Examples of bad design

[dgl]

Austin had a go at sorting point one above.

The square Steering Wheel.

So did Citroën with their single spoke steering wheels.

As for USB phone chargers one tip if you want a decent high-powered USB charger with a regular plug is to look for a Delta Electronics 65W USB-C charger, available for about £25 and connects to the wall with a cloverleaf mains lead, offers all normal USB-C voltages (5V, 9V and 15V @ 3A and 20V @ 3.25A) It's the OEM that makes a lot of laptop PSU's and this is the same one shipped with a few USB-C laptops just without any manufacture specific branding on it.

Personally I think wall sockets with built in USB charging are a bad design as if the charging bit fails then it's difficult for the average user to replace them and you now have a failed electrical item sitting in you wall, not safe.

 

[AM9]

So did Citroën with their single spoke steering wheels.

As for USB phone chargers one tip if you want a decent high-powered USB charger with a regular plug is to look for a Delta Electronics 65W USB-C charger, available for about £25 and connects to the wall with a cloverleaf mains lead, offers all normal USB-C voltages (5V, 9V and 15V @ 3A and 20V @ 3.25A) It's the OEM that makes a lot of laptop PSU's and this is the same one shipped with a few USB-C laptops just without any manufacture specific branding on it.

Personally I think wall sockets with built in USB charging are a bad design as if the charging bit fails then it's difficult for the average user to replace them and you now have a failed electrical item sitting in you wall, not safe.

I think you will find that almost without exception, they are designed to fail safe (which is a lot better than many plug-in chargers that are in use).
The sockets that I've just installed also comply with the latest rules in that with nothing plugged in they draw less than 100mW.

 

[dgl]

I think you will find that almost without exception, they are designed to fail safe (which is a lot better than many plug-in chargers that are in use).
The sockets that I've just installed also comply with the latest rules in that with nothing plugged in they draw less than 100mW.

Fail safe really just means that any mains filtering capacitors are designed to either fail open or shorted dependant on where it's used, they can still fail in unpredictable ways and anyway they are limited to the technology of the time. You also don't necessarily know what the quality of the USB supply in them.

 

[edwin_m]

Shower curtains. Horrible slimy mould traps. Just why.

 

[AM9]

Fail safe really just means that any mains filtering capacitors are designed to either fail open or shorted dependant on where it's used, they can still fail in unpredictable ways and anyway they are limited to the technology of the time. You also don't necessarily know what the quality of the USB supply in them.

I would challenge your assessment of "not safe". A compliant device fitted correctly in a metal or plastic back box does not represent a safety hazard even if it fails. Similarly, the USB standard includng the charging capability is both mature and easily complied with. There's no more chance of a built-in charger failing than a separate external charger, - particularly when the opportunity of physical handling is taken into consideration.

 

[xotGD]

Pint glasses that hold exactly a pint.

Either you get a head on your beer and less than a pint or a full measure of flat beer.

Oversized glasses with a line please.

 

[DelayRepay]

Shower curtains. Horrible slimy mould traps. Just why.

Same for rubber bath mats. I get that they prevent people slipping, but they're horrible!

 

[edwin_m]

Planes (some at least) still have the notice asking you to use your paper towel to wipe out the basin for the next person. But now the tap is motion-activated, you just end up with a very soggy paper towel.

 

[dangie]

Pint glasses that hold exactly a pint.…..

For many years Banks’s Brewery (now part of Marston’s) served their beers in oversized pint glasses. Then suddenly they turned to standard pint glasses. They said it was following requests by customers. What a load of rubbish. It was probably following orders from accountants….!!

 

[philthetube]

Pint glasses that hold exactly a pint.

Either you get a head on your beer and less than a pint or a full measure of flat beer.

Oversized glasses with a line please.

as Did Wetherspoons, they said it was because of issues with complaints, sometimes aggressive, by people who wanted their glasses full.

 

[SteveP29]

For many years Banks’s Brewery (now part of Marston’s) served their beers in oversized pint glasses. Then suddenly they turned to standard pint glasses. They said it was following requests by customers. What a load of rubbish. It was probably following orders from accountants….!!

