As every April 1, Silicon Valley bigwigs didn't hold back and organized dozens of April Fools' Days. The selection of the best ones
More than a fun or a pastime, a real mission to be carried out in the best possible way. This is the spirit with which Silicon Valley creatives, graphic designers and engineers wait for March 31 every year: by that date, in fact, they will have had to elaborate their April Fools' Day.
Google (always the most prolific in this field as well), OnePlus, Snapchat, Netflix, Amazon, Motorola, Lyft and PornHub. These are some of the U.S. hi-tech companies that, between March 31 and April 1, have tried to deceive Internet users with pranks planned more or less well. The Mountain View company, which in past years had been noted for the Internet connection that passed through the toilet, also had a primary role for April Fools' Day 2017, but there were also some "surprise" appearances. One out of all of them? IKEA, which announced that it was revolutionizing its children's area.
Google Maps and Ms. PacMan
Not a total novelty, but certainly much appreciated. For April 1, 2017 only, in fact, Google gave users the chance to play Ms. PacMan from its digital mapping app. All Android users had to do was update Google Maps on Android or iOS, open the app and hit the pink icon on the right side of the screen. In a matter of moments you were transported to a random location, thus being able to play Ms. Pac-Man on maps around the world.
Google Wind
(video taken from YouTube)
The Mountain View-based company is famous for its revolutionary ideas, capable of bringing innovation to any industry, but this one is actually a bit too over the top. Google Wind was born from the Dutch division of Big G and aims to control and influence the weather. Thanks to articulated machine learning algorithms and the many windmills in the Netherlands, Dutch engineers are ready to control the weather, making it rain on command. For the moment, though, it's just one of many 2017 April Fools' Day ideas from those nice folks at Google.
Google Gnome
(video taken from YouTube)
Artificial intelligence voice assistants for the smart home are now counted by the dozens. Of assistants for the garden, however, very few. So Google created Gnome, an outdoor version of its most famous home assistant. Thanks to Internet connectivity, it updates you on the weather, makes you control the lawnmower and much more. Also available is a cute set of accessories, suitable for protecting your assistant from the elements or adapting it to the warm weather.
Amazon Petlexa
(video taken from YouTube)
Retaining on the subject of artificial intelligence voice assistants, Amazon has long been at the forefront with its Alexa. With Petlexa, the global e-commerce giant hopes to make a very important market niche its own: that of pets. All it takes is a squeak from your hamster or a bark from your dog and Echo - the voice assistant "powered" by Alexa's artificial intelligence - will be ready to answer your four-legged friends' questions and requests.
Motorola Pet Mod
(video taken from Facebook)
To conquer the market, however, Amazon will have to contend with Motorola. The Chinese-U.S. smartphone manufacturer, in fact, released on April 1, 2017 its Pet Mod, a peripheral that allows the Moto Z to interpret the requests of dogs and cats at home. A project - called CANINE (Communicating Animal Needs In Normal Elocution) - that took a good seven years, but led to a great result: one of the best April Fools' Day 2017.
OnePlus Dash Energy Drink
(video taken from YouTube)
Dash is the fast charging system found on all smartphones from Chinese manufacturer OnePlus. From today, however, is also available for people in the flesh in the form of energy drink: just a can, says the claim, to have an instant energy surplus and get through the day without problems. Don't hurry, however, to look for it in supermarkets: obviously this is just an April Fool's joke.
Lyft Mono
(video from YouTube)
The future of car sharing and car pooling passes through wearables. Or, at least, that's what it looks like when you see the commercial launch of Lyft Mono, a wearable device designed and built by Uber's rival company. Just wear it to attract the attention of the service's drivers: equipped with four fuchsia LEDs, it's virtually impossible to see it. Although it was unveiled on April 1, 2017, it's still unclear whether it's actually an April Fool's joke.
IKEA Smaland
The Smaland, the small playground found in all IKEA stores, is a favorite area for adults and children alike. The Swedish do-it-yourself furniture giant is trying to improve it by replacing the ball pools and other "analog" games with tablets, smartphones and other latest-generation hi-tech devices. Not everyone took the news very well, but for a well thought out April Fool's joke it was really worth it.