Column: What Tech Would We Be Better Off Without? I Asked, You Answered

Well, goodbye to all that .

Now that 2023 is coming to an end and it's time to start looking forward to the new year, why not take a minute to purge our closets and our minds of all the technology we don't need ? It's better to start again and prepare for the next AI-filled year .

A few weeks ago, I gathered a group of journalists, technologists, and experts to vote for the worst technology of the year . With the holiday shopping season underway, we have an anti-gift guide of sorts . A list of technologies we wish didn't exist. It was a fun, slightly tongue-in-cheek exercise that sparked interesting discussions about the impact of technology on society.

Read everything. Column: The worst technology of 2023 (Anti-gift guide)

I also asked all of my readers, commenters, and social media users to vote for the worst technology of the year, and I received an avalanche of thoughtful (and very enthusiastic) responses. I don't think I've received more letters from any other column this year (maybe about the Silicon Valley and Hollywood strikes , but that's it), and it was fun and informative to read your thoughts about how we want it. Learn about the technology used in our lives.

This also ends my first year as a friendly tech columnist here at the Times, and I want to thank you; I have received so many well-written and thought-provoking messages and emails throughout the year that have been enriching in ways that social media discourse often does not. This is one of my New Year's resolutions: slower digital conversations. Continue to receive emails; I read them all when the spam filters don't understand them.

So, as 2023 comes to a close, a year in which we've received plenty of criticism, I'll hand the mic back to you, reader. Here are your picks for the worst technology of the year.

Either way

The clear “winner” of this race is Weiss. The things you list are only potential or metaphysical threats to humanity. Waze, on the other hand, poses a clear and present danger to every pedestrian, equestrian, monkey, and media on the planet. Not only does this benefit the growing segment of the population who wants to save 3 seconds of driving time in forty-five days, but it also benefits those who drive through quiet neighborhoods to get reasonable real estate prices.

Let them eat concrete.

Mark Steinberg

Digital billboards

Here's an addition your Southland readers will appreciate: digital signage. Do we need another distraction while driving? Don’t we already have enough light pollution?

Janet Shull Johnson

Richmond, California

Keyless entry system

Here's a list of things I don't like about the Latch system (in no particular order): It's ugly, bordering on leaky. It's uncomfortable. Do I have to take my cell phone with me every minute to leave the house? I also don't know if Latch is completely safe; When I called customer service to find out more about how to create and protect my house codes, let's just say I wasn't very impressed 🤣. Oh, did I mention it was disgusting?

Kimberly Duke

Credit card fees

Surprisingly, you reflected all of my concerns. My son, 25, works in tech and I get called a "lady," but here are some things I'd like to see:

1. Under the tree was a refurbished IBM Selectric III for me, the other for parts; The meditative quality of writing on this instrument is unparalleled.

2. Everyone who loves their local businesses stop using credit cards and use cash whenever possible to provide financial assistance. The cost of business credit card fees is exorbitant and unreasonable, and the costs, when affordable, are passed on to the consumer.

Ruth Peebles

Change the sound of cameras and text messages

Ring cameras make me feel like I'm leaving a deposit at a friend's door. They say, "Oh, I'll delete them," but do we really know what happens to the footage once it's put on Ring's servers?

Another technology I hate is texting. I do not have that. Without them, it becomes difficult, for example, to obtain security codes. Some financial institutions do not provide call codes, only text codes.

Texting, in my limited experience, always becomes a never-ending exchange of additional information, where a quick phone call will solve everything in one fell swoop, with the added benefit of reading the tone of the person's voice. other person. I understand that young people are almost more offended by a voice call than by a text message. I would say it's up to you to send a fax.

Chris Paolo

Automatic batch

Thanks for your article... You talk about the growing number of people, young and old, who are going crazy for these inventions that are supposed to improve our lives.

My suggestion to put pressure on technology is doomed to failure.

Learn more. Americans are facing an epidemic of loneliness. For some, supermarket checks make the situation worse

This should bring us to the traffic light line. She could do it if she really succeeded.

A sinister voice announces that there is an "unexpected object in the packing area. Please blah blah blah." After fixing this issue, the cat food I scanned appears to contain $46 worth of caviar. It's surprising how many mistakes can be made using this useful technique.

Mary Lou McKinney

Portable Bluetooth Speakers

Portable speakers that people use everywhere: at the beach, on public transportation, while camping outdoors, for picnics in the park, and on hiking trails. They've been around for a while, but every year we get a worse version of what we thought was the worst.

@Guaxary, via Twitter. 

Smart thermostats, disposable lights and “smart” refrigerators.

Smart thermostats, light bulbs, refrigerators equipped with cameras showing video of the interior, and digital shower controls.

Anything that adds a low-cost digital element to something where a mechanical function could do the job incurs huge environmental costs for little benefit, adding points of failure and lots of overhead.

It's also very claustrophobic when you're in the middle of a shower and it suddenly stops and you suddenly have to Google what the shower error message means.

Jess McCabe via Twitter.

*This is what the author of the original article argued. wsy.law wrote: “Any device that records video. Does anyone really need a TV in their refrigerator?”

Internet of Things, weight loss technology

Fresh air this time of year. My personal antidote would be any IoT for the home, commercial health tracking and weight loss technology, and the Internet.

Liz B. Marchese via Twitter

Chatbots shaped like historical figures, a sporty robot dog from Boston Dynamics

Two of the worst educational technologies of 2023 that I keep thinking about…

1) The convergence of the ELIZA effect and digital necromancy with chatbots like Khanmigo from Khan Academy, which we mistake for historical figures like Harriet Tubman.

and 2) dystopian, militarized robot dogs proposed for primary and post-secondary schools for innovation purposes.

Charles Logan via Twitter

This story was originally published in the Los Angeles Times.

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