Life can be difficult. You come home from a long day at work, go to cook some spaghetti, and then realize what a deeply onerous task it is, so you live out the rest of your days in a pasta-less existence. But this dystopia need never come to pass if you had only looked at your television.

The answer to so many of life's problems can be solved with four simple words: as seen on TV. If you've ever had to carry a garden hose in your back pocket, cast a laser light show on your neighbor's house, peel eggs at lightning speed, or want to get into the Twinkee business, then you just have to turn on your TV and call the toll-free number.

Like toll-free numbers and the TV Guide-like logo that you see on the screen, as-seen-on-TV products are outdated. Who, in this Internet of Things world, needs The Clapper? And yet, late at night the lure to purchase these gadgets can be strong. We urge you to resist, or at the very least, avoid particularly useless ones.