Science Juicero, maker of the doomed $400 internet-connected juicer, is shutting down

https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/1/16243356/juicero-shut-down-lay-off-refund

Juicero, the company that made its name by creating a proprietary juice-squeezing machine, is shutting down. The announcement comes from Juicero's website. In its post, the company writes that it is suspending the sale of both its juice packets and its Juicero Press device. The last juice packet delivery will occur next week. All customers have up to 90 days to request a refund for their purchase of the Juicero Press, regardless of when they bought it. Fortune reports that employees are being given 60 days notice.

So it's time to say goodbye to Juicero, although we only knew its product for 16 months. The founder of Organic Avenue (a now-bankrupt restaurant chain), Doug Evans, introduced the device in March 2016. At the time, we scoffed at the fact that it cost $699 and required proprietary juice packs. Then in April 2017, Bloomberg published a piece that likely doomed the company to fail. Reporters found that the company's packs of fruits and vegetables didn't require the actual Juicero machine, but were instead squeezeable by hand. Basically, the pricey machine was completely useless, which wasn't a great look for the company.

After that PR catastrophe, Juicero said it hoped to eventually cut the cost of its machine to around $200. It also laid off 25 percent of its staff and offered full refunds, but that appears to not have been sufficient to keep the business afloat. Juicero fell fast. I just hope the bodegas can get a refund.

 

[AnOminous]

No, this is the video I was talking about, it's a teardown that shows and explains exactly how over-engineered this thing is.

I'm kind of smart enough to realize that anything that costs over a few bucks and all it does is squeezes a bag is paying too much.

I don't really need 40 minutes of explanation to tell me I'm right about that.

 

[The Fool]

I'm kind of smart enough to realize that anything that costs over a few bucks and all it does is squeezes a bag is paying too much.

I don't really need 40 minutes of explanation to tell me I'm right about that.

If nothing else it's decent tech porn. This really is a fancy device, even if it's a door stopper.

 

[ZehnBoat]

You can't roll out a product like this without thousands of people being involved.

Did literally nobody say, at any point in this process, "Wow. . .this idea is really stupid!"

What remaining faith I have in humanity says yes, somebody did say that.

They were immediately fired.

no one asked "why can't i squeeze the bag myself? what does the machine bring."
the only reason i can think of having the machine is if you're old or a kid (99/100 times a product like this exists to help old people or kids)
but then again if you can afford this machine, you can go to the store and get a nice small thing of juice and have that.

 

[Positron]

If nothing else it's decent tech porn. This really is a fancy device, even if it's a door stopper.

The gears are sexy, shame they clothed it in the tech equivalent of a burka.

 

[breadandcircuses]

Bags weren't the first idea. See, they wanted to make a cold press. And as seen in the video break down, it's got quite a bit of engineering. But here's the thing... to make a fruit/vegetable press... requires a lot of tonnage you can't put on a counter top.

So the unit they got can't press juice from regular fruits and vegetables, whole or cut up.

So then someone said: Hey, what about that keurig dealy? Can't we do that!?

And that's where we got squeezable juice bags for a juicer that can't juice fruits or vegetables.

It seems to me that they should have gone the food saver route. Instead of selling proprietary fruit bag mixes or whatever, they sold bags that you could put in your own masticated fruits and vegetables, then put them in the press and et voila.

But what the hell do I know? I'm an idiot!

 

[The Fool]

It seems to me that they should have gone the food saver route. Instead of selling proprietary fruit bag mixes or whatever, they sold bags that you could put in your own masticated fruits and vegetables, then put them in the press and et voila.

But what the hell do I know? I'm an idiot!

That's a perfectly reasonable logical conclusion. But you're thinking outside the box.
This guy, the guy who started this bullshit, really wanted to be the next Steve Jobs. If you ever heard any of his bullshit speeches (I have, and I can't even remember them because of how stupid and sugary they were), he basically wanted to make the Mac of juicers. And he did. It's just a shame he's a hack and nobody cared.
Oh, wait, no that's not a shame at all, actually it's a great thing and I hope this guy dies in a gutter.

 

[Computery Guy]

They got so far, and they did so much, and the entire time, not one person asked the most important question.

"Why?"

 

[The Fool]

They got so far, and they did so much, and the entire time, not one person asked the most important question.

"Why?"

This is why

 

[Morose_Obesity]

That's nothing, I have a bidet controlled by a Snes classic.

 

[frozenrunner]

I'm kind of smart enough to realize that anything that costs over a few bucks and all it does is squeezes a bag is paying too much.

