300 ISSUES OF STUFF
STUFF 300
We’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe – except that you would, because you probably saw most of them too. So while the memories of a dying replicant might be lost in time like tears in rain, the highlights of 300 issues in the life of the world’s finest gadget magazine are destined to live on forever. And that starts with this commemorative special…
1996-1999
TAMAGOTCHI
Back in the mid-’90s, people weren’t so obsessed with phones. They were obsessed with tiny virtual pets on keychains, which is obviously much better. Effectively an LCD game, owning a Tamagotchi had you hatch a digital critter and then try to keep it alive, entertained and healthy. This often involved cleaning up pixelated poop and questioning your life choices. 1996
APPLE iBOOK G3
This laptop looked like a meeting between an iMac and an anvil. And although its appearance was dismissed by some as juvenile, they should have taken a look inside first. The iBook was a powerful laptop… and an early example with built-in Wi-Fi. 1999
NIKON COOLPIX 300
This one almost felt more phone than camera. And there was a party going on round the back: a covered touchscreen could be used to frame shots and scribble all over your 0.3MP images. Alas, Nikon’s ‘Personal Imaging Assistant’concept wassoonditched. 1996
SONY AIBO
Years before Boston Dynamics ruined the idea of robot animals for everyone, Sony’s geeks reasoned it would be a good idea to fashion a metal pooch. Only theirs was cute, rather than terrifying – at least once they ditched the two extra legs from the early prototypes. A few years later a commercial incarnation wowed the world, with a lucky few delighting in taking their chum from puppyhood to adult dogdom. 1999
PALM III
The Apple Newton banged the PDA drum first (with Apple’s CEO John Sculley coining the term), but it was Palm’s gadgets that pleased punters. With this third iteration, the touchscreen got a backlight and four shades, while IR let you blast info at other PDAs. 1998
PIONEER DVL-909
In the early days of the shiny disc era, there was lots of bet-hedging going on while format wars shook out. This box wanted you to stop worrying about all that. It’d play anything: CDs, LaserDiscs, DVDs, even Video CDs – and it was multi-region.
1998
APPLE iMAC
With its boldly unique lines and semi-transparent shell, the iMac was a computer you wanted to show off – unlike those beige and bland Windows PCs, which belonged under a desk. But it wasn’t all show: theiMacsimplified computing, and saved Apple in the process.
1998
SEGA DREAMCAST
Oh, Dreamcast. Sega’s last throw ofthediceplopped into an awkward sl
