Top tech April Fools’ Day pranks from around the web

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From smart socks to kitty litter drones, which hoaxes caught your attention?

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It’s that time of the year, folks: April Fools’ Day. 24 hours worth of outlandish news, imaginary (yet extremely innovative) product pitches and bizarre advertisements as one company after the next jumps into a giant game of hoax leapfrog. We must admit though, a few of the ideas were pretty awesome. Some even left us wishing that they were, in fact, real. Seeing as though countless brands — ranging from Google to Samsung — participated in the day’s festivities, we’ve decided to put a list together of a couple noteworthy pranks from throughout the tech industry. And, if there is one thing we learned, it is that apparently simple smartphone cameras no longer suffice when it comes to selfie-taking…

Twitter’s Twelfie Stick

The Twelfie Stick is a highly-sophisticated and first-of-its-kind device, making it easier for people to not only get the very best angle on their selfies, but to tweet them out directly from the stick itself.

Miz Mooz’s Selfie Shoes

For those tired of schlepping around selfie stick, New York City-based shoe store Miz Mooz has devised a solution.

ThinkGeek’s Do-it-YourSelfie Rig

This torso-mounted rig enables users to take full 360° selfies using their own cameras. An accompanying app then helps piece together the pictures and export them as an animated GIF or movie to all major social media sites.

Motorola Mobility’s Selfie Stick 

Motorola Mobility jumped into the selfie mix with a custom stick made with the same craftsmanship and genuine materials used for their phones, such as wood and leather.

Tidy Cats’ Clump Claw 2000

Tidy Cats’ yellow-and-black drone prototype features a plastic litter scoop attached to its underbelly that is tasked with, you guessed it, removing kitty waste.

Samsung’s Galaxy BLADE Edge

The electronics giant looked to usher in a new era of smart kitchen gadgetry with the “ultimate cooking companion,” which is essentially a Galaxy S6 Edge that can also cut your food.

Tesla’s Model W

Tesla’s newest product line is called the Model W — for watch. The device tells time and the date, and will even adjust based on a wearer’s location.

HTC RE SOK

HTC announced the world’s smart sock, equipped with an integrated display for phone notifications, SMS support, a GPS pair finder, as well as an automatic hole warning system.

Microsoft’s Mobile MS-DOS 

Microsoft teased an MS-DOS Mobile, a new OS designed especially for Lumia smartphones.

Google’s Backwards Search Page

Flippin’ awesome, right? Google created a mirror image of its search page, reversing everything from its logo to its domain name.

Google’s Keyless Keyboard

Google Japan team introduced a Bluetooth-enabled party horn that wants to make key-pushing a distant memory.

Google’s Smartbox by Inbox

You may’ve already tried Inbox by Google, the inbox of tomorrow. Well, now there’s Smartbox by Inbox, the mailbox of tomorrow. The company describes it as “a better, smarter mailbox that fuses physical mail with everything you love about the electronic kind.”

Sony’s PlayStation Flow

PlayStation Flow combines the best of PS4 gaming with real-life swimming. The system consists of four sensors that attach comfortably to your biceps and thighs, and tracks your body movements to send real-time updates back to the console.

Domino’s Domi-No-Driver Service

Domino’s reportedly launched the world’s first fleet of driverless delivery vehicles. Starting April 1st, customers ordering by either website or mobile app will be served by the automonous two-wheelers.

Honda’s HR-V Selfie Edition

With 10 cameras throughout both its interior and exterior, the HR-V Selfie Edition gives drivers the ability to snap self-portraits while the car is in park.

Groupon’s Grøüber

This mobile app lets customers request a car to take them to their Groupon deal. During the ride, Grouber cats stay focused on the red laser emitting from the front of the vehicle that keeps the car on track.

Firebox’s Smart ePants

As its name would imply, these microchip embedded underwear allow you to make secure payments with your backside.

Roku’s Rendezvous 

Roku debuted the first dating channel where single streamers are able to scroll through profiles of other streamers to find that special someone worth sharing the remote with.

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That all being said, despite being announced the week of April Fools’ Day, the news around Atmel’s SAM L21 is 100% TRUE. The ARM-based MCU consumes just one-third the power of existing Cortex-M solutions on the market, and is extending battery life from years to decades!