I don't really need 40 minutes of explanation to tell me I'm right about that.

Yeah, but the guy who runs the channel needs content. So...

 

[Positron]

I actually hope Google continues to fund more products like these so I can continue to not buy them in the future.

I heard their next beneficiary is a device that dilates pseudovaginas. Of course it requires WiFi and a Google account.

 

[GabeRegan]

Anyone who paid $400 for this thing needs to have their head examined. The entire fucking point of a juicer is to make weird combinations using fresh ingredients. Whatever shit is in those bags isn't going to be any healthier than going to the store and buying a bottle of juice. The fact you can "juice" those bags by hand is just further proof of how fucking idiotic an idea this whole thing is.

I can't even give the jackass who invented the thing props for scamming people since they apparently sell the things at a loss hoping to make a profit from the juice packs, and it wouldn't surprise me if they were selling those at a loss too.

 

[Dysnomia]

It's a really stupid product and an obvious scam. Just get a decent juicer at a reasonable price. You're actually better off eating the fruits and vegetables as is though. You need the fiber plus it amounts to less calories and sugar.

At least they are giving refunds for their useless machine that is now even more useless since the hand squeezable packs will be unavailable.

This is the most excessively stupid hipster juice making process I've ever seen. You could squeeze out a glass of orange juice with a traditional hand juicer in less time than it takes to set this thing up. Why the hell do you need to scan a QR code? None of this makes any sense. It's like they made it as a joke to cash in on stupid hipsters who buy excessively expensive health doodads.

If your internet goes out then you can't make juice. Well unless you squeeze the bag. Anyone who bought this is beyond exceptional.

What is actually in the packets? Is it just a mush of pureed produce?

Oh wait. Editing because I found this:

Yep. Mush. You can make this at home for free!

 

[melty]

Why the fuck would a juice machine need an Internet connection?

It's the Internet of Things trend, it's a huge trend and buzzword. My friend works in product design and at his last company, he'd get a ton of people coming to them asking for quotes on their shitty IoT products. It's like people who don't have any really innovative ideas so hey lets just hook the internet up to your toaster! everyone will want it! If every 5th household buys it that's like sixty billion dollars revenue!
I sarcastically suggested something like a q-tip holder that sends you a text when it's low on q-tips and he said that's better than most of the ideas they were getting pitched.

 

[Sergeant Politeness]

It's the Internet of Things trend, it's a huge trend and buzzword. My friend works in product design and at his last company, he'd get a ton of people coming to them asking for quotes on their shitty IoT products. It's like people who don't have any really innovative ideas so hey lets just hook the internet up to your toaster! everyone will want it! If every 5th household buys it that's like sixty billion dollars revenue!
I sarcastically suggested something like a q-tip holder that sends you a text when it's low on q-tips and he said that's better than most of the ideas they were getting pitched.

Didn't this shit die in the 90s? Internet fridges and shit didn't sell then, you'd think they would've gotten the memo that they wouldn't sell now. Not to mention it's a massive security risk and computers are hard enough to protect. Do we really need a couple million toasters as botnet fodder?

 

[Manah]

If you don't understand why this device is useful, you clearly have overestimated the physical prowess of the average silicon valley hipster.

 

[AnOminous]

It's the Internet of Things trend, it's a huge trend and buzzword.

I call it the Internet of Dumb Shit. Most of it is useful only as buggy crap to get hijacked into botnets to be used for DDoS by sociopaths.

I sarcastically suggested something like a q-tip holder that sends you a text when it's low on q-tips and he said that's better than most of the ideas they were getting pitched.

I want an Internet-connected toothbrush that goes onto 4chan and calls OP a faggot.

 

[Positron]

It's the Internet of Things trend, it's a huge trend and buzzword.

Food on every plate, and spam ads on every fridge.

 

[Taily Puff]

I'm kind of smart enough to realize that anything that costs over a few bucks and all it does is squeezes a bag is paying too much.

I don't really need 40 minutes of explanation to tell me I'm right about that.

Yeah but over analyzing idiots and the stuff they make is a great way to unwind. It's why this forum exists after all.

 

[neverendingmidi]

I call it

I want an Internet-connected toothbrush that goes onto 4chan and calls OP a faggot.

I saw a bluetooth toothbrush at my dentists office, it connected to your phone to monitor the pressure and areas of your mouth that you were brushing. I'm guessing it was something Oral-b handed out in order to get the free toothbrushes because both my dentist and the hygenists rolled their eyes when I pointed it out and laughed at the idea.