@Stacy: Well, the light could easily be turned off, like a penlight or something. I was just thinking it could possibly provide some kind of extra hazard-protection.

There's another potential use for a lighted gadget, though, for people who might use them to consolidate all of those wires behind their computers. . ..

For example, I have a jumble of messy wires behind my desk right now: computers, server, printers, speaker wire, etc., and if I had some of these things and was able to minimize and color-coordinate the cords lights behind my computer (for example, such that I knew the USB cord to the speakers were green), that would make things much easier when I'm testing a new linux distribution or something.

P.S. I quite resented that question on the $20 "n00b survey" asking us if we are Macs or PC. I am neither since I prefer Linux. :P

If I had a bunch of these stacked near my computer, I'd prefer no extra light emission. I'm a low-emf kind of gal; plus I spent years sleeping near my work desk and like to keep the old circadian rhythm thing going (when I'm not up too late hyped up on caffeine).

Agree with Shawnee, add a green LED as an indicator

I'd like a "braking system" designed into it, so that it doesn't run away when it gets yanked. I was thinking of something like the slide lock on a tape measure. Also would be cool if I just had to push a button (or unlock the lock) and it would retract.

I like it! A wired tech-fiend's ally. ;) Go for a slightly oval shape to put less stress / tension on the machines being connected (an entirely round shape would pull weight down, adding stress to the cord of the connectees and connectors. Don't waste production expense on "feet"; cord-savers aren't meant to be static showpieces; they're meant to be light and minimize floor hazards. Besides, what if somebody threaded theirs backwards and ended up with those "feet" sticking out of the top, looking goofy? It should just naturally lie flat, like a power brick, and look exactly the same on the top and bottom. It should be light, seamless, and not add any unnecessary bulk. I like the idea of thin, clear plastic as material. Perhaps even add a small colored LED light on the inside, to make the whole mechanism "glow" niftily.

Regarding the loading mechanisms for people to add their cords, I think it would be neat to have a "pop up and twist out" (an oval design would be very beneficial to this; perhaps I can submit a drawing later, but be forewarned that my drawing skills suck) way, to where people would only have to fold their cord in half, wrap it around the center reel, and let the gadget do the rest of the work, winding up.

Stackability might be nice, what function would spinning serve? One end of the chord needs to go one way and the other needs to go another way. What advantages are there to spinning?

PVC can be a propper material choise.

How about a small ball on top and a receptor in the bottom so that they could stack and spin.

This is perhaps the most practical design presented. It is presumable that the product's purpose is to save space by cutting down on the cable chaos. While the other designs are nice and even stackable, this small one seems to be the most in line with the products purpose.

felipe - what is the advantage of making the cable travel in the same direction?

I agree that some sort of weight or "sticky" options should be added as the smaller ones would most likely be more light-weight. Velcro creates to much of an issue for the user as it needs an attachment point (adhesive to desk). Magnets sound decent, but can be risky business around pieces of tech. I would tend to move in the direction of some sort of suction "cup" device, or even a pad like those that keep cell phones stuck to car dashboards.

How about making the cable outlets movable, sort of like arms maybe y you are using both cables on one direction...