Innovation in product design is all about balance. Push too hard and youll alienate people. Play it safe, and you risk being outmaneuvered by your competitors. The items in this list, all of which debuted this year, reside in that perfect little Goldilocks Zone of product design; not too cautious, but not too crazy, either, these designs get forward-thinking just right.
01
Nike HyperAdapt 1.0
Credit: Nike
Nike spent 28 years developing the HyperAdapt 1.0, its self-lacing,Back to The Future-inspired shoe, and its a serious feat of engineering. The shoe is stuffed with advanced technology, but you wouldn’t know that from looking at it. A lace engine in the sole attaches to proprietary Flyknit filaments, which surround the foot. When the wearer steps into the shoe, a sensor alertsthe engine, which cinchesthefilaments around the foot in search of the perfect fit. The result is perfectly tightened set of laces that you neverhave to touch.
02
Xiaomi Mi Mix
Credit: XIAOMI
The most stunning phone of the year didnt come from Apple or Google. It came from Chinese company Xiaomi, whose Mi Mix is an impressive piece of industrial design. The phones 6.4 inch screen extends to the edge of the phone, which gives it the appearance of a glassy infinity pool. The screen is so big, the phone is essentially bezel-less, which meant the selfie camera had to be pushed to the bottom of the phone and the fingerprint sensor to the backside. Xiaomi made similar concessions with the speakers, of which theres only one. Sound from the phone comes from a piezoelectric actuator, which converts vibrations into sound. For now, the Mi Mix is only available in China, but don’t be surprised ifsimilar full-screen phones start showing up in theUS.
03
Autodesk’s Elbo Chair
Credit: Autodesk
Autodesks Elbo Chair is the result of an uncommon partnership. Designers in the company’s generative design lab harnessed the power of algorithms to make the organic wooden seat. To start, the designers fed a 3-D model of a chair inspired by Hans Wegners iconic Round Chair and Berkeley Mills Lambda Chair into Dreamweaver, Autodesks generative design software. Next, theystipulated that the seat be 18 inches off the ground and capable of supporting 300 pounds. Thenthey let the algorithm do its thing.Every so often, the humanswould pick one of the algorithm’s designs,and the software would propagatea new lineage based on their selection.The result was the chair you see here—a skeletalcreation that points toward a future in whichdesigners collaborate with algorithms onnew ideas.
04
Apple iPhone 7
Credit: Apple
At first glance, the iPhone 7 isnt all that different from the 6 and 6s. Its blacker, sure, but it still has those softly rounded corners and that big, glassy screen. What distinguishes theiPhone 7 is what its missing. The phone is the first without a headphone jack, which means youre either buying dongles for your existing cans or upgrading to a wireless pair. Whether you love it or hate it doesnt matter—if other companies follow Apple’s lead (and they probably will), the company will have setyet another precedent for how you’ll interact with gadgets in the future.
05
Impossible Project I-1
Credit: Impossible Project
The Impossible Projects first camera, the I-1, is both an homage to the past and nod to the future. The Berlin-based company, which has been making instant film since 2008, worked with Swedish studio Teenage Engineering to blend the best design elementsof old Polaroid cameras with modern trappings. The cameras form is still boxy, likethe original, but its also more compact. Clevertechnological touches, like the LED-ring flash and a Bluetooth-connected app, help you dial in on that vintage look.
06
The FADE Task Lamp
Credit: Josh Valcarcel/WIRED
The designers atSan Francisco studio Box Clever wanted to create something with the versatility of aspring-balanced lamp in a dramatically simpler package. Two years, one spinoff studio, and untoldhours of prototyping later, they releasedthe stunning FADE Task Light. Hidden magnets let thearm articulate smoothly when you want it to, and keep it in placewhen you dont. That versatility extends even to the lamp’s base, where an X-Y controller lets you controlthe temperature and intensity of the light emanating from the lamp’s LED array. It’s a whole lot of light in a deceptively simple package.
07
Withings Thermo
Credit: Withings
Most thermometers are invasive. They require being stuck into an orifice, whether thats your mouth, ear, or…something else. Withings new Thermo, which looks like a chunky marker, utilizes an entirely different gesture. Touch the Thermo to your temple and 16 infrared sensors in its tip collect around 4,000 temperature readings in two seconds. Because the temperature readings work best when the sensors are two centimeters from the heat source, Withings added a raised edge to the end of the thermometer. This means users will always position the Thermo just right— even when theyre delirious from a fever.
08
PlayStation VR Headset
Credit: Sony
Compared to the understated aesthetics of the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, the PlayStation VR looks decidedly futuristic. But its killer feature (besides plugging into a game console that 40 million people already own)isn’t its looks; it’s comfort.That’s in spite of its heft. At 624 grams, it’s significantly heavierthan the Rift (495 grams) and Vive (555 grams), but PSVR’s designers shifted the headset’s pressure points from the nose, cheeks, and eyes to a padded band that rests against the forehead. They also uncoupled the headset’seyebox from the headband, allowing users to dial in the perfect fit. The result is the most comfortable high-end VR headset on the market.
09
Pax 3
Credit: PAX
Aesthetically speaking, the Pax 3 bears a close resemblance to thetwo generations of vaporizers that precededit—but its guts were redesigned to make the toking experience easier and more enjoyable. With the press of a button, it heats up in 10-15 seconds. Shake it, and the LEDs display how much battery is left. It accepts both concentrates and dry herb, and evenpairs wirelessly to an appto give you precisecontrol over settings like temperature. Low-key tokers will appreciate the new haptic feedback; the Pax now pulses in your hand when it’s ready,so you can keep it out of sighttill you’re ready to smoke.
10
Dyson’s Cu-Beam Duo
Credit: Dyson
Your offices lighting probably sucks. Often its a too-bright, one-size-fits-all overhead solution. Jake Dyson (son of James Dyson) has a better way. Hes calling it the Cu-Beam Duo, an LED fixture that suspends from the ceiling and directs customizable parcels of light where and how you needit. The crux of the system is its driver, which lets youadjust the ratio of light beaming upwards and downwards. Dyson is betting, like his father did before him with vacuums, hand dryers, and hair dryers, that a hyper-sophisticated version of an everyday object will be worth the premium you pay for it.
11
Microsoft Surface Studio
Credit: Microsoft
Microsofts Surface Studio isnt for everyone; the $3,000 desktop computer is aimed squarely at the creative set. With its massive 28-inch monitor and a hinge system that allows the display to become a tabletop touch-screen, its easy to see why: The Surface Studio is more interactive drafting table than it is computer, and proof that Microsoft is thinking seriously about what the future of desktop computing shouldlook like.
12
Oculus Touch
Credit: Oculus
The new Oculus Touch controllers make VRmore immersive than ever. Capacitive sensors trackwhich fingers are on the Touch and translate their positions into in-game hand gestures. It’s the closest anyone’s come to reproducing a player’s hands in VR, and a sign of the steps designers are taking to make virtual reality feelever-more real.
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The post The Most Innovative Objects of 2016 (That Youll Actually Want to use) appeared first on MavWrek Marketing by Jason
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