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Did you know there's a pickle eyeshadow palette? Or a portable toilet seat that attaches to your car tire? Neither did we. But regardless of their questionable viability, these items exist. And you can find them on the subreddit r/OfCourseThatsAthing.

Named after pretty much the only reaction people have to its content, the sub has grown to a 739K member community, and even though we at Bored Panda have already covered it before, these folks keep unearthing the most creative and weirdest products, so we have to do it again!

Scrolling through the images, it's hard to imagine someone greenlighting these ideas. David Pereira, the Head of Product Management at Virtual Identity, thinks it often happens when development gets too 'dry.'

"Products are built for people. Yet, many people lead product innovation through numbers, which means people become numbers [and] behaviors become data points," Pereira wrote. "Therefore, misunderstanding of the audience is inevitable because of too many false assumptions. Product teams that don't challenge the data become blind and build useless products."

#3

Katana Umbrella

Katana Umbrella

shakaifuangaarimasu Report

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ZuluIsraeliAmnesiac
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have a Bleach-style katana umbrella. Just had laughs from subway security in China. Nothing wrong with this... Quite normal I would say, so many other themed umbrella out there

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Anthony Picco
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Something similar to this (a full size umbrella with a strap) this had a cop pull a gun on me, thinking I had a rifle strapped to my back

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Jaekry
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And if I remember correctly... Kind of illegal in some places.

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Bored bunny
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Can you send me the link? For..Research purposes you know :)

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SuperChicken
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Here you go - https://www.katanlla.com/ . I had to look it up, because you know... asking for a friend.

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My Name Is Mars
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My son has two. He's Cambodian but obsessed with Japanese culture.

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MimSorensson
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I’ve got one of those. I was stopped by cops because of it, but it was worth it.

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Sue Phillips
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I am a SoFla native, and we all know the only people who carry umbrellas are tourists. But for that, I would definitely need dis...

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Jennifer Norton
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The company I work for makes one that looks like Deadpool's sword and we sold it to ThinkGeek, they reordered it a ton of times. I think in total they sold well over 10,000 units of it!

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Kirsten Kerkhof
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I bought this in Tokyo for my brother. It is a good umbrella though nobody actually noticed that the handle is katana shaped.

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GoddessOdd
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This looks like it might get you in trouble... pausing for a moment to consider that children are being shot for "brandishing" toy weapons and cell phones, a katana umbrella might seriously endanger your life in the wrong circumstances.

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d bradley
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

why?... i've never seen a samurai sword fight in a rainstorm

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Stephanie Keith
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When I want to feel like a bad a s s! I know which umbrella to carry.

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Bored koala
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have one!!! It is so fun to take to school.. ive scared some people 😁

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Jack Tripper
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have one of these! Bought it at an art supply store over 10 years ago! Best umbrella I've ever owned.

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Gata Nick
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I went through Barcelona Airport with one of these. They asked me questions lol

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The product manager pointed out that there's nothing wrong with being data-driven, it's just that teams need to understand when to apply numbers and when to stay away from them.

"Data will bring us insight from the past, showing details about customer behavior... However, we should not overlook the power of observation," Pereira said. "Once we observe real people using real products, insights will come to us [naturally], and [we'll be able to] understand how people use the [said] product [way better]."

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#7

When Ya Gotta Go, I Guess

When Ya Gotta Go, I Guess

RikuXander Report

#8

Same-Height Parties

Same-Height Parties

Anxious-Boxtop-7293 Report

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Sum Guy
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is actually cool in a funny way... the party itself seems weird because of the people there.

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Pereira is a big fan of prototyping. "I prefer accepting that [I] don't know enough; at best, [I] have a set of assumptions, which need validation as fast as possible. That's my approach for [all] ideas."

In his opinion, the Lean Startup method created by American entrepreneur Eric Ries is an excellent way of building products that solve real problems.

However, I guess it's either we have less useless stuff or more content on r/OfCourseThatsAthing. How can we possibly make this choice?!

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#15

It's Not Just Lip Service ...

It's Not Just Lip Service ...

__red__5 Report

#16

For Those Who Hate Masks, But Find Looking Like A Crashed Cable Car Cabin Acceptable

For Those Who Hate Masks, But Find Looking Like A Crashed Cable Car Cabin Acceptable

bendinven Report

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Sum Guy
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's a walking pod PRO. when you want to professionally walk to the place where they will be laughing at you

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#17

Chernobyl Snow Globe

Chernobyl Snow Globe

Lienshi Report

#21

#becausewhynot

#becausewhynot

fishflavoredbeer Report

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Sonja
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

ok...is this available in my country? need to check..for a friend, of course. Are those pages waterproof? For watercolours, of course.

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#25

Glass Holder

Glass Holder

SpeckyYT Report

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Tomáš Houdek
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Not stupid at all! I've been many times to a wine festival thats held outside, where you taste 80 samples at 12 stations spread around entire village. They give you similar wine glass holders so you can walk freely enjoying the day. The holder is ussualy woven rattan or fabric.

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#26

A Glitter Keychain Of The Adobe Photoshop Crash Window

A Glitter Keychain Of The Adobe Photoshop Crash Window

JacobWard_9 Report

#27

Fine China Toilet

Fine China Toilet

iamchin Report

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Serial pacifist
Community Member
2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The poor parrot gets shi*ted in the face all the time, and the lions just laugh.

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#30

Nose Plug Air Filter... Don't Sneeze

Nose Plug Air Filter... Don't Sneeze

ShanitaGilreath Report

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Otter
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Be prepared to took on the floor for them, each and every time you sneeze!

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#33

3-D Printed Head Urn For Your Loved One’s Ashes

3-D Printed Head Urn For Your Loved One’s Ashes

gameover1979 Report

#35

Yes A Waching Toilet Paper Does Exist

Yes A Waching Toilet Paper Does Exist

legrosnoobnbr3 Report

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troufaki13
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'll pass, thanks. I mean, I love the environment just as much as the next person, but this is too much

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Note: this post originally had 65 images. It’s been shortened to the top 35 images based on user votes.