bells and whistles

bells and whistles

Additional features, perhaps trendy or fancy ones, that are not required for an object's proper functioning. This darn car has so many bells and whistles that I can't figure out how to open the gas tank! Do you have any cell phones with fewer bells and whistles? I really don't need anything fancy.
See also: and, bell, whistle
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

bells and whistles

Fig. extra, fancy add-ons or gadgets. I like cars that are loaded with all the bells and whistles. All those bells and whistles add to the cost.
See also: and, bell, whistle
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

bells and whistles

You can call special features of something bells and whistles if they are not necessary parts of something, but are added to make the thing more attractive or interesting. A lot of people want anxiety-free products — simple items without lots of fancy bells and whistles and complex instructions. Note: In the past, organs were played in cinemas when silent films were shown. Some of these organs had devices attached to them which produced sound effects such as bells and whistles.
See also: and, bell, whistle
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.

bells and whistles

attractive additional features or trimmings. informal
The bells and whistles originally referred to were those found on old fairground organs. Nowadays, the phrase is often used in computing jargon to mean ‘attractive but superfluous facilities’.
See also: and, bell, whistle
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

bells and ˈwhistles

attractive extra features: a software package with more new bells and whistles than ever
See also: and, bell, whistle
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

bells and whistles

n. extra, fancy gadgets. All those bells and whistles add to the cost.
See also: and, bell, whistle
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions

bells and whistles

Extra fancy features, extravagant frills. The term dates from the second half of the 1900s, and it may allude to the features of a fairground organ. It has been applied to products, such as a computer or automobile, and also to services. A business columnist in the New York Times, describing Cathay Airlines’s first-class amenities such as a full-size bed and an on-demand entertainment system, wrote, “So what do business travelers have to say about all the bells and whistles? Not a whole lot; their focus is on time management” (Sept. 28, 2004).
See also: and, bell, whistle
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
See also:
  • darn tootin'
  • darn tooting
  • darn
  • darn it
  • darn it!
  • fancy (one's) chances
  • fancy chances
  • fancy your chances
  • fancy your/somebody's chances
  • as, whenever, etc. the fancy takes you
References in periodicals archive
Bing, the new search engine from Microsoft, does not break new ground, but it does have a few appealing bells and whistles. Basic search results overlap with those from Google and other general web search engines.
Bing: contender or just bling?
The cost of developing a web site with the bells and whistles needed to protect the editorial content, while at the same time having the technology to sell online, is certain to cost a newsletter publisher much more today than it would have just a year ago.
Online revenues: "Take your best estimate for what you expect to collect and divide by ten"
Sharp's UX-340L and UX-345L models have all the bells and whistles found on other moderately priced fax machines, such as caller ID display, automatic cover sheet writer, 15-second-per-page transmission, and 10-sheet document feeder What makes this duo so special is they use low-cost routing (LCR), which allows them to automatically choose the cheapest available long distance carrier every time an outgoing, tax or phone call is made.
Sharp idea
My partner of almost 30 years and I just traded in a big-ass GMC Yukon XL for a sharp-looking Volvo V70 2.5T Titanium edition wagon with all the bells and whistles. It is our first foreign-made car, and we're delighted with it.
Our readers' cars
IOMA president David Foster said that his company was "generally a happy LARGO customer" but that IOMA was looking for additional "bells and whistles" to upgrade the functionality of its web sites.
LARGO's sudden doubling of fees upsets its many newsletter clients, some switch to Infocon
There are simply too many "bells and whistles" to choose from.
Actually, furniture choices can be crucial for efficiency
A: If you're in the market for a bargain PC, the first thing to be sure of is whether your computing needs can be satisfied by a system that may not have all of the bells and whistles of its more expensive siblings.
Q: What should I look for in a PC under $1,000?
Though it deals with many of Flight's themes (the homosexual mindset, the old man-young man relationship, the power of the flesh), it does so "straight"--no literary conceits, no artistic bells and whistles here.
Back to basics: from the masterful Mark Merlis (An Arrow's Flight), a merely pleasant novel disappoints
Tabloid-sized newsletters often tend to get carried away with graphic bells and whistles that leave the reader wondering where to start reading, but Health & Science Quarterly resists that in favor of respecting its readers by giving them a sophisticated and eminently readable publication.
Sophisticated, substantive tabloid wins Gold Award
While there is solid value to be found in this price range, you won't get bells and whistles, like loads of software and substantial expandability options.
When a bargain really isn't
The Swanke Hayden Connell-designed tower will have "all the bells and whistles," with backup systems, special HVAC, high electrical and floor loads, plus a gym and restaurant to take care of the people needs and not just the hard drives.
Gil Robinov of CB Richard Ellis
So even though PDAs initially cost around $1,000, you can easily spend as much as $3,000 if you add on all the available bells and whistles. The best approach is to purchase a PDA that comes bundled with features you want to use.
Choosing the perfect PDA: personal digital assistants help busy professionals
* Walk-ups are okay as long as you say they're "charming," but the richer X'ers want a doorman elevator building with all the services and amenities, and designer bells and whistles;
Marketing real estate to Baby Boomers
By providing a cost-effective and integrated way of getting the most out of your network, you can have all the bells and whistles of the more expensive solutions.
Low cost e-mail and fax solutions