plus a bonus healthy

walk thrown in.

Have you ever wanted a hand-blown artisanal glass globe and carafe to brew your tea in? No? Neither did most of the world, which is why Teforia’s $552 Leaf teapot – sorry, infuser – shrivelled up in 2017 (even Juicero threw shade at them). The Wi-Fi-enabled contraption promised the perfect brew at the push of a button, and the Sips (Selective Infusion Profile System) tea pods are biodegradable, but you have to take the pods to an e-recycling centre… instead of tossing your tea leaves into a potted plant as compost.

Why would we need a $552 teapot and pods to do what a $10 teapot, hot water and tea leaves can? The shuttered Teforia has since been revived, with info on its website promising a new infuser named “Phoenix” to rise in Spring 2019. We can’t wait… to laugh.

Another eyesore is provided by bicycle-sharing services Mobike and Obike which, while promising some convenience, have unfortunately brought out our inner vandals. Bikes are thrown everywhere or illegally stashed outside people’s homes, or just left on pathways to block pedestrians… and other cyclists.

Likewise, irresponsible drivers on personal mobility devices (PMDs) have proven to be occasional menaces, as some have crashed into pedestrians by recklessly speeding. In one case in Pasir Ris, the collision resulted in brain damage. When I see these riders coming at me along the footpath, I often have my guard up and have to brace myself for potential toe stubs or impact – the convenience is never all it’s made out to be.

So while technology and the sharing culture is useful (hello, Airbnb!), I’m happy to make the walk to the MRT station unaided, make my own tea, and blend or buy my own juices, and that’s the inconvenient truth.