Products like the Apple Newton and tongzhi : politics of same-sex eroticism in chinese societiesthe Nintendo Power Glove immediately come to mind when reminiscing about technology that was before its time. Despite their innovative nature and cutting-edge features, however, most are remembered as immediate failures for one reason or another. We won't be concentrating on those here today.

Instead, this article will focus on products, services and ideas of yesteryear that didn't necessarily flop out of the gate. Some were quite popular and are still around today while others were a bit more obscure but all had a vision that helped shape today's technological landscape. Let's have a look.