The End of an Era: How 2022 Saw the Demise of Several Iconic Tech Products and Services

Blackberry, once a staple in the world of smartphones, is dead and gone. The company has shut down its operations, leaving many to move on from the brand that was once synonymous with secure email and messaging. It's clear that Blackberry can no longer keep talking about its own demise, as it would be a futile effort to revive a product that has been surpassed by newer, better alternatives.

The decline of 3G service is also a trend that we've seen in 2022. T-Mobile, Verizon, and others have all shut down their 3G cell tower services, leaving many customers with old phones that are no longer compatible with the latest technology. It's a sad state of affairs when the very thing that once connected us to the world is now nothing more than a relic of the past.

The year has also seen the demise of several other iconic tech products and services. Apple killed off the last iPod, discontinuing the product line after 20 years of service. The iPod was a game-changer in music technology, and its impact on the industry cannot be overstated. The last time we saw an iPod Touch was back in 2019, and since then, it's been nothing but a distant memory.

Microsoft has also fully retired Internet Explorer 11, another piece of software that once held a place in our hearts as a trusted browser. It was first released in 1995 and was a staple on many computers for years. The company pulled the plug on support for IE11 on June 15th, marking the end of an era for many.

Google has also announced its plans to shut down Stadia, its cloud gaming service. While it sold some solid games, it failed to evolve and connect with gamers in a meaningful way. Google is offering refunds to customers who purchased hardware or games through the Stadia store, and the service will officially end on January 18th.

Amazon's latest foray into tech has also bitten the dust. The Amazon Glow, a product designed for young kids to connect with distant family members and engage in interactive activities, was shut down after just one year of sales. Despite its unique concept, which blended video chat technology with a game system, the product failed to gain traction. Amazon is now offering refunds to customers who purchased the Glow, but it's clear that the company has lost faith in the product.

The impact of these announcements cannot be overstated. As we move forward into an increasingly digital world, it's clear that innovation and disruption are constant forces at play. Companies must continually adapt and evolve to stay ahead of the curve, or risk becoming obsolete.

One product that stood out in 2022 was the Amazon Glow. It's a large, awkward device that allows kids to engage in interactive activities with distant family members through video chat. The system includes a projected image beamed down to a table, where kids can play games and interact with content. Reviewers were blown away by the product's potential, and many saw it as a game-changer for families who struggle to connect across distances.

However, despite its initial promise, the Amazon Glow failed to gain traction. The company is now offering refunds to customers, but it's clear that they have lost faith in the product. As for owners of the Glow, there are still options available. While support will end on December 31st, some users may be able to keep using the device as a game system.

The demise of these products serves as a reminder that even the most innovative and groundbreaking technologies can fall victim to market forces. It's a sad state of affairs when we see beloved brands and services fade away, replaced by newer, flashier alternatives.

