Gadgets
Over the Counter DNA Paternity Tests Seem Like a Great Idea
Posted by Jason Chen at 8:00 AM on March 26, 2008
After home pregnancy kits revolutionized stick peeing from an office to a home affair, the door was opened to the general public performing previously lab-only work on their own toilets. Identigene and Rite Aid have taken it one step further, allowing you to tell whether or not that kid is yours with a simple US$29.99 kit (plus US$119 lab fee) that includes three mouth-rubbing swabs. Results are obtained in the longest three to five business days you've ever experienced, but if you want a result that's actually "court admissible", you'll have to pay an another additional fee. And honestly, who would get one of these just out of curiosity and not have it be in preparation for some sort of custody battle? [DNA Testing via Gearlog]

Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
TWSS
Posted 10:59 AM 26/3/08
I'm not sure what the point of this product is. You could just TELL your kid that you're not the real father and screw them up perfectly adequately without having to blow $150+ on the deal. Hey, it worked for my dad!
TWSS
EBone
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
@CubFan81: That young woman seems to enjoy a lot of unprotected intercourse.
EBone
sqeakytoy of the apocalypse
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
*Stupid lappy keyboard... too many typos.
sqeakytoy of the apocalypse
sqeakytoy of the apocalypse
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
Now what the need to come out with is the Cheerleader/trailer park special with 25 swaps. That should be enough to cover the mom, baby, the whole football team, (offense and defense) as well as the coach and the boyfriend. Just to be sure.
sqeakytoy of the apocalypse
92BuickLeSabre
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
@SchruteBuck: Hey! I just noticed, I go away for a few days, and when I come back all you bozos have stars. Harumph. You can go stuff your "Zings" in a sack!
92BuickLeSabre
x23
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
@CubFan81: if i'm not mistaken... didn't that lady end up showing up like a total of 15 times and *still* didn't find the dad? not that 11 is fine and good or anything.
x23
x23
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
@bandit: i saw an episode of "My Two Dads" that had a very similar story line.
x23
Lizard_King
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
I agree with the artwork needing a change but couldn't they have named it something more flashy like "Ain't My Baby's Daddy"
Lizard_King
NDub
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
The box art I want to see is Jesus giving a guy a high five, while in the background, the devil is laughing and pointing at the womans vag area..... I need sleep.
NDub
CubFan81
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
@ideaman2020: if a kid has brown eyes while both parents have blue then yeah, there's reason to be suspicious. But he said a blue eyed kid from two brown eyes parents which can happen 25% of the time anyways.
My favorite:
+ Watch video
CubFan81
hnkelley
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
@SecretAsianMan: Wouldn't that be truth in advertising?
hnkelley
1roll20s
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
The box art should be some father dancing happily while a white trash mother with child looks dejected in the background.
1roll20s
sansovino
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
Makes an excellent gift for the special lady in your life!
sansovino
workingonyourinvoice
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
So is it mandatory for the mother to run offstage and stuff her face into the couch and cry after getting the results?
workingonyourinvoice
ideaman2020
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
John Mayer here.
@Darrone: If both parents have blue eyes and the child has brown, you can save your money by not buying this.
ideaman2020
Camperton
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
@wecanfreakit:
you beat me to it. I'm actually kinda stunned he wasn't mentioned in the article
Camperton
BigDanInTX
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
@Monty: Wow...someone else came up w/ it while I was typing... Must. Type. Faster. ;-]
BigDanInTX
BigDanInTX
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
"Luke...I'm not your father..."
"Nooooooooooooooooooooo!" (*shakes fist*)
Something pretty disturbing about this. I have two kids and there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that they are mine. They act so much like me it's scary. One looks just like me which is even scarier. ;-]
If one of the parents had doubts, they'd still have to acquire the other's swab or else try to do it in their sleep. I just don't see either scenario working out well. Is it really necessary to get the mother's swab?
Enquiring minds want to know.
BigDanInTX
IPT12AC3
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
you know what this means.... lol
IPT12AC3
Samifumi
Posted 11:00 AM 26/3/08
Darren McFadden is shaking his Dallas Cowboys helmet in anger.
Samifumi
Curves
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
Mamas Baby; Papas Maybe.
Curves
dvicklund
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
HAH I've heard commercials for this on the radio for a couple months now... The first time I heard it, I couldn't believe it. But now, I look forward to those times of day when I get to remind myself that I'm fortunate to know who my mommy and daddy are.
dvicklund
Evil J
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
My brother-in-law could actually use this.
