The ‘90s were the time of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, a burgeoning internet, and seemingly countless gadgets and gizmos hocked by sellers on television. These cheeky infomercials are staples of the post-Cold War era, and you may have memories of yourself basking in the glow of a late-night infomercial emanating from your TV screen. These ‘90s gadgets were the best that engineering had to offer, but now they serve as artifacts of days gone by.
These gadgets ran the gamut from a headset to hold your landline, to juicers, to three of the same exact quesadilla makers, to self-help audio tapes. With the promise of making your life easier—and a concerning emphasis on losing weight and counting calories—these products were irresistible to the postmodernist audience. Here are 24 infomercial gadgets ranked from worst to best.
[Ed. Note: All these gadgets weren’t necessarily born in the ‘90s, but they dominated the airwaves, anyway.]
