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Keller @ Large: Do We Really Need $720 Self-Lacing Sneakers?

BOSTON (CBS) - Remember that oldie from the 1960s by one-hit wonders Zager and Evans, "In the Year 2525"?

Zager And Evans - In The Year 2525 by eitan19611 on YouTube

One of the verses was: "In the year 5555/Your arms hangin' limp at your sides/Your legs got nothin' to do/Some machine's doin' that for you."

It may have seemed far-fetched back then, but so did the idea of the Red Sox winning a World Series.

Now, Nike has unveiled what promises to be the must-have sneaker of the season for the tech-obsessed, the HyperAdapt 1.0, a sneaker that laces itself.

No, I am not making this up.

For people with physical limitations that make tying shoes problematic, this is a real breakthrough, if you can afford the $720 cost. (Maybe TrumpCare will cover it?)

For the rest of us, for whom tying your shoes is a five-second process, the question is: really?

Nike HyperAdapt 1.0
The Nike HyperAdapt 1.0. (Image credit: Nike)

I understand that technology is an unstoppable process, and our fascination with it knows no limits. And we already are using our gadgets to do things for us that we really could do for ourselves, like turn lights on and off and look up a phone number.

(By the way, I like being able to dictate text messages by talking to Siri on my iPhone, but she is even worse than directory assistance when it comes to finding phone numbers.)

I'm not sure the HyperAdapt self-tying sneakers are going to be much of a time-saver, and every two weeks their battery has to be recharged.

But I am sure a world where we never have to lean over is asking for trouble.

It seems Zager and Evans' nightmare vision has arrived, 3,539 years ahead of schedule.

Listen to Jon's commentary:

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