April Fools' Day 2017: Don't trust anything
Keep a wary eye on your social media, and don't say we didn't warn you. These are the jokes and hoaxes spreading across the web.
- She has a master's degree in journalism from Syracuse University.
So there's the fake news that, some argue, could mean the end of civilization as we know it. Then there's the fun stuff.
Hello, April Fools' Day.
And it's not just for kids and that crazy cousin you never really trusted. The companies trying to sell you stuff also like to show they have a sense of humor.
So keep a wary eye on your social media. You're sure to see links flying across your Facebook and Twitter feeds about some ridiculous new venture from the likes of Google or McDonald's, and then five seconds later, wonder how you fell for it. Still, some pranks may turn out to be the real thing, just ahead of their time, like Google's 2014 joke that pretty much predicted Pokemon Go.
We're scouring the web to find all the hoaxes and jokes online so you can double-check whether what you saw is real or a prank. Some companies have already gotten a head start, like Lyft and Burger King. Remember, with April Fools' Day upon us, don't believe everything you see -- and verify before sharing.
Mono by Lyft: The ride-hailing company faked a new wearable that, it said, would let you catch a ride by raising a glove called the Mono. Lyft unveiled the prank Thursday, urging people to "get Mono" -- haha, get it, like the virus that's associated with kissing? Apparently, the thumbs-up glove actually works, according to a Lyft spokesperson.
Petlexa: It's Amazon's voice assistant Alexa ... but for your pets. The prank lets your dogs woof and cats meow to Echos in your home and order food or play fetch. The beginning of the joke clip also teases a fitness tracker for hamsters running on the wheel.
Whopper Toothpaste by Burger King: For when you always want to smell like fast food. Burger King France released a video on Wednesday showing off its April Fools' Day prank: a toothpaste that comes with "total whitening onion, daily fresh tomato and anticavity steak." Does anyone know if you can brush your teeth with fries? Asking for a friend.
Lexus Lane Valet: Sometimes, we wish an April Fools' prank were actually real. Lexus "announced" the Lane Valet, which uses autonomous driving and vehicle-to-vehicle communications to steer off left-lane hogs. The fake demo video shows a man driving slowly in the left lane and being automatically steered off by the frustrated driver behind him. Please be real soon.
T-Mobile Onesie: Forget smartwatches, Snapchat Spectacles and smart jackets. T-Mobile's joke could be the next intersection of technology and fashion: the connected onesie. The smart pajamas are described as the most "complete fitness tracker ever created," even getting down to tracking your bladder content.
OnePlus Dash Energy: The Chinese phone company is jumping into the energy drink game. OnePlus on Friday announced Dash Energy, an energy drink that could give you a full day's charge in 30 minutes, as a way to promote its the battery prowess of its phones. Unlike with other April Fools' pranks, though, OnePlus is actually making this a real thing you can get your hands on, on the streets in London, Finland and the OnePlus Experience store in Bangalore, India.
Free Flat Earth globe by Groupon: The site is taking a page out of Shaquille O'Neal's book and jumping on the Flat Earth bandwagon. Groupon is offering a free 2-D Flat Earth globe for April Fools' Day. "Look out any window or walk down any street. The ground is right there, and it's flat as an old soda." If only we were a disc floating on a cat in space. If. Only.
Coffee-flavored Coffee-Mate: If energy drinks aren't your thing, then what about coffee-flavored coffee? Coffee-Mate usually offers flavors like Caramel Macchiato and Sweet Creme, and for its April Fools' prank, it decided to double down on the classic coffee flavor.
KFC's Smart Bucket: Because everything is connected online now, KFC rolled out a smart bucket for its April Fools' joke, where you can order fried chicken with voice control, and use it to control your smart home. For Bluetooth it runs on "Limited Integrated Connection Kinetics (LICK)" and supports 401.17k/f/c Wifi. The power source is "Herbs and Spices." Kind of like the Pizza Hut smart sneakers, which we also wish were a joke.