North East England always used oversized pint glasses.
We also used metered pumps for beers fed by gas, so each press of the button distributed exactly half a pint of the beer/ lager/ cider.
The only challenge as a barman was to ensure you created a head that wasn't so big that it overflowed the glass (easily done if the sparkler was tightened too much)

I never worked in pubs that had cask conditioned ales, so I don't know how the 2 sizes of pint glass worked alongside each other (if they did)

They unfortunately started to be phased out when printed and specially blown (eg Carling) pint glasses started to become popular and free flow taps began to get installed in pubs

 

[61653 HTAFC]

West Yorkshire Combined Authority's new design of bus stop flags.

They've finally realised it's a good idea to put the service numbers on the flags (something that London and Greater Manchester discovered ages ago) but there's no longer a visible stop number displayed. Nor is there a QR code in the shelter to scan for real-time information. Nor is there a printed timetable for when the digital displays aren't working... which is most of the time.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 10 Feb 2023 ==

Shower curtains. Horrible slimy mould traps. Just why.

Shower screens that don't cover the whole of the "spray area", resulting in wet floor by the bath unless you put a pre-emptive towel down.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 11 Feb 2023 ==

Another one: the new design for McDonald's coffee cup lids. Had one yesterday and thought it was just defective, but it seems they're all like this now- the old spout that used to lock closed no longer does, so it's now useless as a drinking spout. Presumably this is some sort of legal backside-covering but as the saying goes you can't legislate stupid!

 

[Strathclyder]

Shower curtains. Horrible slimy mould traps. Just why.

As much as I hate shower curtains in such a state, in my experience, it's better to deal with a moldy slime trap of a shower curtain that'll eventually get chucked in the bin than with soaking the bathroom every time I shower (this of course depends on the size/layout of your bathroom). They're something I'm willing to put up with in other words.

 

[py_megapixel]

As much as I hate shower curtains in such a state, in my experience, it's better to deal with a moldy slime trap of a shower curtain that'll eventually get chucked in the bin than with soaking the bathroom every time I shower (this of course depends on the size/layout of your bathroom). They're something I'm willing to put up with in other words.

A glass screen is an alternative (or a door, depending on whether the shower is above a bath or a tray) - easier to keep clean but maybe less effective in some cases.

 

[edwin_m]

It's very easy to fail to pull the shower curtain fully across and leave a gap where water can get into the rest of the bathroom. Also the downdraft created by the shower may pull the curtain inwards, possibly also creating a gap (Bernoulli effect - showers in Travelodges seem particularly prone to this).

 

[Strathclyder]

A glass screen is an alternative (or a door, depending on whether the shower is above a bath or a tray) - easier to keep clean but maybe less effective in some cases.

Our shower is above a bath. And I'm not sure if installing a glass screen/door is feasible (quite apart from the financial aspect), as our upstairs bathroom is quite compact (the edge of the sink butts up against the edge of the bath for instance) and is bounded by the stairs on one side, and a outdoor balcony on the other (the latter being something our previous flat didn't have).

It had quite a bit of work done to it by the previous tenants before we moved in back in the summer of 2012 (new floor/wall tiles and a then-modern heated towel rack) and I'm pretty sure if it were worthwhile, a glass shower screen/door would've been installed as part of the work.

Pity, as I'd prefer a glass screen overall compared to a curtain. But it is what it is and I've been able to live with it for over a decade at this point.

 

[DelW]

It's very easy to fail to pull the shower curtain fully across and leave a gap where water can get into the rest of the bathroom. Also the downdraft created by the shower may pull the curtain inwards, possibly also creating a gap (Bernoulli effect - showers in Travelodges seem particularly prone to this).

I've always assumed that the spray of hot water from the shower head heats the air within the shower curtain causing it to rise, so producing an updraught and consequential inward airflow at ankle level to replace the rising air.

Whichever of us is right*, it's certainly a common effect and very unpleasant when the cold wet shower curtain wraps itself around your legs. Fortunately more hotels seem to be using rigid glass screens or doors these days.

*I suppose one test would be whether a cold shower produces the effect or not, but it's too chilly to try that at this time of year.

 

[edwin_m]

I've always assumed that the spray of hot water from the shower head heats the air within the shower curtain causing it to rise, so producing an updraught and consequential inward airflow at ankle level to replace the rising air.

Whichever of us is right*, it's certainly a common effect and very unpleasant when the cold wet shower curtain wraps itself around your legs. Fortunately more hotels seem to be using rigid glass screens or doors these days.

