In 2015 we tried hard to achieve Marty McFly's hoverboard-laden future with at least three separate efforts, but all we got in the end were some two-wheel balancing boards that sporadically catch fire. Elsewhere, robot battles between the US and Japan are brewing, we got some nice doses of gaming nostalgia, drones continue to evolve as the likely future of logistics, Bitcoin bounced back from a lackluster 2014 to become the best-performing currency this year, and a lot more.

#10 Japan accepts America's giant robot battle challenge

Two giant fighting robots - one American and one Japanese - are to face off against each other in a melee battle next year, piloted by drivers who sit inside them.

#9 This is how the ultra-rich watch box office releases at home, $500 at a time

PRIMA Cinema is billed as the first and only premium entertainment company to deliver new films directly to your home. But it'll cost you quite a bit.

#8 For Minecraft creator Markus 'Notch' Persson, life as a billionaire isn't all it's cracked up to be

Money doesn't buy happiness. Too much of a good thing is bad. More money, more problems. There are clichés out the wazoo that seem to describe the position that Markus "Notch" Persson has found himself in since offloading Mojang to Microsoft.

#7 A DIY expert explains why he only buys refurbs

Kyle Wiens of iFixit says every computer he's ever bought has been a refurb and it's not just about saving money, in this article he explains the logic behind this.

#6 UK farmer builds his own signal mast to overcome 1 Mbps rural internet speeds

A UK farmer who spent years having to endure an "unbearably" slow internet connection decided to take action by building his very own 4G signal mast.

#5 Reddit users close much of site in revolt over firing

Reddit users protest as Victoria Taylor – largely responsible for facilitating AMAs with various famous persons – is abruptly fired from the company.

#4 Astronomers say they have discovered a star that may be orbited by giant alien 'megastructures'

NASA's Kepler Space Telescope may have discovered a large cluster of objects in space that look like something you would "expect an alien civilization to build."

#3 $200 Beats headphones actually cost just $18 to make

Beats headphones, known more for their style rather than their actual sound quality, cost significantly less to manufacture than their retail price suggests.

#2 One-of-a-kind Nintendo PlayStation prototype surfaces

In the late '80s, Nintendo commissioned Sony to develop a CD-ROM for the SNES, a cartridge-based console that hadn't even been released yet. Licensing disputes ultimately derailed everything but led the way for the PlayStation.

#1 Man builds flying machine using 54 drone propellers and a garden chair

A British drone enthusiast known only by his YouTube user name, gasturbine101, builds a home-made flying machine using 54 counter-rotational propellers.