Trulia's For Sale and Rental Pawperty pages: Real estate site Trulia unveiled property listings geared toward pets. So, if Fido or Fluffy could actually read, they could weigh in on whether your new apartment has enough nearby fire hydrants, or how good the local bird watching is. You know your cat would have an opinion.
IKEA's updated Småland: Time for some sad social commentary. IKEA Singapore posted on Facebook that it's doing away with its in-store playground, Småland, in favor of sitting pods and tablets because "studies of children's play habits reveal that today's kids prefer tablets to physical activity." Unfortunately, judging by the reactions to the post, the joke might be a bit too believable.
Auntie Anne's new logo: In an effort to court millennials and Gen Z, the pretzel chain is launching a rebrand. In this prank, it's taken two years of marketing mojo to replace the halo that usually sits atop the Auntie Anne's pretzel with a flower crown, like one you might find in your Snapchat filters. "While it was an arduous process, the end result is a look that's, as the kids say, 'lit,'" the company said in a fake press release.
Samsung Exynos Yoga Processor: A foldable, flexible device might only exist in our April Fools' dreams just yet. Samsung tweeted a picture of "the industry's first flexible mobile processor." D.J. Koh, Samsung's head of mobile business actually discussed the idea with CNET's Shara Tibken saying, "I'm very much interested in that form factor. If you ask me, 'Hey D.J., can you commercialize this year a flexible form factor of a smartphone?' Today I will say maybe not. But that form factor, I'm very, very much interested in. That's one I want to try in the future."
Quilted Northern's uSit: And now for some bathroom humor. The toilet paper maker wants in on the health tracking craze with uSit, a device that keeps tabs on your, well, bathroom habits. And because nothing's real until it hits social media, uSit lets you notify friends and even compete with them.
Hinge's Parental Controls: Dating app Hinge is giving your parents control over your love life. Thanks to these (mercifully fake) parental controls, you'll only see users your parents approve of based on filters like occupation, timeframe for children, and distance from Mom and Dad.
Duolingo's emoji language course: It's not the worst idea. The language learning app will help you reach fluency with emojis. "Emoji is spoken by over 2 billion millennials across the world," according to a fake press release.
Alamo's Self-vacationing Fleet: Apparently autonomous vehicle technology is a lot more advanced than we thought. This April Fools' initiative from rental car company Alamo heralds the introduction of a fleet of cars that can plan your vacation for you. Let's just hope the car remembers to let passengers out for bathroom breaks.
Roku SnackSuggest: Streaming box Roku wants to make snack recommendations based on what you watch. All you have to do is disclose tons of personal data about your build, taste preferences, and dietary restrictions and boom -- get yourself some mutton for the next time you watch "Game of Thrones."
Target: The retailer is taking a slightly different approach to April Fools'. Instead of launching a bogus product, it's offering a buying guide to help you pull pranks on your unsuspecting family, friends or co-workers -- offline.
Hulu's Hu: Citing the figure that the human attention span has plummeted to a mere 8 seconds, Hulu is fake-introducing Hu. Hu is a service that condenses your typical Hulu viewing down to 8 seconds a pop. So much for binge watching.
Google Maps' Ms. Pac-Man: It's not an outright prank, but Google Maps now gives users the option to play the game Ms. Pac-Man in the location of their choosing.
Progressive's Red Planet Protection: Want a quick way to make humanity's journey to Mars feel mundane? Start talking insurance. Progressive's prank this year is just that -- insurance for your rover, pod or aircraft against threats like dust, meteors and aliens. Clearly, Progressive knows something NASA doesn't.
Tinder's live date: The dating app promised a Facebook Live stream of a live date. Just imagine the potential -- anything could happen. When the live stream started on Friday, it was indeed a live date, as in a stream of the fruit version of a date, sitting on a table.
We'll be updating this page as more jokes roll in, so stay tuned and stay skeptical.
First published March 31, 7:56 a.m. PT.
Update, 12:57 a.m. PT: To add Google Maps, Hulu, Progressive, and Tinder's April Fools' pranks.