*I suppose one test would be whether a cold shower produces the effect or not, but it's too chilly to try that at this time of year.

Yes I agree it could be that effect. While we're on the subject of showers, the trend to larger shower heads doesn't seem to have been matched by the bracket things that hold them being made stronger to stop them drooping.

 

[PeterC]

Pint glasses that hold exactly a pint.

Either you get a head on your beer and less than a pint or a full measure of flat beer.

Oversized glasses with a line please.

The last couple of times I have been to Whitby I have been given a pint to brim glass. The publicans still use sparklers on the taps.

 

[xotGD]

Packs of food where, for example, it states on the packet that 50g is one of your five a day, but the contents of the pack is not a multiple of 50g.

 

[dangie]

You can buy weighted shower curtains that don’t rise up.

On the subject of showers, I don’t like shower cubicles. They are fine when you’re actually showering, but then you finish, open the cubicle door and a blast of freezing air hits you.

 

[52290]

North East England always used oversized pint glasses.
We also used metered pumps for beers fed by gas, so each press of the button distributed exactly half a pint of the beer/ lager/ cider.
The only challenge as a barman was to ensure you created a head that wasn't so big that it overflowed the glass (easily done if the sparkler was tightened too much)

I never worked in pubs that had cask conditioned ales, so I don't know how the 2 sizes of pint glass worked alongside each other (if they did)

They unfortunately started to be phased out when printed and specially blown (eg Carling) pint glasses started to become popular and free flow taps began to get installed in pubs

In the early days of CAMRA metered electric pumps were often used to dispense an exact measure of a pint of cask ale into a lined glass, especially in the north and midlands, without any use of carbon-dioxide. It wasn't therefore necessary for pubs to stock both lined and brim-measure glasses.
In the 1970's Banks's used mainly electric pumps to dispense their cask ales. It was only after they started reinstating hand pumps that the lined glasses disappeared.

 

[xotGD]

We have counterintuitive coloured wheelie bins. One is black, the other is green. Sounds sensible, but....


General waste goes in the green bin and recycling goes in the black bin.

 

[32475]

BMWs. Virtually none of the ones I see on the road seem to have working indicators.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

BMWs. Virtually none of the ones I see on the road seem to have working indicators.

Either that, or owners who know how to operate them.

 

[32475]

Either that, or owners who know how to operate them.

That might well be the problem!

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 14 Feb 2023 ==

Pint glasses that hold exactly a pint.

Either you get a head on your beer and less than a pint or a full measure of flat beer.

Oversized glasses with a line please.

My pint glass from the Bluebell Railway Beer Festival demonstrates how a pint glass should be.
If you’ve never been to the event I recommend it most highly!

 

[pdeaves]

Here's an interesting one, a badly designed skate park (well, badly 'designed' surroundings). Nearish me, there was a field with a foot/cycle path near the edge. There were benches and bins 'outside' the path for those who wanted to rest or while away the time. Then, a skate park was plonked on the field. Now, parents (understandably) sit on the benches on one side of the path to watch/supervise their children playing on the other side of the path. So, we end up with a situation where the path is effectively blocked by people wandering back and forth, pushchairs in the way, etc. Park/bench users don't see the path as a thoroughfare but just an extension to the play area. I'm sure it could have been happier for all users if the benches were moved 'inside' the path, the same side as the skate park.

Incidentally, not so much bad design but bad planning, the park was 'done up' last summer. It closed on the first day of the school holiday and only reopened after school restarted. A couple of streets away, a 'climbing frame' type park is now being done up, closed as soon as February half term started!

 

[OhNoAPacer]

Packs of food where, for example, it states on the packet that 50g is one of your five a day, but the contents of the pack is not a multiple of 50g.

On a similar theme to this.
I recently used a 500g pack of rice, the cooking instructions were given for 90g as a portion yet the packet states that it contains 5 portions.

 

[pdeaves]

On a similar theme to this.
I recently used a 500g pack of rice, the cooking instructions were given for 90g as a portion yet the packet states that it contains 5 portions.

Technically true: it does contain five portions, just not exactly five portions.

 

[OhNoAPacer]

On a similar theme to this.
I recently used a 500g pack of rice, the cooking instructions were given for 90g as a portion yet the packet states that it contains 5 portions.

Well they should say 5 and a bit portions then