12 Futuristic Movie Gadgets We Need Right Now

Where are all those futuristic tech toys that were supposed to be gracing our lives by now? Sure, we’ve got gadgets and gizmos a-plenty; we’ve got whozits and whatzits galore. But we still need time-traveling DeLoreans, damn it, and shoes that lace themselves up without all that finger- draining effort.

[ Jetpacks, Androids, and the Future That Never Came ]

To be fair, Nike did release those self-lacing sneakers from Back to the Future. The only problem: They were missing the self-lacing capability. The shoes had the look and lights of Marty McFly’s famous kicks, but they lacked the coolest feature of all. Still, their presence was enough to get me thinking about all the awesome movie gadgets I’d like to have in my life. Some of them are pure fantasy; others could conceivably exist one day. All of them, though, have been the subject of countless geek dreams — and all of them would be amazing to own. So fasten your seatbelts, friends, and get ready to revisit some of the greatest movie gadgets of all time.

Also known as the “flashy-thing” (and sometimes the “flashy-thing memory-messer-upper”), the Neuralyzer helped maintain a sense of calm in 1997’s Men in Black and its 2002 sequel. Agent K and Agent J — aka Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith — used the device to wipe the memories of anyone who encountered an alien or had a run-in with the top-secret M.I.B. team. Only a special pair of protective sunglasses could keep you from getting flashy-thinged into blissful oblivion.

I’m not saying there’d necessarily be an ethical way to use this, but I’d be lying if I said there weren’t a few moments in my life when I wish I had one. Speaking of which, put on your glasses…

If you can’t flashy-thing someone’s memory away, why not at least make them see things from your point of view? The Point of View Gun, introduced in the 2005 film version of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, accomplishes just that: You fire the gun at someone, and suddenly, he understands exactly where you’re coming from.

Before you get too excited, though, take note: The gun won’t work on just anyone. According to the movie, it was created by the “Intergalactic Consortium of Angry Housewives,” whose members were fed up with their husbands’ lack of empathy. As such, the weapon works only on men.

On second thought, maybe we shouldn’t bring this thing into the world.

Speaking of avoiding airports, how nice would it be to handle your own air travel — by simply starting up the helicopter on your hat?

The Inspector Gadget helicopter hat could save us all time, money, and frustration. It could also give us great satisfaction in being able to shout “Go, go, gadget hat!” without being whisked away to an asylum.

[ 15 Fictional Heroes of Geek ]

The all-powerful remote from Adam Sandler’s 2006 movie Click is like TiVo on steroids: It lets you pause, skip, fast-forward, or replay any moment in your life.

Of course, Sandler’s character in the movie gets a little out of control with his clicker-given powers. But if we had one, we’d totally use it in moderation — right?

Oh, and a bonus: The remote comes with Christopher Walken as your personal (albeit somewhat creepy) tech support agent.