In conclusion, 2022 has seen the end of several iconic tech products and services. From Blackberry to Amazon Glow, these companies have all had their moments in the sun, but ultimately failed to adapt and evolve to stay ahead of the curve. As we move forward into an increasingly digital world, it's clear that innovation and disruption will continue to play a major role.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enevery year when we come to the end of December I hold a memorial for the tech we lost the tech that died and shook down and was canceled and this year 2022 I have quite the list for you plenty of iconic Tech medit's end but this year also the list got personal for me because of a very special Gadget Amazon killed but not just killed bricked and it affects my children let's get into it shall we we started the year losing a gadget you probably already thought was long dead on January 4th all old Blackberry devices stopped working it's dead it's really really dead now dead dead so if you were keeping an old Blackberry in your junk drawer well better check if it can do anything because the company behind Blackberry stopped running the Legacy services for the 7.1 operating system and earlier Blackberry 10 software as if any of us were still keeping track of what OS Blackberry is running and there's always a little glimmer this little Spark Le of hope that maybe someone will buy the Blackberry name and remake something with a keyboard a texas-based startup called onward Mobility bought the license from TCL and it was gonna remake Blackberry as a new Android phone and nope nope nope nope nope nope not happening onward Mobility said in February let the Blackberry 5G phone plans it had are dead and the company is shut down people gotta move on from Blackberry I can't keep talking about Blackberry being dead if you won't let it die and this is the year 3G service is totally kaputch a t shut off it's 3G cell tower service and so did T-Mobile Verizon waited until the end of the year to shut it all down the few customers who still hold on to an old 3G phone could have gotten an upgrade to something that can tap into 4G Verizon was sending out old flip phones to customers phones made by TCL Nokia and something called orbic so it's nothing too hip just something to get Folks by with a working phone sorry if you still got an iPhone 4 with the 30 pin connector yeah that's useless just trade in for a flip phone at this point in May Apple killed the last iPod Apple discontinued the iPod Touch ending the iPod product line another icon gone and when it debuted 20 years ago the iPod Changed music forever we had many versions there was the mini the Nano the shuffle the model that we we call the iPod Touch well that was released in 2007 as a bit of an iPhone an iPod hybrid but it was overshadowed by the iPhone the last time we got a new iPod Touch was back in 2019. the next month after all that iPod drama Microsoft fully retired Internet Explorer 11. another piece of software Tech that you already thought was dead is now for reals dead it's even got a gravestone in South Korea check this out a software engineer spent the equivalent of 330 dollars to make it only to kill it again by printing this on it he was a good tool to download other browsers dude a little cruel but it is a beautiful work of art for it is a web browser that we all hold close to our young computer Hearts uh it was in our lives since 1995 and Microsoft pulled the plug on support on June 15th now we are at October Google announced it was shutting down stadia that's the cloud gaming service but Google is at least giving money back to customers giving refunds for all Hardware purchased through the Google store and all games bought on the stadia store the service ends January 18th and all refunds should be wrapped up by mid-January Stadium launched in 2019 it sold some solid games but it just failed to evolve but yes you've been watching this video waiting for me to tell you what's the personal thing well it comes down to this big fella the Amazon glow it's a product designed for young kids to talk to their distant family members and read books and play games together it's a very awkward shaped giant thing but I explain it as a mix of a video chat system with a video game system I reviewed it and I liked it so much I paid 300 of my own money to buy it so my kids could play in a new way with their grandparents who are hundreds of miles away they could talk while reading animated books and playing puzzles and making Doodles and playing card games and other simple silly activities kids see the video chat in front of them on a screen and a projected image is beamed down to the table below where kids are doing all the touching and that's where they're playing games and interacting with content and it's completely bananas this is a bananas product okay I'm not that surprised to hear Amazon is giving up on it after a year maybe they just didn't Market it enough you know like it's it's hard to get this concept across but this kind of innovation you don't just see every day and it brought out something different in my kids that they can't get from some FaceTime chat or an iPad game it was really fun and smart play with family so yes Amazon stops selling the glow goodbye glow okay I get it and Amazon is refunding me all my money it's offering customers a way to mail the unit back to the company to keep all this hunk of tech out of the landfill but what if I just want to keep having it I want my kids just play with it as a game system nope an Amazon rep told me that when support ends on the last day of 2022 the system will not be able to connect to any of the books or games it's a four pound 14 inch tall brick that's the sad state of our current Tech landscape you don't even own the gadgets that you buy they could just be remotely made useless I hope companies do keep innovating new ways to connect with tech even if it's weird like the glow we need new thoughts and hopefully these products don't just become