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Designers are supposed to make life easier and our homes more aesthetic; however, some of their "creations" leave us wondering—what are those people smoking? I get it; not everyone in the industry is Dieter Rams, and clients have an innate ability to behave like insufferable toddlers, but certain ideas should never leave the drawing board. From a cup that's impossible to drink from without poking your eyes out to staircases that lead to nowhere, this list, compiled by Bored Panda, showcases design fails that are as funny as they are impractical.

#1

Putting This On Arthritis Cream Is Such A Cruel Joke

Jar with lid not fully sealed, illustrating design fail.

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    #2

    My Watch Has Luminescence On The Hour Markers But Not On The Actual Hands

    Glowing watch with misaligned hour indicators, showcasing a design fail.

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    So, how do we know if a particular design is good or bad? Jared Spool, an American writer, researcher, and usability expert, said the first test begins with a person walking up: they either know how to use it at that moment or they don't.

    "If they don’t know how to use it," Spool said, "you have to look at the knowledge they came up with for the design — what we call current knowledge — as well as the knowledge that they need to achieve whatever their objective is."

    "Whether that's getting money out of the automatic teller machine or looking at a radiological scan and diagnosing an anomaly in the chest cavity, they have to have knowledge to get that task done. If that knowledge is far away from the knowledge they currently have then they’re going to have to either learn how to do it or the design is going to have to be simplified so they no longer need that knowledge," he explained.

    #3

    My Feet Hurt Just Looking At This

    Bed frame design fail with misaligned corner, highlighting humorous error on hardwood floor.

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    #4

    Yellow As A Container Color For Gallons Of Drinking Water

    Five large yellow water jugs in a row, illustrating a design fail with mismatched caps.

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    The space between the two is called the knowledge gap, and Spool said a design is intuitive (good) when that gap is very small.

    "It could be so small that when I walk up to the design, I instantly know what to do because everything in my previous life’s experience has taught me how to deal with this, even if it’s something I’ve never seen before – I can walk up to an automatic teller machine that I’ve never seen before, and I can operate it because my experience with other automatic teller machines has told me what to do, for example," he said.

    "Or I get trained, but that happens so quickly that I don't even notice it. There’s messaging on the screen, or there are helpful graphics and animations, and those things ... tell me what to do, and it takes me milliseconds to traverse that knowledge gap. That's intuitive. Something is intuitive when I walk up to it, and I know what to do."

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    That might sometimes sound like an impossible task because the world keeps changing, but Spool believes that humans don't.

    "Humans haven't changed; we haven’t evolved one bit. In fact, here in the United States, it’s possible we’ve gone in the other direction," he said.

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    "Technology changes, but people stay the same, their behavior stays the same, their ability to respond to something stays the same. How big our fingers are, how fast we move, what our reaction times are, how quickly we interpret information, all of that has stayed the same. The problems that people have, they don't change – we still need to communicate, coordinate, and collaborate."

    #10

    This Water Bottle Has Markings To Show You How Much Liquid Is In It, But You Can’t See Through The Bottle

    Cup design fail with incorrect measurement labels, showing both ounces and milliliters in mismatched columns.

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    #11

    One Is A Toilet Cleaner, The Other Is For Washing Dishes. Choose Wisely

    Design fails: mislabeled cleaning products in a kitchen setting.

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    #13

    The Day Layout Of These Pills

    Pill blister pack with days misaligned, a design fail with incorrect weekday labeling.

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    BiggBoii
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    "Escitalopram is a type of antidepressant known as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). It's often used to treat depression and is sometimes used for anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) or panic attacks." perfect pill for OCD patients

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    Spool continued to describe how this manifests in people's relationship with design.

    "What I mean is on the process side of things people still want everything to be so easy that they don’t have to do any work. They don’t want to have to invest in figuring out what the design should be; they just want to be able to wave their hand and make it happen."

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    He has also observed "this constant reluctance to invest in good design" and believes it's partially because there's no pressure for it.

    "A lot of organizations just don’t have this basic sense that design is going to make a difference, and that’s coupled with the fact that many people aren’t literate in design. By literate in design, I mean they can’t tell the difference between a good design and a bad design."

    So when our grandparents struggle with a new device or app, it might not be their skills that are the problem—maybe the design just isn’t good enough.

    #14

    The Handle Of This Pan Is Heavier Than The Actual Pan

    Pan design fail showing a pan unevenly balanced on a stovetop burner.

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    OneHappyPuppy
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This is deliberate. It is to prevent a fire if left standing empty but in reality it's a pain in the backside. I have a coffee "pot" like this

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    #15

    This IKEA Colander Has A Lip That Curves Inward That Traps Pasta

    Pasta design fail: colander holes too large, causing pasta loss.

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    G A
    Community Member
    1 day ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    D a m n annoying. However looks like very small pasta....

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    #16

    The Paper In This Sliced Cheese Makes It Look Like It Has Mold Spots

    Packaged cheese with upside-down label, illustrating a design fail.

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    #17

    How To Get Children To Eat Sand

    Kinetic sand with chocolate chip cookie design fail, packaged as a sensory toy with warning.

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    G A
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Why would a company even DO this? It's almost the anti-H & S.

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    Following this logic, we can say that a good design renders intention well and matches what the users need. A bad design, on the other hand, doesn’t render intention well and doesn’t match what the users need.

    "You can measure design on a scale of frustration to delight," Spool suggested. "When people have complained about a bad design it’s always because the design is frustrating them. When they’re enamored with a great design, it’s because it’s delighting them."

    #18

    Opening The Box With The Pull Tab Destroys Both Heating Instructions And Customer Service Contact Number

    A packaging design fail where opening the box tears through the heating instructions.

