don’t blame me, this is actually a fact
Genius concept, I’m sure it’s more valuable for Paparazzi than anyone else but that doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be kewl to have. On second glance forget about paying for something like this when you can spend an hour or two modifying an existing bag. Or just throwing together another one….for less than $50. Via Uncrate.
Since the white leather belt revolution is now dead (outside of New Jersey) enjoy a throwback sailor-style nylon offering instead. Not bad for $16 with a decent logo if you ask me.
In a classic case of releasing product that caters to the high end ProSumer and implementing a ‘top-down’ approach to building demand (mostly seen in the sports space) Astro Gaming has released a follow-up to their A40. And I want one now. Not only is the design rock solid but it scales well; use it for team-based gaming and remove the boom mic to take calls using it’s in-line 3.5mm mic cord, then take it on the road for listening to .mp3s with a decent pair of cans. Can’t wait to see what their product lineup looks like by the holiday season since it’s easy to platform allot of the components into the pure audio space. Not bad for a brand built by San Francisco ID consultants Astro Studios, part of a recent trend set by FuseProject and Jawbone. Check out the full article on Astro in fastcompany
I can’t help but want this even though the shipping is about half of it’s £27.50 sale price. Couldn’t even try to keep it clean anyways. Available for here.
I’m sick of thick casings set around oversized watch faces, multiple dials that no one really uses, and clunky armor-esque bands that rip out arm hair. As a breath of fresh air Plus Minus Zero rolls out this beauty featuring some slick wristband integration (removing the need for additional hardware) and a basic, easy to read face. It’s almost as if Fukasawa out-Muji’d Muji. I’m all about exclusivity but can someone tell me why I can’t buy this unless I take a trip to Japan? Via DailyIcon.
Whereas these look far from comfortable they definitely align with that West Coast/SoCal art/music scene look. Maybe the specific application isn’t my favorite in terms of appearance it’s awesome to see someone putting theory to use–designing with the potential of customization by the end user for mass produced products. Since people in the ID industry have talked about SLAs being used by consumers for one-off manufacturing for years it’s awesome to see it in practice, even if it’s just a concept.
I can’t wait until we can purchase products that have detail areas like this for a nominal upcharge. Even the roots of this today are far from open-source in nature. Take personalizing an ipod with a message for example…..no other manufacturer has implemented this and it remains a signature of Apple. This is a much more 3-D approach, which is more costly but infinitely more effective. Student Brian Garret Schuur’s work arrived in the form of a half dozen sites late last week…..
I just snatched up a pair of these Killer headphones in that sub-$60 sweet spot. I heart the throwback oversized over the ear cans with some retro-modern styling applied to the outer housing. That mirrored finish convex wrap around the 40mm drivers is enough to scream ‘passive noise reduction’ while the in-line cable with microphone keeps everything up to date feature-wise. Points for keeping the headband nice and simple. Get one for yourself over at AudioCubes.
At first I hated the oversized cap on this thing and then realized that it offers up a certain degree of character. After all, why spin all that new tooling if you can use something off the shelf from another product? Perfect offering from Stanley’s classic line. $17 here.
The Water Bobble is the latest in a line of water bottles made by designers in an effort to do three things: 1) create less waste by avoiding the use of multiple disposable bottles throughout the day, 2) increase a designer’s exposure and increase their AD community-assigned status, 3) prove that SIGG bottles are so 2008. The first is almost placating to the masses to drive purchasing and the second is a transparent effort to get that elusive ‘exclusively at Target’ product line. Third is funny because SIGG bottles are meant to be sustainable, but end up driving their own replacement with trendy graphic appliques. I like the replaceable filter component shown above which proves the concept is sound but the execution from Karim Rashid leaves something to be desired…… those filters look like tampons. There, I said it. Via Acquire.
with marketing like this, their 'strategery' is unclear. uhm, the phone is like a horse?
Do I think that a phone built by sportswear manufacturer can be a viable play in such a huge market? Probably not, but what it represents is important; when a company makes up it’s mind, reins in feature creep, and focuses, they can deliver their vision in a space crowded with juggernauts of industry. It’s not like they just dropped something weak in there to make a co-branded splash either. Anyone else remember the LG Prada? Didn’t think so.
Puma entered the fray with game changers in terms of both hardware, solar panel rear housing, and software, a nicely branded OS with some nice sporty widgets. With only one of those two factors it could stand side by side with any mid-tier touchscreen offering from, say Samsung. Of course it launches in Europe before anyplace else, too cool for the US market. How cool? I encourage you to take a look at the launch site which shows off some of the icon-driven UI and….the confusing-ass image that appears above. With no details as far as carrier exclusivity it’s a tough call to tell how it might migrate overseas, but I have to admit that I want one.