utterly useless garbage in a year if there is a service or Gadget you love that ended this year let me know in the comments I'm sure there's something I might have missed until next time thanks for watching thank youevery year when we come to the end of December I hold a memorial for the tech we lost the tech that died and shook down and was canceled and this year 2022 I have quite the list for you plenty of iconic Tech medit's end but this year also the list got personal for me because of a very special Gadget Amazon killed but not just killed bricked and it affects my children let's get into it shall we we started the year losing a gadget you probably already thought was long dead on January 4th all old Blackberry devices stopped working it's dead it's really really dead now dead dead so if you were keeping an old Blackberry in your junk drawer well better check if it can do anything because the company behind Blackberry stopped running the Legacy services for the 7.1 operating system and earlier Blackberry 10 software as if any of us were still keeping track of what OS Blackberry is running and there's always a little glimmer this little Spark Le of hope that maybe someone will buy the Blackberry name and remake something with a keyboard a texas-based startup called onward Mobility bought the license from TCL and it was gonna remake Blackberry as a new Android phone and nope nope nope nope nope nope not happening onward Mobility said in February let the Blackberry 5G phone plans it had are dead and the company is shut down people gotta move on from Blackberry I can't keep talking about Blackberry being dead if you won't let it die and this is the year 3G service is totally kaputch a t shut off it's 3G cell tower service and so did T-Mobile Verizon waited until the end of the year to shut it all down the few customers who still hold on to an old 3G phone could have gotten an upgrade to something that can tap into 4G Verizon was sending out old flip phones to customers phones made by TCL Nokia and something called orbic so it's nothing too hip just something to get Folks by with a working phone sorry if you still got an iPhone 4 with the 30 pin connector yeah that's useless just trade in for a flip phone at this point in May Apple killed the last iPod Apple discontinued the iPod Touch ending the iPod product line another icon gone and when it debuted 20 years ago the iPod Changed music forever we had many versions there was the mini the Nano the shuffle the model that we we call the iPod Touch well that was released in 2007 as a bit of an iPhone an iPod hybrid but it was overshadowed by the iPhone the last time we got a new iPod Touch was back in 2019. the next month after all that iPod drama Microsoft fully retired Internet Explorer 11. another piece of software Tech that you already thought was dead is now for reals dead it's even got a gravestone in South Korea check this out a software engineer spent the equivalent of 330 dollars to make it only to kill it again by printing this on it he was a good tool to download other browsers dude a little cruel but it is a beautiful work of art for it is a web browser that we all hold close to our young computer Hearts uh it was in our lives since 1995 and Microsoft pulled the plug on support on June 15th now we are at October Google announced it was shutting down stadia that's the cloud gaming service but Google is at least giving money back to customers giving refunds for all Hardware purchased through the Google store and all games bought on the stadia store the service ends January 18th and all refunds should be wrapped up by mid-January Stadium launched in 2019 it sold some solid games but it just failed to evolve but yes you've been watching this video waiting for me to tell you what's the personal thing well it comes down to this big fella the Amazon glow it's a product designed for young kids to talk to their distant family members and read books and play games together it's a very awkward shaped giant thing but I explain it as a mix of a video chat system with a video game system I reviewed it and I liked it so much I paid 300 of my own money to buy it so my kids could play in a new way with their grandparents who are hundreds of miles away they could talk while reading animated books and playing puzzles and making Doodles and playing card games and other simple silly activities kids see the video chat in front of them on a screen and a projected image is beamed down to the table below where kids are doing all the touching and that's where they're playing games and interacting with content and it's completely bananas this is a bananas product okay I'm not that surprised to hear Amazon is giving up on it after a year maybe they just didn't Market it enough you know like it's it's hard to get this concept across but this kind of innovation you don't just see every day and it brought out something different in my kids that they can't get from some FaceTime chat or an iPad game it was really fun and smart play with family so yes Amazon stops selling the glow goodbye glow okay I get it and Amazon is refunding me all my money it's offering customers a way to mail the unit back to the company to keep all this hunk of tech out of the landfill but what if I just want to keep having it I want my kids just play with it as a game system nope an Amazon rep told me that when support ends on the last day of 2022 the system will not be able to connect to any of the books or games it's a four pound 14 inch tall brick that's the sad state of our current Tech landscape you don't even own the gadgets that you buy they could just be remotely made useless I hope companies do keep innovating new ways to connect with tech even if it's weird like the glow we need new thoughts and hopefully these products don't just become utterly useless garbage in a year if there is a service or Gadget you love that ended this year let me know in the comments I'm sure there's something I might have missed until next time thanks for watching thank you\n"