His live-in GF just left him for her ex-boyfriend... pregnant with what is supposedly my brother-in-law's kid.
Sad thing is, my brother-in-law isn't white trash, but seems to be a white-trash magnet, so for guys like him... this is a good thing. Maybe not court admissable, but enough to get someone off your back who says that she's "certain" your the baby daddy despite fucking more than one guy.
Evil J
Amiash
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
This is good way of telling that you're adopted.
Amiash
Monty
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
"Luke, I am your father."
"NOOOOO!!! Oh, wait... I almost forgot. Could you wipe this swab in your mouth, and can we continue this conversation in a few days, please?"
Monty
EBone
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
@jbhitter24: It's some kind of oxymoron I think.
EBone
snakepliskin
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
Now i have to wait 3-5 days before i kill my exgf? Lame.
snakepliskin
EBone
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
@Darrone: Yes, but over-the-counter HIV tests are when the REAL hilarity ensues...
EBone
jbhitter24
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
@bandit: "good episode of "Two and a Half Men""
i don't understand.
jbhitter24
EBone
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
@bandit: That's what Maury Povich is for!
EBone
Darrone
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
@EBone: Dude, if you're the kind of mother that buys OTC paternity tests, theres a good chance she has no idea who the father is.... it would be easy to swab a guy while hes asleep. Did I mention this is great fodder for sitcoms?
Darrone
SchruteBuck
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
@92BuickLeSabre: ZING!
SchruteBuck
bandit
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
Could also be useful to remove doubts if the mother was knowingly involved with two men at the same time (e.g. pre-marriage breakup, swingers). There was a good episode of "Two and a Half Men" about that.
bandit
92BuickLeSabre
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
@SchruteBuck: You should see the art on the other side of the box.
92BuickLeSabre
SchruteBuck
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
@SecretAsianMan: How about a broken condom?
SchruteBuck
EBone
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
@SchruteBuck: Agreed. Looks like a mom holding a baby. Unless she's worried about a switcheroo at the hospital, she's gonna know what popped out of her.
EBone
Darrone
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
"an another"....
Um, how about any father that wants to know why the kid looks like the frigin mailman BEFORE he talks to his wife? I mean seriously, great product. More in the way of peace of mind when a kid has blue eyes and two brown eyes parents.
Darrone
SecretAsianMan
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
@SchruteBuck: What would you rather see on the box? A crying man?
SecretAsianMan
EBone
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
Not for me - I have no kids...THAT I KNOW OF! Hahahahahaha!!!
Sorry. Had a flashback to the 80s for a second there.
EBone
jbhitter24
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
i'm adopted?!?
jbhitter24
electrikecho
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
I'm not sure how this would sell, like Jason said, who would get one of these just out of curiosity [...] ?
The novelty of it would really put a family's trust in one another to the test: I'm sure if Dad discovers that the child is more related to his plumber than himself, he'd probably not just shrug it off like it was a non-winning lottery ticket.
I just don't see anyone I know bringing one of these to dinner with their parents.
electrikecho
SchruteBuck
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
I don't think the box art is really on target here.
SchruteBuck
wecanfreakit
Posted 11:01 AM 26/3/08
this is the end of maury as we know it.
YOU ARE NOT THE FATHER...
YEAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!
wecanfreakit
betogonza
Posted 1:34 PM 26/3/08
Hell yea, you can do it without her knowing!
betogonza
mlvds
Posted 5:26 PM 26/3/08
I take 500...please!
mlvds
ideaman2020
Posted 5:26 PM 26/3/08
John Mayer here.
@92BuickLeSabre: Some sneetches have stars upon thars...
ideaman2020
ackthbbft
Posted 3:37 AM 27/3/08
Considering more cynical estimates that 1 in 3 births are to men other than the ones named on the birth certificates, and the named ones get stuck with child support for 18 years even after learning it's not their kid, since many states only give as little as two weeks to contest the birth certificate, I think every "new father" should get one of these.
Even better, just make paternity tests part of the birth certificate process, so there are no mistakes. If it's not the guy's biological child, he can decide at that time whether to make it official and adopt.
/dons his flame-retardant gear
ackthbbft
MHooiman
Posted 5:48 AM 27/3/08
In Tennessee some are trying to pass a bill making a DNA paternity test mandatory at birth. I work for Identigene and it is my opinion that the legal system will have to catch up with DNA testing in many ways. Although, I am not sure about that bill. As far as the cover of our box I agree, however I believe there was extensive market research that went into the design.And hey, really... what could you put on the box that would be acceptible????
MHooiman