Gizmodo: package opener

ZipIt Effortlessly Opens Those Annoying Blister Packs

Sean Fallon — Fri, 01 May 2009 18:20:00 EDT

Wrap rage—one minute your trying to open a new gadget and the next someone is in the ER with a pair of scissors in their chest. I've seen it countless times. ZipIt can help.

Unlike the Open X or the Plastic Surgeon before it, the ZipIt is battery operated, so it should be able to make quick work of blister or clamshell packaging with almost no physical effort. It costs a lot more than the other versions, but if you are willing to pay a laziness premium, the ZipIt can be had for $25. [wrapragerelief]

Lightning Round: Plastic Surgeon Package Opener

Jason Chen — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 18:40:07 EST

The Gadget: The Plastic Surgeon, a cutting tool to open those plastic blister packs that dominate retail packaging. It's shaped sort of like an old-school can opener (the non-turning kind), and is designed to rip the tip off of clamshell packs by slicing all the way around.

The Price: $8.95

The Verdict: Fantastic. Unlike the OpenX, which only really worked for us on one type of plastic clamshell packaging, the Plastic Surgeon works on almost all types. And it works really, really well. Just lift up the plastic auto-close protective cover, jam it into the corner of a clamshell pack, then slide all the way around until you've ended up where you started. If you did it right (and it's pretty hard not to—there's even an included DVD that shows you how to use it) the top comes off. If you're reading Giz, you definitely owe it to yourself to get one of these to open all the electronics you buy. [Plastic Surgeon]

p.s. the Plastic Surgeon doesn't come in a blister pack. It's got a paper backing that you slide off. Think toothbrushes.

The Plastic Surgeon Opens Plastic Blister Packs, Saves Fingers

Jason Chen — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 15:00:07 EST

Plastic clamshell openers like the OpenX have been around for a while, but despite all that development and marketing, they still lose out in pure usefulness to box cutters or even a pair of scissors. The Plastic Surgeon, on the other hand, looks like it has all the functionality of a box cutter but without all the "saw your finger off" riskiness. You can check out the corny video above for a better idea of how it works, but we'll have a hands-on with this thing sometime soon. Hopefully I'll still have all my digits when I type it up. [Plastic Surgeon]

iSlice Opens Packages Like Scissors, Box Cutters

Jason Chen — Wed, 04 Apr 2007 21:10:12 EDT

Similar to the OpenX package cutters—which don't actually work very well at all—the iSlice is supposed to make opening blister packs and shrink-wrap much easier than with regular scissors. It's true that CDs, DVDs and all the blister-pack packaging are a bitch to open, but we've usually had decent luck with just a regular set of box cutters. But this has the added bonus of including a letter opener as well. Weeeee.

Has anyone tried these before? And seriously, using the i again? Have you learned nothing? – Jason Chen

Product Page [XtremeGeek - Thanks Thomas!]