I can give you hundreds of definitions of what is a good design, right from Dieter Rams to Jonny Ive. The bottom line I think is just this, a good design is what appeals to the individual at that particular moment and if it solves a purpose for him/her, then even better! Red Dot Product Design is one jury that looks at all the angles and aspects of a design. For 2011 they have summed up their Best of Best designs and here is a small recap of my pick – 21 Good Designs in all!
If Samsung decided to dip its toe into the portable gaming market, would it look like the HD3 concept? Although it looks very similar to another portable currently out,
The Transducer Mobile Phone Concept breaks down the language barrier by being the perfect translator between you and the other caller. It has this cool function that allows
Have you heard of heliboarding? I haven’t but apparently it’s the hot new thing with adventurists. The AvA 299 DROP is a helicopter designed to take crazy snowboarders to locations not accessible by normal lifts. The entire cabin can lower them just enough to leap out and carve their stake across a mountain. The coaxial rotor blades spin in opposite directions to provide more power and negates the need for a tail rotor for stabilization. The design also addresses a number of problems with single blade rotors. Hit the jump!
Let’s just end the debate on the urinal and sink combo right now! I think this time the men folk will be happy about the angle, length and the gradient of the Tandem Urinal – Sink. No back-splash, easy hand washing and bowl cleaning is what we look forward to. Say yo! to water well used.
The Collector USB Flash Drive is one awesome concept that I’d love to see on shelves. The idea is simple. A USB Stick accommodates small capacity memory cards. Custom configure the stick or simply keep expanding, just do your techie thing and be happy! What a great way to use all those smaller cards laying around the house. Not sure how it deals with partitioning unless there are some smarts built-in to deal with hot swapping.
Here is a very special sneak-peek at what the students of Domus Academy have been up to.Electrolux commissioned the product design students to come up with ideas that support a better kitchen environment using existing technologies. Re-Source perceives appliances to be the best kitchen mate! Here’s a look at 9 exciting projects, some of which we will be looking at in-depth at a later stage.
1) Aeolus by Chi Rong Hsu
Aeolus is a smart extractor fan that whiffs out kitchen odors in a jiffy. It also adds space by accommodating utensils and glasses to be hung from its frame.
2) Breathe by Beyza Dogan
Breathe is a living kitchen appliance that literally ‘breathes in’ air pollutants through ionization.
3) Celcius by Marcela Vanesa Céspedes
Celcius is a kitchen waste disposal and recycling appliance, which uses enzymes to break down organic waste. Thus creating energy to heat your home.
4) Chefiamo by Jervis Chua
‘Chefiamo’ is a virtual cookbook that allows preserving traditional styles of cooking and inspires you with its recipes being projected to screen.
5) CLEAiR by Ariadna Tellez Rossell
CLEAiR is an air purifier that keeps you updated about the air quality at home.
6) Fulcrum by Surbhi Singhal
Fulcrum is a multifunctional modular kitchen that fits in a lot more than you think or expect.
7) KEWA (Kinetic Efficient Water Appliance) by Pietro Russomanno
KEWA uses air pressure for cleaning dishes. It directs water through kinetic jets to create a ‘water-blade’ That cleans pretty efficiently.
8 ) Wine by Jung Kun Choi
‘Wine’ is a wall mounted wine showcase that allows you to display and keep your wines at optimal temperatures.
9) Jumble by Zahira Ivelisse Crespo
Jumble is a flexible set of induction cooking plates that facilitate easy transfer of cooking vessels to different temperate zones.
Refresh is a charging station for 3 or more devices (depends on how large they are). The station comes with connectors for your most popular power hungry devices (finger points at my iPhone, Blackberry, and iPod). If your device uses mini, micro and standard USB, you’re covered too. It’s not anything fancy but as with all Bluelounge products, it’s about tidying up your space. Hit the link for a full list of compatible devices
I’m not a fussy tea drinker and don’t give a rat’s tail about blend, brew or steeping, but I have this tea connoisseur cousin who has painstakingly mastered the art of brewing his perfect cuppa. For the impatient and the perfectionists alike, we have the Tesera Teemachine. It is an automated tea machine that dishes out the perfect cup by controlling the brewing time, water temperature and the amount of tea, depending upon the blend being used. This is how it should be!
Digital development tools are an integral part of design and construction processes. m • pad is a Tablet PC that is optimized for the needs of designers and developers. It combines the advantages of intuitive multi-touch operation with the precision of a pressure-sensitive pen. Ooh! hit the jump for more.
Important keyboard commands are arranged next to the 15.6 “OLED display: nine fixed buttons, such as ALT, CTRL, etc., and two programmable buttons rockers with e-ink display, with up to 24 short-cuts for each software application can be assigned individually. The scroll wheel completes the gesture control in fast 2D navigation is optional, and a 3D space mouse. Improved ergonomics, the m • pad are inclined 15 degrees. Left-handers simply rotate the board 180 degrees. The integrated ball-bearing hub enables quick and always optimal alignment of the board for character work. With just 430x280x25mm, the m • pad is the perfect solution for mobile working.
The last time I bought a roll of film was probably in 2002 and quite honestly I don’t really miss the experience of changing rolls and getting photographs developed. What I do miss is the suspense! Suspense in wondering how the pictures will come out. Did we get good shots? Well, that thrilling experience can be duplicated with Digital Film; an analog-styled camera with a digital twist! Quite clever if you ask me!
I’m embarrassed to admit it but I was one of the first people to criticize the concept of cyber cafés and even bet they wouldn’t last. To cut the story short, I had to swallow my words and I’m here to make amends. What we have here is the Biz Café – a concept targeted towards the jet-set workaholics who need gadget ready environments even while relaxing with a cup of coffee. Think about it, most restaurants and glitzy places in town have access to our social profile and instantly ping the world with a status update! So yes, in the future we will need a semi-office environment, even in cafés, so that we don’t lose out on work!
The HTC New Eden 1 Concept is 1 of 2 designs to come out of the New Eden project, hosted by BriefMobile, that sets out to create the most appealing, feasible, hardware design for mobile devices. It aims to captivate with innovative and attractive hardware, as HTC did with the original Touch Diamond and other products that followed. The New Eden 1 is a device with a durable aluminum shell that combines traditional HTC design language with a fresher, more futuristic look.
I think it’s a good direction but something about the design, and to a larger extent all HTC phones, doesn’t feel effortless. Yes it’s clean and minimal but I think it’s time for designers to look elsewhere for inspiration. Apple has the whole slim aluminum and glass aesthetic down. It’s become a part of their DNA. Any manufacturer playing with those materials fall victim to the “it’s not an iPhone” category. There are other materials out there to play with – wonderful and tactile options that can enhance the mobile experience in a way Apple hasn’t thought of yet. Thinking caps ON!
Very basic and minimal if you leave it to Vrouyr Joubanian! He’s designed the Void mouse with bare-minimums; only one button that functions all as right, left, middle clicks and scroll. The hollow, wireless mouse sports uneven thickness ranging from 4 to 10mm and all the electrical parts are contained in the bulky bottom. It looks ergonomic enough for us to give it a try, what do you say?