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    #19

    This Bus Stop In Malaysia

    People under an ineffective shelter in the rain, highlighting a design fail in urban architecture.

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    Luis Hernandez Dauajare
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This seems deliberate, so homeless cannot take shelter. Looks like hostile architecture to me.

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    #20

    Instead Of Making These Thermometers Turn Off They Just Stay On And Display The Word "Off" Making Them Run Their Batteries Faster Than Other Models We Used To Have At My Job

    Design fail: digital thermometer displaying "off" on a wooden table.

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    Bi.Felicia
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Planned obsolescence? Or maybe they are in cahoots with Duracell or Energizer?

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    #21

    Maybe Not Best Design For End Table At Hotel Where You Place Items In The Dark Before Bed

    Unique design fail with a round side table missing a slice, beside a bed, illustrating design mishap.

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    However, Spool said some organizations (designers) believe it's not important whether or not they frustrate their users, partially because they feel like the users don't have a choice.

    "For instance, if you work in a company and you want to get reimbursed for the expenses that you made during travel, you can use the travel expense system, and if it’s incredibly frustrating, they don’t care because that’s the only way you’re going to get your travel expenses reimbursed," he said.

    So it very well might be that we will continue seeing bad design and creating such lists no matter how far the craft itself progresses.

    #22

    Bad Design At Its Best - How To Charge The Magic Mouse For Mac

    Mouse design fail with charging port underneath, rendering it unusable while charging.

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    #23

    This Toaster Toasts The Plastic Surrounding Your Breakfast

    Damaged toaster on a wooden table showcasing a design fail.

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    Stygtand
    Community Member
    Premium
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    For that ekstra umami flavor, it goes really well with microplastic butter

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    #24

    These Bare Metal Armrests On My Hotel Chair. I Asked, They Said These Are By Design

    Chair with misaligned armrests demonstrating a design fail.

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    #27

    Mildly Infuriating Level : Refund

    Design fails: Misaligned pattern molds in a waffle maker on a kitchen counter.

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    Jrog
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Looks like a manufacturing mistake where they installed two bottom plates instead of a top + bottom.

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    #29

    I Hate These Plug Designs So Much. Why Do Companies Do This?

    Design fail showing a power strip overloaded with mismatched adapters, highlighting poor setup planning.

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    Blondie23
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    there is a flexible power strip you can buy that can be moved around to accommodate these. I have one and it's a life saver!

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    #30

    I Don't Feel Like Sleeping Soundly On This Pillow At All

    Design fails: Pillow with an abstract, unfinished print on display in a store, highlighting a quality control issue.

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    #34

    This Is How You Charge Your 100 Dollar Ipencil

    Tablet with a pencil inserted into the charging port, illustrating a design fail outdoors on a patio.

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    #35

    This Tap Was Made With Little To No Thinking

    Bathroom design fail with faucet misaligned over sink, water missing the drain.

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    Jrog
    Community Member
    1 day ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The tap is installed wrong. The handle should be on the back or on one side, and the faucet tilted accordingly

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    #38

    A Nutrition Label That You Can't Read Until You Buy And Open The Product

    Design fail: Jerky packaging misprint with wrong ingredients, held in hand in a grocery aisle.

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    Verena
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    M, guess is production mistake. The part with the print was fed into the packing machine the wrong way.

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    #39

    A Chair With Closed Holes. So The Dust And Dirt That Enters It Stays !

    Pink plastic chair with flawed design causing instability.

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    #42

    Got This New Hoodie And Everybody Has Asked Me Why I Am Wet And I Have To Tell Them Its Just The Design Of The Hoodie

    Zipper design fail on a blue sweatshirt, illustrating the main SEO keyword "design fails."

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    Carl Roberts
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Ok, but...why did OP buy the darn thing if they knew it looked like that

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    #44

    Useless Minimalism, Stop That

    Hand holding misprinted playing cards with a design fail showing blank and black cards.

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    Jaya
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This one is just for people who love minimalism so much that they prefer this over cards where you can immediately see which card it is. Not useless, just not your taste or preference.

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    #45

    Hp Made The Track Pad The Same Texture As The Rest Of The Laptop So Its Awful To Use

    Laptop keyboard design fail with an off-centered trackpad, highlighting a common design fail.

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    Just_for_this
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    HP in general. don't buy their products. this is the stuff you can 'see' they cheap out on and overcharge for.

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    #47

    Why Have A Picnic Table And A Swing, When You Can Have The Worst Of Both Worlds?

    Design fail: swings attached to fixed table, creating impractical seating setup in a park.

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    Just_for_this
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I actually quite like this. It's a Novelty, while providing movable seating that cant go walkabout. If someone is daft enough to 'swing' into the table that is on them.

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    #48

    Not Sure Who I Should Be Mad At. Apple Or The Guy Who Designed This Outlet In My Office

    Plug design fails with incorrect fit marked in orange circles.

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    #49

    My Mum Bought This At A Home Decor Shop Years Ago. I Never Read What It’s Intended To Say

    Design fail with letters stacked as B-E-A-C-H, but appearing mixed with a bird decoration.

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    #50

    The Worst Sink Design I've Ever Had The Misfortune Of Using

    Sink design fail with misaligned faucets causing uneven water flow.

    Left side is hot only. Right side is cold. Hands were constantly hitting the side of the sink because there was no room. Took forever to drain.

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    Funhog
    Community Member
    1 day ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Agreed that the sink is poorly designed; however, two separate taps are used when the hot water is not potable.

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    Note: this post originally had 84 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.