BRACE yourself – rub your eyes in disbelief even – one of technology’s biggest flops is coming back on the market. Google, that US behemoth of internet technology, are relaunching an updated, revamped model of their original Google Glass – a device that is essentially a pair of specs with a built-in camera and a display that effectively means you have a smartphone in your lenses.

Google Glass caused quite a stir in the technology market when it was released first time round, with the device massively hyped on social media – the hashtag #IfIHadGlass could be found across the Twittersphere. However, Google Glass failed to get off the ground. The product was not available in retail stores and instead was sold exclusively to “glass explorers” at an eye-watering £1,000.

There was criticism of the device’s built-in camera, which allowed users to film or record people at anytime, anywhere, raising many privacy concerns. That led to the product being banned in a number of casinos, cinemas and other venues. Additionally, the company seemed unable to outline the beneficial functions of the device, meaning it was unclear just Google Glass was “for”. Yet, despite this public flop, Google is re-releasing a new and improved version, which features an increased battery life and a higher-quality camera.

Google Glass isn’t alone in failing to make the grade however. Here, we break down the 10 biggest technology disappointments of all time.

Samsung Galaxy Note 7

In summer 2016 Samsung launched their new high-end device, aimed at competing with Apple in the smartphone market. The new product proved popular with thousands rushing to buy the new phone. However, Samsung’s dream device ended up turning into a nightmare. Due to a design flaw, many of the models began to sporadically burst into flames, in some case causing injury to the users. Samsung started recalling products and suspended sales of the model in an attempt to rectify the problem. Unfortunately, the Galaxy Note 7 model turned out to be beyond salvation and the South Korean company was forced to take it off the shelves altogether. This year Samsung is announcing the Samsung Galaxy Note 8. That device is expected to be a hot property ... but perhaps that isn’t a good thing.

The Segway

The Segway is a self-balancing, two-wheeled motorised scooter. It was thought the Segway would be the next world-changing piece of technology – as big as the PC, said Steve Jobs. The Segway does seem to offer the chance of frivolous fun, however, the product was left spinning its wheels as it failed to change any aspect of modern life. The Segway was, and is expensive, with the cheapest model available today coming in at £6,600. On top of this, many countries have ruled that the product doesn’t meet with public health and safety regulations and so its usage has been relegated to the private sphere. Needless to say, the device really didn’t live up to the hype after hitting so many bumps in the road.

Virtual Boy

Nintendo started dabbling in the world of virtual reality headsets long before many of its competitors. In 1995 the company released the Virtual Boy console which aimed to deliver a 3D virtual experience without having to step outside your front door. The product sold over 750,000 units during its lifetime. However, the console was largely described as a failure due to the poor quality of its 3D graphics, as well as for its lack of true portability and its general heftiness. The Virtual Boy was discontinued within six months. Probably just as well – with a word like boy in its name, it wouldn’t have survived the new gender-neutral legislation on advertising anyway.

MSN Instant Messenger

Ok this isn’t technically a flop but it was a huge disappointment, because before the launch of Facebook and WhatsApp, MSN dominated the instant messaging sphere. MSN messenger was hugely popular and, having launched in 1999, became the social media platform for many teenagers throughout the 2000s, offering “emoji’s”, new fonts and colour choices as well as birthing many of the text shorthands we know and hate today. Acronyms like “ttyl” (talk to you later) and “brb” (be right back) were commonplace on MSN but the fans soon “afk” (away from keyboard) when Microsoft shut down the service in most countries in 2013 after it had become redundant in a world of free and instant texts. It was deemed a one-trick pony in the social media world due to it only offering messaging services, whereas Facebook offered instant messaging, profile space, photo uploads and much more. Despite its failure, MSN instant messenger is still remembered fondly by those who used it, so it’s now “gbnf” (that’s gone but not forgotten to those in the know).

Dreamcast

Remember the Dreamcast? Me neither. The games console was released in Europe in 1999 and entered into the ring boasting now-classic games like Ready 2 Rumble Boxing. The console went toe to toe with competitors such as the Sony PlaySation. The end result? Basically a knockout. Sega’s Dreamcast console failed to compete with the pricing of Sony’s new PlayStation2 when it came out the following year. The Dreamcast was also floored by the decision of EA Games not to support the console for its hugely popular sports titles. That meant that despite the Sega console being miles ahead of its time by being the first ever console to include internet connectivity, the Dreamcast never got back off the canvas and was eventually cancelled.

Microsoft Zune

The Zune music device was meant to be the official opposition to the iPod. However it underperformed and failed to even dent Apple’s success. The device also experienced some technical difficulties with many freezing because of a software bug, meaning the fat lady was well and truly singing for Zune’s musical ambitions.

Sinclair C5

The poor old Sinclair C5, an electric tricycle developed in 1985 that many feel was ahead of its time was developed by Sir Clive Sinclair, and was a disaster from start to finish really. The tricycle struggled to make uphill climbs, failed a number of safety and performance standards, was badly marketed and carried an at-the-time hefty price tag of £399. The product is known as one of the biggest technological disasters of recent times. However, this failure hasn’t stopped the original inventor’s nephew of developing a new and improved model. The Iris E-Trike is available on the market for £3,500. They say the road to success is paved with failure; if this is true then the new Iris E-Trike should be a major triumph.

Windows Vista

Microsoft is usually on the ball when it comes to technological development, however Windows Vista, designed to be a jazzy new operating system for your PC, failed to hit the spot and was rated the biggest disappointment of 2007. Intended to improve Microsoft’s existing security features, Vista ended up encumbered with a number of privacy, performance and security problems and failed to really offer customers anything new. On top of this, Vista also proved to be incompatible with a number of older PCs. Vista was replaced firstly with Windows 8 in 2012 and then with Windows 10 in 2015, Microsoft’s last ever software – we’ll see.